How do you label your bottles?

I just finished soaking and scraping the labels off of 240 beer bottles which lead me to think about the way that I will organize and label my bottles.

I understand that some print labels on shipping stickers while others print out their labels and glue them to the bottle with milk or some sort of glue.

The question is: If my wife and I plan to be the sole consumers of my homebrew, should I even bother labeling them with a fancy label? I was contemplation placing a simple sticker on the cap such as the one pictured below on the brew that I plan to drink while creating fancy labels for those that I plan to give away.

What system do you use to keep track of your beer? Marking the cap seems to be the easiest way to avoid additional bottle cleaning. BTW, I plan to keep 5-6 different batches in circulation... if that helps.

Dots are a good idea. I just use a sharpie on the cap and a 2-3 letter designation plus a number indicating the recipe version.

For wine I have a label with some designs I drew and cleaned up in photoshop...9 on a page, through a paper cutter, and glue-sticked onto bottles. Not everything in a 750 gets the treatment, but stuff I'm cellaring for a few years, 1) there's a lot of bottles down there and 2) it makes a nice presentation. Plus, glue stick on copy paper is durable but soaks off very easily. Really it's as much a fun craft project as anything. I enjoy doing it, but wouldn't label a batch of beer unless it was something very special for gifts...in bombers or 1 liter flip tops.

I take a magic marker and before I sanitize the caps I mark them with a two letter code like MD For Moose Drool and 3c for Cream of three crops. I also keep a log of all the beer I brew and write the code in the book as well

One thing that really helped me was to put the date on a piece of paper in the case of beer when I bottle it. Having 5 or 6 batches in bottles makes it kind of hard to remember what is ready to drink

Oh heck I just looked at your user name and weirdly was listening to Joe Walsh and that song

Personally, I create labels for all my beers and stick them on with milk. I also enjoy making them and putting them on, but I realize it's not for everyone. Sticker dots and/or Sharpies is an easy way to do it that I've seen often though. Apparently my friend who brews doesn't even delabel! He just washes them out and Sharpies the caps.

Your "dots" will probably work great. I have found labels to be very valuable for the "give-away" bottlres. It helps avoid all those "what kind is it?" questions.

Varmintman said:

I take a magic marker and before I sanitize the caps I mark them with a two letter code like MD For Moose Drool and 3c for Cream of three crops. I also keep a log of all the beer I brew and write the code in the book as well

One thing that really helped me was to put the date on a piece of paper in the case of beer when I bottle it. Having 5 or 6 batches in bottles makes it kind of hard to remember what is ready to drink

Click to expand...

Sounds like solid advice. A beer log sounds like a great idea. This would also be a good place to comment on how each batch turned out. It will be my man diary

reverendj1 said:

Personally, I create labels for all my beers and stick them on with milk. I also enjoy making them and putting them on, but I realize it's not for everyone. Sticker dots and/or Sharpies is an easy way to do it that I've seen often though. Apparently my friend who brews doesn't even delabel! He just washes them out and Sharpies the caps.

Click to expand...

I also look forward to creating labels and labeling. I just don't want to spend the money/ effort on the labeling process only to turn around and have to soak the labels off once again.

Perhaps I will label the first 12 for giveaways and simply mark the caps of all others in the batch. Okay, maybe just 6....

Varmintman said:

Oh heck I just looked at your user name and weirdly was listening to Joe Walsh and that song

Click to expand...

Great song. Most likely describes the majority of folks on this forum including myself.

I just sharpie a letter or code on the caps after they are bottled also. So far so good although 4's can look like H etc so some thought before you go hog wild on 50 bottles.

I use these http://www.onlinelabels.com/ol5275.htm on the caps. They're relatively cheap, easy to make, and look a little bit nicer than just sharpie or colored dots. Plus there's no need to de-label. Since they're on the cap it just gets thrown away. No scrubbing, scraping, or soaking

I have been meaning to go get the dots you are talking about. In the meantime, I put masking tape with a one or two letter designation for the beer on the cap. I use BeerSmith to create my recipes, so that is what keeps track of the brew/bottle dates and my tasting notes so far.

