16g Food Grade CO2 Cartridge: The Best Companion for Dispensing Beer

16g Food Grade CO2 Cartridge: The Best Companion for Dispensing Beer

Investing in the right equipment is a must for any type of business. If you’re in the food and beverage business, you know that finding the right cartridges for beer dispenser will allow you to be more efficient with your operations.  

In this case, the 16g CO2 cartridge food grade will be your most efficient option for dispensing beer.  

What is food grade CO2?

Carbon dioxide as we know it can be a source of food contamination. But there are instances when it can be used in food or as part of processing food or beverage such as in dispensing beer.  

The purity of food CO2 should be at least 99.9%. The higher the purity, the less the amount of gaseous impurities such as ammonia and benzene in CO2. One impurity that all home brewers should be aware of is benzene. Benzene is a no-no for home brewers. If the carbon dioxide you buy is high in benzene, you and other drinkers will have a headache.  

A qualified CO2 manufacturer should regularly test the raw gas source for compositional changes and monitor quality throughout the production process. Storage and transshipment warehouses should also have purity monitoring systems to screen the quality of incoming batches.  

During production, the CO2 pressure vessel should be steam cleaned inside after construction, and cleaned at least three times, so that there will be no industrial oil residues that will affect the taste of beer and affect the health of the body.  

Therefore, it is very important to pay attention to whether the purity of CO2 gas reaches food grade when purchasing CO2 cartridges.  

It is where a 16g CO2 cartridge beer comes in and it has to be “food grade,” which means that it fits its purpose and has passed the specifications and testing of carbon dioxide that makes it suitable for food and beverage use.  

Why is CO2 added to beer?
Carbon dioxide is a critical ingredient to ensure good quality beer because it contributes to the taste and sensory experience that people love about beer. CO2 also helps improve shelf stability so beer can last longer.  

Carbon dioxide is similar to adding salt to items when baking or cooking because it helps enhance other flavors that are prevalent in beer. The colorless gas also maintains the signature foam head after the beer is poured, and can help brewers alter the pH of the beverage to produce just the right flavor—lower pH levels create a more sour character. There are other advantages, as the extra carbon dioxide creates a crisper taste and refines the aroma of the beer before it's drunk.  

How to keg beer with CO2?
The process of carbonating beer in a keg with CO2 is very straightforward. You just need to invest in the right equipment for it like the keg with its tubing and disconnects for both the gas and liquid, the 16g CO2 cartridge homebrew, CO2 beer regulator, and a force carbonation chart to ensure the most efficient carbonation.  

Force carbonation can be best achieved when the beer in the keg is maintained at a cold temperature to allow faster CO2 diffusion into the beer.

When beer is carbonated, it tastes different. The gas gives the beer a refreshing feel. Carbonation is also responsible for foam, which is important for keeping beer warm. The volume of carbon dioxide in beer is related to the consistency of the foam. Different beer styles require different amounts of carbon dioxide. The average amount of carbon dioxide is between 2.2 and 2.6. Some styles may be more bland, like English Ales, while others are more carbonated, like Weiss.  

How much beer can be carbonated in a 16g CO2 cartridge?
A 16g CO2 cartridge beer is an excellent alternative to tanks because it’s more portable and easier to set up than the latter. The amount of beer that can be carbonated in a 16g CO2 cartridge will depend on the type of cartridge and keg that you have on hand. But in most cases, a 16g CO2 cartridge food grade is capable of emptying about a third of a Cornelius keg. This means that you’ll need about 2-5 16g CO2 cartridges to dispense 5 gallons of beer.

Beer gas and CO2, which gas is better for homebrew beer?
Finally, there are two types of gas used in the processing and dispensing of homebrew beer: beer gas and CO2. Although both of these gases are capable of giving the beer its effervescence, they react differently with beer under pressure.  

For most manufacturers, carbon dioxide is still the more ideal choice because it is highly soluble in water-based liquids like beer as compared to nitrogen in beer gas which has a lower solubility.  

This means that a keg pressurized by a 16g CO2 cartridge food grade will have more CO2 infused in the beer as compared to processing it using gas that’s dissolved in a nitrogen-pressured keg or bottle.