How long does beer stay fresh in a kegerator?

Question

Was looking at kegerators in BestBuy, they seem to have good prices. While I like good beer, we are not going to finish a keg quickly. How long will beer stay fresh without going flat or stale?

Answer 1

http://byo.com/mrwizard/351.html

great information on that site!

Answer 2

My rommates and I have a kegerator and the only problem we've had is running out of co2, If you have a keg that lasts over a month you don't deserve to have a kegerator, between three of us we kill kegs within 5 to 20 days depending of how strong the beer is, I read some of the other answers before writeing and as long as you have co2, don't untap it you should be allright, if your still worried about it going bad, get a cylinder (pony or 5 gallon), by your self, you should have that finished well within the time those "beer experts" said it would go bad. Bottom line- beer is a bad thing to waste.

Answer 3

I worked at Molsons Brewery in Canada for 20 years. The "shelf-life" of beer in a bottle was 90 days. Beer in bottles were returned to the brewery for dumping if not sold within 90 days. The shelf-life of kegged beer in a keg was only 30 days. If kept in cold conditions, it will last a little more, but officially it is 30 days. It will go stale and "skunky" after that.

The difference between draft beer and bottled beer is that bottled beer is pasteurized and draft beer (put in kegs) is not.

Answer 4

If CB worked at Molson's for twenty years, then he would know that kegged beer does not skunk. Skunking happens when beers are exposed to UV rays.

Depending on the beer, if it's kept cold and pressurized, it could last years. I've had beers (both on draft and in bottles) that were years old (some going back twenty years). They were fine.

Answer 5

Depends on the beer, i worked for a/b and a bud/bud light keg will last for about 45 days if kept correctly.