There's no real cost to labelling other than paper/ink/toner. Yes, there is effort, but besides from the actual label design, which can take however long you want, I can label a 5 gal batch in about 45 minutes if I'm focused. I just do it while I'm watching TV and I find it relaxing. I already had a color laser printer (results are mixed using an inkjet printer, as they can bleed). You only use about a saucer of milk per 5 gal batch too, and the milk labels come off super easy. As in a few seconds in warm water. No scrubbing, etc. I like it.

You can also get round labels from Staples that you can print stuff on, there is a template on this forum somewhere that I have used before. Stick it on the cap, good to go. That's usually how I roll, although I have been lazy and not marking anything lately.

reverendj1 said:

There's no real cost to labelling other than paper/ink/toner. Yes, there is effort, but besides from the actual label design, which can take however long you want, I can label a 5 gal batch in about 45 minutes if I'm focused. I just do it while I'm watching TV and I find it relaxing. I already had a color laser printer (results are mixed using an inkjet printer, as they can bleed). You only use about a saucer of milk per 5 gal batch too, and the milk labels come off super easy. As in a few seconds in warm water. No scrubbing, etc. I like it.

Click to expand...

What kind of labels do you use?

I do this:

rklinck said:

What kind of labels do you use?

Click to expand...

I don't buy labels, I just use regular old cheapest-I-can-find printer paper and stick it on with milk. Here are some examples I made: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f46/show-us-your-label-229144/index208.html#post4698884

Kirch3333 said:

I use these http://www.onlinelabels.com/ol5275.htm on the caps. They're relatively cheap, easy to make, and look a little bit nicer than just sharpie or colored dots. Plus there's no need to de-label. Since they're on the cap it just gets thrown away. No scrubbing, scraping, or soaking

Click to expand...

I like what I see. Now, I assume you print markings as you go using your home printer? Does it come with a program to assist with this process?

duboman said:

I do this:

Click to expand...

That's a good idea. Very easy and easy to read.

duboman said:

I do this:

Click to expand...

Beautiful! What program do you use to create these?

At this point I only have 3 batches so I just use different caps for each brew. The swing tops will be a another story.

reverendj1 said:

I don't buy labels, I just use regular old cheapest-I-can-find printer paper and stick it on with milk. Here are some examples I made: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f46/show-us-your-label-229144/index208.html#post4698884

Click to expand...

Some rather creative labels you made there as well as some of the others I saw.

reverendj1 said:

I don't buy labels, I just use regular old cheapest-I-can-find printer paper and stick it on with milk. Here are some examples I made: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f46/show-us-your-label-229144/index208.html#post4698884

Click to expand...

Damn you!! Now I am going to have to add a color laser printer to my brewing equipment. I hope I can trick SWMBO into believing that is for my job, not my brewing.

I just use different color sharpies and write letters or sumbols on the caps. Record it in my brew log so I know which one is which for beers that I age a long time.

duboman said:

I do this:

Click to expand...

Would you mind sharing which program you use to print on the dots?

BansheeRider said:

Would you mind sharing which program you use to print on the dots?

Click to expand...

Yes please?

mufflerbearing said:

At this point I only have 3 batches so I just use different caps for each brew. The swing tops will be a another story.

Click to expand...

Ditto here - I've built up quite a collection of different caps and that's the only thing I usually change. And for the swing tops - now this is lazy.... I simply take a cap corresponding to that brew and rest it on top. I've thought about sticking the caps somehow but then I'd not be able to reuse them.

And a pretty decent label can be done with just black ink, cheap paper (avoid white) and milk:

sroberts said:

Ditto here - I've built up quite a collection of different caps and that's the only thing I usually change. And for the swing tops - now this is lazy.... I simply take a cap corresponding to that brew and rest it on top. I've thought about sticking the caps somehow but then I'd not be able to reuse them.

And a pretty decent label can be done with just black ink, cheap paper (avoid white) and milk:

Click to expand...

Now that's a great compromise! You get the best of both worlds and don't have to spend much effort identifying your brew.

You said "I've thought about sticking the caps somehow but then I'd not be able to reuse them" You reuse your caps? If so, how many times do you usually reuse them?

I usually use the old sharpie with a few letters/numbers to identify the beer inside. If I'm giving them away, storing/aging or it is a particularly special brew I'll make a label, color copy and stick on with milk.

OrdinaryAvgGuy said:

I like what I see. Now, I assume you print markings as you go using your home printer? Does it come with a program to assist with this process?

