For the Poker Room.... BEER

[chaas4747]

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Gotta agree that PBR is the best of the American lagers (OK, piss-beers if you will...).

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What do you think of Yuengling?

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I would have to say that this is probably the best non-micro beer made in America. To bad I can't get it in Kansas. Damn I miss Philly.

[gojacketz]

Have you guys ever been to beeradvocate.com? Great site a buddy of mine turned me on to a couple of months ago. They have reviews of just about any beer you have ever heard of or seen.

Gojacketz

[Brain]

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What do you think of Yuengling?

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It's my favorite cheap beer, but I may be biased since I'm from PA too.

[MagicFlea]

Before you accuse of repeating, I skipped reading everything...

I had a kegorator in my dorm room this whole year and it was awesome. One of the guys built it from an old fridge and a conversion kit. All the problems we thought we'd have with it (cleaning, replacing the CO2 frequently, etc) turned out to not be a big deal at all. We did spend a lot on beer, and our friends did mooch off us all year, but it was worth it just to have cold beer on tap. I say go for it.

[StevieG]

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What do you think of Yuengling?

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It's my favorite cheap beer, but I may be biased since I'm from PA too.

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The nice thing is, Yuengling is starting to become more available along the east coast. I recently had it in NC and SC, and I know Tampa has it, too.

[smoore]

heh, thinking about it now... if I could make a bill acceptor+keypad that would dispense 12+oz of beer and shut the line back off I would not only be a rich man but would be idolized by legions of college students.

[RunDownHouse]

Back when I made my first kegerator, I found a page an engineering student made that did just that. He got the proper electronics, attached a piece of sheet metal to the door, attached the coin acceptor thingy to the sheet metal, and was able to set the amount of time it would dispense for how much you plugged into it. It looked cool in a "huh, that's neat" kind of way, but was way too complicated for anyone other than a bored engineer.

[gr8vertical]

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This is what I got But I got the CO2 tank from the local CO2 supplier for a small deposit.



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Thanks for that link, that site is awesome. I will be buying some stuff from there [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[MeridianFC]

If you're going to get a kegerator, like several here, I'm going to suggest you go one of two routes:

Convert an old fridge or buy a used pro unit.

Converting an old used fridge is probably the cheapest. You'll even find people giving away their old used ones if you'll just haul it away. Two tricks to remember are:

1. Measure (and measure again). 1. Make sure it'll hold a 1/2 barrel (i.e standard) keg. Some people only want 1/4 (i.e pony) kegs but if you're going to do this flexibility is key. If it'll hold a 1/2 it'll hold a 1/4 and 1/6.

2. I'd also drill the shank through the door. There's too much chance of hitting a refrigerant line in the sides. If you ruin the lines you have just bought a large, heavy, useless box.

The downside of the full size fridge conversion is they are a bitch to move. I see these for sale all the time mostly because someone is moving and these things are such a bear to deal with.

Get a used pro unit is the more expensive option, but in some ways I feel is better. Units by Beverage-Air (sometimes labled "Superior"), True, Perlick, or Continental can cost well over $1K new but if you're patient you'll come across them in the $500-600 range. I just got an old Bev-Air BM23 for $450. It need new lines and I added a two tap tower but it works a treat. I saw another one only a year old for $600. These will hold either one 1/2 keg or 2-4 1/6 kegs. The towers are cooled so you don't get foaming for the first beers evertime. They also keep temperature more consistantly. In addition they always have wheels and are very easy to move. There's are reason you don't see these used for sale as often as other units, people keep 'em (or bars buy 'em).

The units you see from Haier, Sanyo, Summmit, and Danby are usually in the $500-600 range new but the towers aren't cooled and they can have freezing issues. Haier (always at Bestbuy) in particular has a pretty bad rap (check Amazon.com). Sanyo or Summit seem ok if you're willing to put up with a bit of foaming for first pours or when the unit sits for a bit. Frididaire was just come out with a good looking new unit where the shank is right in the door so that eliminates that problem. There's even space for other storage. They're a bit pricey and I've not seen any reviews on them as they are so new but they seem like they'd be good.

In the end it doesn't matter how good your equipment is if you don't keep it clean. Every two weeks or so, or at least at every keg change clean the lines, faucet, and coupler (people always forget the coupler).

For equipment for conversion or new units I prefer micromatic.com they're knowledgeable (draft beer is all they do), friendly, and fast. I've heard good things about beveragefactory.com too.

On the issue of draft versus bottle, in the US draft beer is not pasteurized which is one of the main reasons it tastes better than bottled. Unfortunately all imported beer is pasteurized but you still can find some damned fine brews.

[Sarge85]

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Poker table is done [img]/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]

Racetrack design...suited casino cloth.

Soon as a get a decent camera I'll get the pics up.

Sarge[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img]

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