Vintage Beer Bottles

Figbash · 03-10-2009, 01:35 AM

I've been collecting vintage beer bottles to use for my home brew for a while now and made an excellent Crag's List find today. A fellow was selling a box of 16 raised letter beer bottles from various Detroit breweries, for $12. There were some from Detroit Brewing (est 1886), West Side Brewing (est 1893), Tivoli Brewing Co. (est 1898) and P.H. Kling Brewing (est 1863). The Kling bottle slogan is "Pure and Without Drugs or Poisons"...hmmm.

I can't wait to fill them with my favorite brew.

Tom

Superdave · 03-10-2009, 08:26 PM

Cool find! I'm glad to hear that the beer didn't have any poison in it.

My brewing buddy and I started joking about how our beer was guaranteed 100% urine free. "I'm not saying other beers have urine in them, but I'm not NOT saying it either!" LOL

I might have to put "Pure and without drugs or poisons" on a label sometime, that is great!

Just be sure to protect the beer in the clear bottles from light!

brokenanchor · 03-10-2009, 08:45 PM

unless you're a fan of grolsch...or skunk butt

**Brooklyn-Brewtality** · 03-10-2009, 08:47 PM

nice score.

but yea, keep those in the dark!

APendejo · 03-10-2009, 09:54 PM

Dood, those are some nice old bottles. I cannot tell by the pic but do they have manufactured lips or applied lips. You can tell by looking at the seam of the bottle. If it runs all the way to the top it is manufactured(machine made) If it stops an inch or so before the lip then the lip was hand blown and applied to the bottle They started doing the manufactured lips in the early 1900's around 1910 or so.
I would NOT put any beer in those bottles as they are friggin old and you don't know what kind of stress they have seen over the years. That and they may be worth something to collectors.
I would do some research then contact a local antique bottle collectors club. They might be worth enough to buy yorself a few nice cases of new 22's
I used to collect antique bottles as a kid and made a LOT of money off them.
AP

Figbash · 03-10-2009, 10:12 PM

All but one of the bottles have manufactured lips. The one that doesn't looks much older and has bubbles in the glass that the others don't. Maybe I'll set that one aside, but the others will go into service at the next bottling. What good are antiques if you can't enjoy them?

The clear glass won't be a problem around here. My beer doesn't last long enough to be affected by exposure to light.

Tom

DRxAndy · 03-10-2009, 10:26 PM

baha! those are awesome, nice find man

cheeseshark · 03-10-2009, 10:51 PM

Should be fun, enjoy. Might be fun to put a clone of a Michigan beer in them.

DOGBOY · 03-11-2009, 07:12 PM

Yea ,i'd Use 'em, I Might Get A Little Polishing Wheel For A Drill And Smooth Out Where The Caps Seal Use Like 800 Or 1200 Sand Paper Or 4/0 Steel Wool