Someone has invented a table top beer dispenser designed to deliver cold beer on tap without the use of a keg.
As you can see in the above video, the creators behind SYNEK (which sounds waaaaaaay to close to “Skynet” for my comfort) are having a bit of fun with their invention. According to Mashable, the concept is similar to a pod coffee-maker:
The concept comes from founder Steve Young, who wanted a growler (a jug that you hook up to a tap and store alcohol in) to keep fresh for more than a few days. Instead of a jug, he’s using vacuum-sealed cartridges that go into a tap machine to keep up to a gallon of beer fresh for at least 30 days.
Here’s a bit of all the science-y stuff behind the machine, for all you students on summer break who are suffering withdrawals from being skeptical of shit:
Like some kegs, the machine pressurizes using carbon dioxide. Users can also adjust the temperature of the SYNEK, ensuring the beer is chilled enough for drinking.
See, just like E=MC Hammer, air + beer = Let’s Get Drunk. Or something. Slashgear has more details:
The system begins with you filling a cartridge of beer* from a holding tank, from a tap, or from a keg. You’ll need access to one or all three of these in order to get the beer int he first place. SYNEK doesn’t make the beer, it mostly just preserves it for later access. This solution is made for home brewers, craft brewers, and everyone in-between. It’s made for larger companies that want to take advantage of the new system and for those that make beer at home, hoping to keep it in a dispenser rather than having to put it in bottles, one by one.
The idea is to cater to people who are real beer connoisseurs and like to sample different types of brews, which makes sense in an era where craft/home brewing is becoming more and more popular every day. (Because no one likes to just slam 40s of Bud Ice in their living room during marathons of Say Yes to the Dress anymore apparently.)
The machine itself is pretty expensive ($299-350) but cartridges for beer are only about $1. Hopefully it’s another stunt/gag product like the water-to-wine machine that broke all our our hearts earlier this year. If it is proved to be another stunt, I’m just going to plug my fingers in my ears and yell “LA LA LA I CAN’T HEAR YOU” while I squint at pictures of Keurig machines, pretending it’s totally real.