If you're looking to throw a memorable backyard barbecue, birthday party, holiday bash, or even a "just because" sort of gathering, you might consider tapping a keg. (Or, making your own watermelon keg !) It's an efficient way of serving beers to a crowd, and you'll be taking into account how many pints are in a standard keg , and it's a lot: One standard keg holds 124 pints, or the equivalent of 165 12-ounce bottles. Is it worth tapping a keg for a family reunion or small party? That depends, but let's talk about how long you have to use the rest of the beer that's in that keg.
It's not as straightforward as you might expect. For starters, a keg's life is actually measured from the date that it's filled, not necessarily when it's tapped. How long it lasts also depends on what kind of beer it holds, how you're storing it, and the way that your kegerator works, so here are some general guidelines.
Pasteurized beer is good for between 90 and 120 days from the date that it's filled. For unpasteurized beer, that timeline drops to between 40 and 60 days — which means that it's incredibly important to check any dates on the keg. By the time you get it, you might have only around a month before you're going to be tapping skunky beer, and once it's tapped, the clock starts ticking in a big way.
If you're using a party pump, you've got just eight to 24 hours until it goes bad. There are a lot of factors that determine the freshness of beer Let's stress that the eight to 24-hour guid.