So, I live in the Dallas area and there is a local cider brewery here called Bishop Cider that a friend of mine owns. I purchased a keg of one of their various ciders and really enjoyed having it at home. I run a dual line kegerator and usually have two torpedo kegs in at a time. After we finished our keg of cider and the other keg of another local pale ale, I decided to get another keg of the cider. We couldn't afford to buy two kegs at the time, so I just turned the CO2 off and unhooked the empty cider keg while leaving the other empty keg still hooked up. My wife picked up the new keg of cider and tapped it as I was on my way home. She never has done it before and couldn't figure out how to set the PSI on the CO2. So, the keg was tapped but without the CO2 set. HOWEVER, I got home about 20 minutes later and put the CO2 at 12 PSI. We poured a couple of glasses and the cider tasted flat and had virtually no fizzyness/bubbles, which the previous keg of the same cider had. I think we got a flat keg, as I seriously doubt the keg lost all of its carbonation in only 20 minutes. Plus, it tastes very different than the previous keg we had a week ago. Is it possible to get a keg that is uncarbonated? This is the first time I have encountered this problem after about 20 kegs of beer in this kegerator. Thanks in advance.
if you leave the keg tapped with pressure applied it will become carbonated. keep it cold. it is possible that the keg was flat to begin with. small brewers are not immune to production issues. but given that you think it was improperly tapped it is just as likely you degassed the cider. again, leave it tapped and it will become carbonated. just give it time. the change in flavor is possibly due to the fact that flat cider or beer does not have the same acidity as if it were carbonated. CO2 gas has a metallic bite. the presence or lack of CO2 will greatly effect the flavor and aroma of the cider or beer. Cheers.
yes, 304 ss is recommended for cider and wine. the acidity of these products can etch the chrome plating and expose the underlying brass. it is the brass that can change the taste, not the chrome. in practice, most places are still using chrome plated hardware with no ill effects. if and when the chrome wears away, the replacement should be ss. if there is brass showing, then it should be replaced. that is usually not going to be the case with home systems though. Cheers.
