Pressurized mini-keg question with wine

[M38A1]

I've got a pressured tank question with a wine makers twist.

My 'adult lemonade' as I like to call it (SkeeterPee) seems to be a big hit and I rather enjoy it myself in beer bottles. I got this crazy idea to do a carbonated version of this to see if the end product would be like a bubbly moscato while also dispensed from a mini-keg.

With that, I purchased a Nutrichef 1 gallon keg kit. My thought was, put in the wine, add the CO2 to the little keg and I'd have a bubbly beverage. I put a 750ml bottle in the keg (about 1/4 of the total capacity) and partially added the 16g CO2 contents to about 30psi (max recommended for the keg) In the end, all it did was just allow the Skeeter Pee to come out when the tap handle was activated. Bummer.

That got me thinking about how beer is done and carbonation, and why this didn't work as anticipated in addition to how I can make this work.

How is beer put in kegs and pressurized to keep the bubbles AND get it out of the keg? CO2 is part of the by-product of the fermentation process, so are they putting the beer in kegs with a bit of yeast/sugar still in there to generate the CO2 bubbles? Or are they putting in flat to somewhat carbonated beer and adding CO2 under enough pressure to put the bubbles into solution?

I'm thinking I could possibly transfer a gallon of wine which is almost done fermenting, adding a bit of sugar (how much is the million dollar question as to avert a keg explosion) and let it finish in the little keg? Then add CO2 on top do get it out of the keg?

In the end, I'd like to have a bubbly lemon Skeeter Pee that comes out of the little keg.

Thoughts appreciated on how to do this....

EDIT TO ADD:
WOW! I've had the little keg in the fridge for about a week now at 20psi wondering what to do next, thus the question. Well - I just opened the tap up and I had carbonated adult lemonade! Maybe in my head I was thinking the CO2 would go into solution right away, but in reality it takes a bit of time to force it in?

>> THIS << is what I purchased and it looks like:

 

[jburtner]

Yes it takes some time and you may need to top up with more CO2 as it dissolves into the beverage. Colder is better. Maybe also try nitrogen for a thicker head?

Cheers!
-johann

 

[Ty520]

I actually just received one for my birthday. Easy to use, and looks good, but the carbonation is unimpressive - drinks seem flat before i finish a glass. Maybe I just need to learn to use it better...

It takes most of 1 cartridge to carbonate over 2-3 days, rolling it back and forth for a minute each day; you'll get about 1 heady pour, then you'll need to swap out for a new cartridge for the rest of your servings.

 

[salcoco]

a method I found on line and worked for me was CO2 at about 50psi everything cold. rocked keg with wine for 15minutes rest for 15 minutes repeat for about a couple of hours. I also would leave pressure on over night, then bottled in champagne bottles

 

[Jim Welch]

Here is a force carbonation chart for beer. Not sure how many volumes of CO2 would be best for your skeeter pee, you will have to experiment. A liquids ability to hold dissolved gas is inversely proportional to its temp, the lower the temperature the more it will hold. Liquid will force carbonate at room temperature but it will take a long time and requires a much higher pressure. In this chart the yellow band is the “optimal” band for beer.

 

[Raptor99]

Interesting, thanks for sharing this. According to the legend, the optimal range for most ciders is the orange band, roughly between 2.5 and 4 volumes of CO2. I'll keep that in mind for my cider.

 

[Rocktop]

Is there an adapter available that would allow you to use a soda stream CO2 tank? Get more boost.
When I used to make beer all the time, I liked to force carbonate, shake the jeepers out of the corney keg, that would really help, and get it damn close to freezing and you would get a great product.

RT

 

[Ty520]

Is there an adapter available that would allow you to use a soda stream CO2 tank? Get more boost.
When I used to make beer all the time, I liked to force carbonate, shake the jeepers out of the corney keg, that would really help, and get it damn close to freezing and you would get a great product.

RT

Everyone who has tried using a soda stream is very adamant that you should NOT use them to carbonate alcoholic beverages, and they now specifically state not to use it for anything other than water

 

[Ty520]

I actually just received one for my birthday. Easy to use, and looks good, but the carbonation is unimpressive - drinks seem flat before i finish a glass. Maybe I just need to learn to use it better...

So i just got a message back from the manufacturer claiming that the system cannot force carbonate, despite their amazon shop specifically stating it can be used to force carbonate. Will probably try to return the item and go with a system from my local brew supply store, and just get a CO2 tank, mini keg, and miscellaneous hoses and attachments.

 

[Flidget]

@Ty520 Forced pressurisation of Beer in stainless steel, is usually done in a Brite Tank, or attempted in a Keg.