plastic bottles

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monty3777

monty3777

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I have been watching a youtube vid on bottling beer. The guy suggests using plastic bottles with screw caps. What do you all think?
 
I bottled my first brew using PET bottles which came with my Cooper's kit. I had no problem with it - carbonation held up ok.... but.... there's just something unnatural about beer in a plastic bottle [or a can, for that matter].
 
It's a matter of choice, and convenience...You can even get 22 ounce brown plastic pet bottles.

PET%20Bottles.jpg
 
I've been reusing 1 & 2 liter soda bottles. Works perfectly for me. The only thing is; you pretty much have to drink it all at once. The carbonation lasts only a day at most. Also - if you keep pouring 1 glass then putting the bottle down, as you get near the bottom, you'll start to stir the yeast up. Works best if you just crack it and pour four or five glasses right there.
 
bradsul said:
I use nothing but 500ML PET 'long neck' style bottles. I love them, they don't break, capping requires no extra tools and they last forever.
Click to expand...

Same here. Amber PET bottles last for years and are real easy to clean & Cap. Never a problem carbonating.
 
Plastic bottles are not a good barrier against oxygenation (at least most of them). Don't age beer too long in them.
 
In the past I've always used glass bottles, and still do, but I'm going plastic for the next batch because I'm going to be taking the majority of it to the river with me when I go camping. They don't allow glass on the river so, PLASTIC TO THE RESCUE! Like most things with homebrewing, its all about personal preference and what YOU want to do. Have fun!
 
The new PET bottles and the caps now seem to work great. I use them for yeast washing/storage and for storing beer when I need to empty a keg. Years ago they just did not seal well, now I have have not had a problem.
It is also a great way to re-cycle soda bottles. (5 cents or reuse for BEER, not even a choice).
 
XtremeBrew said:
In the past I've always used glass bottles, and still do, but I'm going plastic for the next batch because I'm going to be taking the majority of it to the river with me when I go camping. They don't allow glass on the river so, PLASTIC TO THE RESCUE! Like most things with homebrewing, its all about personal preference and what YOU want to do. Have fun!
Click to expand...

You're going to be stirring up all that yeast if you plan on drinking out of the bottle, unless you plan on taking cups with you in your tube. But hell, if it's like any experience I've ever had floating the river, then you'll probably be too piss ass drunk to care about a little yeast.
 
BarleyWater said:
You're going to be stirring up all that yeast if you plan on drinking out of the bottle, unless you plan on taking cups with you in your tube. But hell, if it's like any experience I've ever had floating the river, then you'll probably be too piss ass drunk to care about a little yeast.
Click to expand...

Hefeweizen - Perfection. Why is that I never see anyone get out to piss?
 
Piotr said:
Plastic bottles are not a good barrier against oxygenation (at least most of them). Don't age beer too long in them.
Click to expand...
I've got a Belgian Tripel that's been in 500ML PET for over 2 years now that disagrees with you. ;)

As far as I know, any of the plastic bottles that are designed to hold carbonation are made of PET so they are perfectly fine for beer packaging.
 
bradsul said:
I've got a Belgian Tripel that's been in 500ML PET for over 2 years now that disagrees with you. ;)

As far as I know, any of the plastic bottles that are designed to hold carbonation are made of PET so they are perfectly fine for beer packaging.
Click to expand...

+1

Yeah the whole plastic= bad Oxygen barrier is another one of those myths that we have to get away from..It may have been true before the onset of Pet bottles, but it is not the case now...

I personally think that whole permeability issue was just a myth perpetuated by the glass industry myself to begin with...with no basis in fact....but even that argument is moot.

Noone seems ever to also remember that if plastic was SOOOO bad for anything then Beverage MFGr's wouldn't have invested multibazillion dollars on puting their products into it...

Including beer companies.

From 2000

After extensive test marketing, Miller Brewing Co., Milwaukee, has introduced its fully recyclable plastic beer bottles to a national audience. The Miller plastic bottle also will become the first nationally distributed plastic carbonated beverage container with post-consumer recycled (PCR) material.

Millers is the first and only plastic beer bottle available for widespread retail distribution, and can be found in stores, bars and sports arenas.

The Miller plastic beer bottle made its debut in October 1998 in six major metropolitan areas, including Los Angeles, Phoenix and Miami. [See "Beer Bottles With a Bounce," Waste Age May 1999, page 82.]

"Plastic bottles represent one of the biggest breakthroughs in the beer world in years and have been met with an overwhelmingly positive response," says Bob Mikulay, Miller's senior vice president of marketing. "Our plastic beer bottle offers adult beer drinkers packaging flexibility and convenience that they've enjoyed from other beverages for many years."

The multi-layer design of the Miller plastic bottle was developed and produced by Continental PET Technologies, Florence, Ky., and meets reasonable recycling needs.

The plastic bottles currently are available in 16-ounce and 20-ounce packages of Miller Lite, Miller Genuine Draft and Icehouse.
Click to expand...

From 2006...Salon Magazing...

