Will kegs become obsolete?

Discussion in 'Beer Talk' started by fredmugs, Sep 16, 2013.

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  1. fredmugs

    fredmugs Initiate (0) Aug 11, 2012 Indiana
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    I just saw this posted on the Beercycling Facebook page from their tour at Von Steenberge. Belgian breweries are shipping their beers in these plastic orbs with bladders inside. Shipping costs are greatly reduced and the orb/bladder does not get returned to the brewer.

    If this thing was square (or rectangular) I woud say it's a great idea but storing multiple orbs would waste a lot of space. I wonder how it would sit to keep cool at your typical keg party.

    [​IMG]
     
  2. fredmugs

    fredmugs Initiate (0) Aug 11, 2012 Indiana
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    Yes - I noticed all the traditional kegs in the background!
     
  3. audioserf

    audioserf Initiate (0) Sep 3, 2010 Connecticut

    That's ridiculous.
     
  4. zid

    zid Grand Pooh-Bah (3,058) Feb 15, 2010 New York
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    Does it get tossed? (no pun intended)
     
    regularjohn likes this.
  5. RussBeercier

    RussBeercier Initiate (0) Mar 24, 2013 Illinois

    Looks like a Coors Light party ball. Yeah, that really worked.
     
  6. texasdrugaddict

    texasdrugaddict Initiate (0) Oct 11, 2012 New Mexico

    Bring Back the Party Ball.



    Heady Party Balls would be awesome
     
  7. audioserf

    audioserf Initiate (0) Sep 3, 2010 Connecticut

    This is the LaserDisc of beer storage.
     
    aasher, s_wit, Lantern and 22 others like this.
  8. jesskidden

    jesskidden Grand Pooh-Bah (3,071) Aug 10, 2005 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    Those things would be great as picnic kegs (or anywhere where there's no access to CO2 or beer gas) which normally would require the use a "picnic tap" a simple air pump to draw the beer. In a normal keg, that ruins the beer by oxidizing it after a few hours but as I understand those disposable kegs, the gas in pumped into the first sphere and collapses the second inner unit to push the beer out. So, one could use straight air which will never touch the beer.
     
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  9. regularjohn

    regularjohn Initiate (0) Feb 7, 2013 New Jersey

    how long can you do an orb stand for?
     
  10. hopfenunmaltz

    hopfenunmaltz Pooh-Bah (2,611) Jun 8, 2005 Michigan
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Key kegs have been around for a while. The ball goes in a cardboard box for shipping, storage, and the ones I have seen in bars cold rooms for serving. Hard to get the expensive kegs back sometimes, high cost to ship empty kegs over the Atlantic. Not ridiculous.
    http://www.keykeg.com/en/keykeg-family/
     
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  11. Fujii13

    Fujii13 Initiate (0) Apr 27, 2011 New York

    As ridiculous as that thing looks, the KeyKeg is getting a lot of use in our area. Similar idea.
    [​IMG]
     
    Zaphog likes this.
  12. BearsOnAcid

    BearsOnAcid Pooh-Bah (2,215) Mar 17, 2009 Massachusetts
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Those orbs are really cumbersome to serve from when you are cooling them in an ice bucket. The thing just bobs around in the water and falls over from the weight of the tap. The outside cardboard just falls apart once its wet so its useless.
     
  13. yemenmocha

    yemenmocha Grand Pooh-Bah (4,092) Jun 18, 2002 Arizona
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Just can't envision the BMC kids screaming "Orb Party!!!!" with the same level of enthusiasm.
     
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  14. marshmeli

    marshmeli Initiate (0) Feb 14, 2012 New York

  15. Hanglow

    Hanglow Pooh-Bah (1,977) Feb 18, 2012 Scotland
    Pooh-Bah

    In use over here too. Makes sense for smaller breweries at least
     
  16. marquis

    marquis Pooh-Bah (2,301) Nov 20, 2005 England
    Pooh-Bah Society

    This sort of thing has been around as long as I can remember.It never seems to catch on so there must be some snag.
     
  17. leedorham

    leedorham Initiate (0) Apr 27, 2006 Washington

    I sure hope not. In most applications where the keg is not traveling too incredibly far, keykegs and the like are wasteful in the long run when compared to a stainless steel keg.
     
  18. tehzachatak

    tehzachatak Initiate (0) Sep 19, 2010 Massachusetts

    My only direct experience with these was with the busted one that was supposed to be pouring Cuvee Delphine at NoTB this year. 0/10, would not bang again... whoops, wrong site?
     
    sliverX, mcaulifww, TommyLiam and 2 others like this.
  19. Flibber

    Flibber Initiate (0) Jul 27, 2013 England

    Kegs are the work of the devil anyway :stuck_out_tongue:
     
    fredmugs likes this.
  20. Kadonny

    Kadonny Pooh-Bah (2,582) Sep 5, 2007 Florida
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader


    Fixed .
     
    dedbeer and sirtomtom like this.
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