T HANK Y OU F OR P ROTECTING B EER P ERFECTION
Dispensing Draught Beer can be very simple, but does require a fairly exact science
to achieve SYSTEM BALANCE. System Balance is achieved when the correct beer
TEMPERATURE and the correct applied PRESSURE are equal to the LINE RESTRICTION.
This module will cover the three basic components to achieve System Balance:
•Temperature
•Pressure
•Line Length
For a more detailed explanation of draught
systems, please visit:
www.draughtquality.org
T HANK Y OU F OR P ROTECTING B EER P ERFECTION
Don’t underestimate the power of Temperature!
Temperature and pressure need to be in perfect harmony to play nicely together! The ideal dispense
temperature is 38°F. You will only be able to stray about +/- 1 degree of this and still pour properly. For
any pouring problems, ALWAYS take a temperature of the beer coming out of the faucet – it may
surprise you!
•Temperature that is too low allows too much
CO2 to absorb into the beer, causing foam –
this happens over time
•Temperature that is too high allows CO2 to
break-out of the beer, causing foam – this
happens immediately
T HANK Y OU F OR P ROTECTING B EER P ERFECTION
Pressure is relative to the elevation and temperature of the product. Assuming sea-level and 38°F, the
regulator setting should be 12 psi (pounds per square inch). This number is based on New Belgium’s CO2
recipe (2.5 volumes of CO2).
When dispensing at elevation, one-half pound is added to this setting for every 1,000 feet above sea-level.
For example, Fort Collins, CO is at an elevation of 5,000 feet, so 2.5 psi is added to the setting. The goal
here is to BALANCE the CO2 in the beer with the CO2 you are applying from your regulator.
•Pressure that is too high will force too much
CO2 into the beer, causing foam – this happens
over time
•Pressure that is too low allows CO2 to breakout of the beer, causing foam – this will happen
immediately
T HANK Y OU F OR P ROTECTING B EER P ERFECTION
How fast the beer comes out of the faucet is based on your Line Length, NOT your regulator setting. This
is commonly misunderstood.
Industry standard is 1 gallon of beer dispensed per minute (or about 2 ounces per second). To achieve
this, you will want 1 foot of 3/16” ID (Inner Diameter) tubing for every 2.5 pounds on your regulator
setting (most store-bought kegerators are built to pour at sea-level).
In the “12 psi” sea-level example mentioned previously, you would need 4.8 feet of 3/16” ID
tubing (12 ÷ 2.5 = 4.8). We personally recommend pouring a little slower to make the
pouring easier – so you can add a foot or two to this and still be safe.
•Line that is too long (over 7 feet at sea-level)
can create “cupping” out of the faucet and
can cause pouring problems
•Line that is too short (or too large of an ID)
will come out too fast, and will “explode”
when the beer contacts the glass