Plastic fantastic beer bottles

The plastic beer bottle, says nanotechnology analyst Peter Conley, has long been the Holy Grail of the global beer industry. A switch from glass and aluminum to plastic would dramatically cut costs for the big players. The problem: plastic bottles have a bad habit of letting oxgyen molecules get through when sitting on the shelf. This is bad for beer. Very, very bad.

Enter AMCOL, the largest producer of kitty litter in the world. AMCOL has devised a "nanocomposite" that solves the problem, keeping oxygen molecules out and carbon dioxide molecules in. So be prepared, a new era of plastic beer bottles is upon us.

Whether this is progress or not depends on a complex mix of aesthetics, logistics, and perspectives on the proper role of technology in our lives. If you're Budweiser or Coors, anything that allows you to cut costs while maintaining the same horse-piss taste is considered progress. If you happen to savor the feel of an ice-cold glass bottle gripped firmly in your hand on a hot summer day, you might think otherwise. And if you're worried that the wholesale application of nanotechnological science to food product packaging raises a host of potential safety questions that will make previous concerns over genetically modified crops seem like preschooler whining, well, maybe you should just give up beer altogether and stick to fresh wheat-grass juice.

But whatever you think, don't imagine you can stop it. Plastic corks in wine bottles are already standard. Plastic beer bottles will not be denied.
Click to expand...

173163544_06a4819553.jpg


I think it's time to put the whole oxygen permeability argument to bed...times have changed, as 10 minutes with teh googlez has proven.

The future has come, and the future is...

[youtube]PSxihhBzCjk[/youtube]
 
Yeah the whole plastic= bad Oxygen barrier is another one of those myths that we have to get away from..It may have been true before the onset of Pet bottles, but it is not the case now...

I personally think that whole permeability issue was just a myth perpetuated by the glass industry myself to begin with...with no basis in fact....but even that argument is moot.

Noone seems ever to also remember that if plastic was SOOOO bad for anything then Beverage MFGr's wouldn't have invested multibazillion dollars on puting their products into it...
Click to expand...

Revvy-

I don't disagree with anything that you say regarding oxygen permeability, but I would raise a single point. Most beverage manufacturers who use plastic bottles more or less bank on a quick turn over of product to offset any potential issues with slow C02 leaks.

To the OP, as I posted earlier, PET plastic bottles are entirely safe to use- although aesthetically, I just prefer glass.
 
noisy123 said:
I think this rumor comes from the wine industry. I don't understand the chemistry of it so I don't know if that's relevant.

Abstract, Ough
Click to expand...

1987 by the American Society for Enology and Viticulture.
Click to expand...

1987 is a LOOOOONNNNGGGG way from 2007...Methinks, both plastic technology and the research has probably change a wee bit since then?:D

In 1987 This PS 2 was the state or the art in home computing as well.
ibm-ps2-1987.jpg
 
Thanks for all your help. I'm off today to get the equipment for my first batch. Wish me luck!!



slowfoodrebellion.blogspot.com
 
BarleyWater said:
You're going to be stirring up all that yeast if you plan on drinking out of the bottle, unless you plan on taking cups with you in your tube. But hell, if it's like any experience I've ever had floating the river, then you'll probably be too piss ass drunk to care about a little yeast.
Click to expand...

Oh no way. We just go to camp BY the river. I will be sitting beside it gulping down beers and getting ready to eat some hot brauts and kraut! No yeasties for me.

:ban:
 
Hmmm.... I had to go read up on plastic recycling codes on the bottles.

At the bottom of the message is a list of them. I'm going to be camping at the beach for a week around Thanksgiving. Same as the original post, glass there could get a person in trouble.

Either a Party Pig or... buy a case of water bottles. Use the water to make some brew, and then refill the bottles with a batch of brew to carbonate. Had a Dasani water bottle lying around and it had a number one on it at the bottom.

...and the local brew store sells clean, new, screw on plastic caps.



#1- polyethylene terephthalate (PET)
soda & water containers, some waterproof packaging, tennis balls.
#2 - high-density polyethylene (PE)
milk, detergent & oil bottles. toys and plastic bags.
#3 - vinyl / polyvinyl chloride (PVC)
food wrap, vegetable oil bottles, blister packages.
#4 - low-density polyethylene
many plastic bags. shrink wrap, garment bags.
#5 - polypropylene
refrigerated containers, some bags, most bottle tops,
some carpets, some food wrap, chairs (back/seats).
#6 - polystyrene
throwaway utensils, meat packing, protective packing.
#7 - other. usually layered or mixed plastic.
no recycling potential - must be landfilled.
 
Revvy said:
Oh man....Yeast infused homebrew, brauts and kraut...

Can anyone say;

GasMaskAdv1000.jpg


:D
Click to expand...


Ha!!! :D I just feel sorry for all of the people that get stuck behind me at the Wurstfest!! It's usually an overcrowded affair where your wedged between people all night long, so.... unfortunately, many poor innocent bystanders will be affected.
 

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