Blichmann BeerGun Review

Bottling sucks and kegging is great but why not both? I’ve been looking at a way to bottle my beer from the keg for awhile. At first I went with a DIY picnic tap filler but I was never really satisfied with the results. Enter the Blichmann BeerGun V2 which offers a way to quickly bottle your brews straight from the keg.

The Blichmann BeerGun V2 brings their typical “over engineered” quality to bottle filling. It features a mostly stainless steel build aside from a plastic handle, rubber seals, and an antimicrobial beer line. The plastic handle keeps your hand from getting cold and helps prevent foaming. The antimicrobial line helps with sanitation. Finally the BeerGun breaks down for easy cleaning and sanitation.

Quick disassembly and reassembly is one of the best features of the Blichmann BeerGun. It honestly takes less than a minute to fully assemble or take apart. Below is a quick guide to assembly and disassembly.

Disassembly:

1. Remove the filling tip.
2. Pull the trigger back and push up till the trigger assembly pops off the beer tube. Slide trigger and spring off of the CO2 tube.
3. Pop the beer tube out of the larger CO2 tube.
4. Slide the CO2 tube out of the handle

Assembly:

1. Slide the CO2 tube into the handle.
2. Insert the beer tube into the CO2 tube.
3. Slide the spring onto the CO2 tube.
4. Slide the trigger onto the CO2 tube and pop it into the groove of the beer tube.
5. Attach the filling tip to grove of the CO2 tube.

I’ve bottled over 300 bottles of various brews so far with no issues. There is a learning curve to getting the perfect fill but it isn’t too hard. First of all make sure to turn down your keg’s CO2 PSI from 2 to 5. Don’t forget to purge the keg of excess pressure before bottling. Getting your keg and bottles as cold as possible will greatly minimize foaming. The first bottle might foam but the rest should be foam free if you followed my tips.

Verdict:

Overall I’ve enjoyed using the Blichmann BeerGun for bottling. It’s been quick to clean, sanitize, and setup. I have been able to bottle lots of gift beers and several competition winners.

Pros:

• Allows bottling from the keg
• Beers will be immediately drinkable
• Purges headspace of oxygen
• Comes with a nice storage case
• Easily breaks down for cleaning and sanitization

Cons:

• Requires a dual CO2 regulator or Y splitter for use.
• Not a counter pressure filler