Click to expand...

Yes there's a program with templates that's available for use on their site which allows you to add text, colors, and images (this particular label is a little small for images though). Here's what mine look like. Sorry for the crappy cell phone pic

BansheeRider said:

Would you mind sharing which program you use to print on the dots?

Click to expand...

They are Avery labels and you can download the free software which embeds itself into word, takes a little tweaking with font size and paragraphing but works great and the labels are cheap!

duboman said:

They are Avery labels and you can download the free software which embeds itself into word, takes a little tweaking with font size and paragraphing but works great and the labels are cheap!

Click to expand...

Thank you for the information!

duboman said:

They are Avery labels and you can download the free software which embeds itself into word, takes a little tweaking with font size and paragraphing but works great and the labels are cheap!

Click to expand...

24 beers in a case... 24 stickers to an Avery sheet... coincidence?

OrdinaryAvgGuy said:

24 beers in a case... 24 stickers to an Avery sheet... coincidence?

Click to expand...

Hey would you be kind enough and post the link for these labels? I am on the Avery website and cannot find them. Thanks!

http://www.avery.com/avery/en_us/Products/Labels/Identification-Labels/Print-or-Write-Round-Color-Coding-Labels_05467.htm

http://www.avery.com/avery/en_us/Templates-%26-Software/Software/Avery-Wizard-for-Microsoft-Office.htm?N=4294967076&refchannel=3980ac83ae70a110VgnVCM1000002118140aRCRD

The first link is for the labels and you can get them in other colors. The second link is for the Microsoft Word Add in software. They are 3/4" round labels and I have never had a problem finding them in any office supply store locally. People commonly use them to price garage sale items.

OrdinaryAvgGuy said:

Some rather creative labels you made there as well as some of the others I saw.

Click to expand...

Thanks!

rklinck said:

Damn you!! Now I am going to have to add a color laser printer to my brewing equipment. I hope I can trick SWMBO into believing that is for my job, not my brewing.

Click to expand...

Haha. Mine was pretty cheap (~$100) and it's been a workhorse. I used it for all the invitations, programs, etc. for a fairly large wedding, printing all my labels, etc. You can just have them printed at Kinko's or something too. They have all laser printers. I'm not sure what the cost to have Kinko's do it would be. You can also use an inkjet printer, you just have to be more careful because you can only get the back of the paper wet and not the front, or it will bleed. Of course, printing a large amount on an inkjet is like peeing money away. It'd actually be cheaper to have them printed.

duboman said:

http://www.avery.com/avery/en_us/Products/Labels/Identification-Labels/Print-or-Write-Round-Color-Coding-Labels_05467.htm

http://www.avery.com/avery/en_us/Templates-%26-Software/Software/Avery-Wizard-for-Microsoft-Office.htm?N=4294967076&refchannel=3980ac83ae70a110VgnVCM1000002118140aRCRD

The first link is for the labels and you can get them in other colors. The second link is for the Microsoft Word Add in software. They are 3/4" round labels and I have never had a problem finding them in any office supply store locally. People commonly use them to price garage sale items.

Click to expand...

Thank you for the links! I checked the website and it appears that the program only works for Windows computers. I have a MAC, and customer service told me that I can choose a template online and print from their online page. Unfortunately MAC users cannot imbed this software into Microsoft Word. The web printing is just as good, just not as convenient. Thanks for your help.

OrdinaryAvgGuy said:

You said "I've thought about sticking the caps somehow but then I'd not be able to reuse them" You reuse your caps? If so, how many times do you usually reuse them?

Click to expand...

I don't reuse a capped cap, if you know what I mean. I was referring to placing an uncrimped cap on a swing-top as a lazy way to identify the swing cap brew. This uncrimped cap can be reused to cap a bottle.

I'm going to be buying these: http://www.bottlecapco.com/10-Color-Bottle-Cap-Combo-Pack_p_344.html

Gotta buy caps and may as well buy color coded ones at the same time! If I end up any extra bottles I'll use one of the colors and end up with a ton of bottles all different with the same color cap. These will then be my 'surprise' bottles.

These work great and you can cut them to be any size, like tiny, so you can mark all of your beer and not spend a bunch of money.

http://clevelandbrewshop.com/index.php?route=product/product&filter_name=label&product_id=143