Using champagne stoppers and wires.

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Suthrncomfrt1884

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 14, 2009
Messages
4,069
Reaction score
39
Location
Rockford
I'm about to bottle an apfelwein. I know this is a common topic about corking, but I couldn't seem to find my answers.

I don't want to purchase a corker just yet as I don't know how often I will use it (plus the LHBS is out until wednesday). Instead, I picked up a few cases of 750mL wine bottles and champagne stoppers w/wires. Will these work on normal wine bottles? I don't want to open the package and try if it won't work. Also, can champagne stoppers be put in by hand, or is it something I will need a corker for?

Thanks for any help.
 
r ur champagne stoppers plastic? i found plastic ones at mr. steve's in york that can be done without a corker and they have slots that the wire fits in so it is a snug fit
 
yes, they're plastic. And just for future reference incase anyone else is wanting to use these...they don't work. I opened them and tried them out. Belgian style bottles have a little nub on them so the wire can tighten around it....wine bottles don't. I'm not able to get a decent seal on a wine bottle with these caps.
 
I bottled a Bier de Garde in champagne bottles with plastic champagne stoppers and wire cages. You don't need a corked, but the wire cage tightens around a small ridge near the opening of the bottle -regular wine bottles don't have that, only champagne bottles.
 
yes, they're plastic. And just for future reference incase anyone else is wanting to use these...they don't work. I opened them and tried them out. Belgian style bottles have a little nub on them so the wire can tighten around it....wine bottles don't. I'm not able to get a decent seal on a wine bottle with these caps.

you have to use champagne bottles
 
Yeah, I figured that out. I was worried I wouldn't be able to return the stoppers even though I didn't use them. The LHBS called the owner to check, and because I'm a regular, they okayed it for in store credit. Not a big deal. I ended up getting some number 9 corks and rented a floor corker.

I've never used wine bottles. Will the cork be a tight enough fit to hold in all the carbonation? I bottled my apfelwein with 6oz. of priming sugar for about 4.75 gallons. I wanted a champagne like carbonation but not quite as much. I don't want to worry about bottle bombs and since I've never done this type of thing, it has me a bit concerned.
 
I did a few bottles of my saison in champagne bottles and wire cages...I tapped the plastic corks down with a rubber mallet, and tried to cinch thhe wire cages as tight as I could (it was really hard, and I don't think I got them tight enough, even with pliers and breaking the wire.)

I've only opened one of the champagne bottles so far, and it wasn't carbed....at that point I wasn't sure if it was becasue it was a larger bottle and needed more time, or because I did a crappy job...I'm kinda thinking crappy job. Luckily it was only 6 bottles or so.

I'm keeping an eye on this thread hoping some people with experience can proviide some good tips....
 
if you're carbonating, corks alone won't hold. You need to either cap the tops with bottle caps or ur champagne stoppers. theres also a special technique to doing champagne that is easier done with plastic champagne caps cuz otherwise you need liquid nitrogen to freeze the yeast in the neck of the bottle
 
I've never used wine bottles. Will the cork be a tight enough fit to hold in all the carbonation? I bottled my apfelwein with 6oz. of priming sugar for about 4.75 gallons. I wanted a champagne like carbonation but not quite as much. I don't want to worry about bottle bombs and since I've never done this type of thing, it has me a bit concerned.

Regular wine bottles aren't designed to hold pressure like that. If you don't pop the corks, you will create a case of glass grenades.
 
if you're carbonating, corks alone won't hold. You need to either cap the tops with bottle caps or ur champagne stoppers. theres also a special technique to doing champagne that is easier done with plastic champagne caps cuz otherwise you need liquid nitrogen to freeze the yeast in the neck of the bottle

Will bottle caps fit on a wine bottle? I would have capped them if I thought they would.
 
Some sites say that you can use a standard capper for a champagne bottle and some say you need a bigger bell on the capper so I'm not sure. I have some 750ml bottles around. I will try and cap them in the morning and see if it works or not.

For future notice I have seen many lambics using a small cork in the neck with a bottle cap on top for pressure. I think this is a great setup for Apfelwein and plan on bottling my current batch with both cork and cap. Luckily I have a corker so it makes things easier. Hopefully by tomorrow we will all know if there is need for a bigger capper.
 
Just to reiterate what's been said above - do not put your beer in wine bottles - you must use champagne bottles. The wine bottles are not designed to hold carbonated beverages and you run the risk of exploding bottles.
 
Will bottle caps fit on a wine bottle? I would have capped them if I thought they would.

no...they don't have the lip and aren't meant to hold the pressure

i also just took my red baron capper and flipped the teeth around and i put a cap on a champagne bottle
 
Well...I might have some bombs then. I didn't want to use champagne bottles because the ones my homebrew shop had were huge. I bottled it in wine bottles thinking they would be fine. Now I'm thinking I need to break the seal on the corks and transfer these to beer bottles. Damn.
 
on the upside tho, i'm pretty sure the corks would pop out before the glass would break... so at most you should only get a mess on the ground but no glass
 
They had 1500mL champagne bottles. I bottled in 750mL wine bottles. I'm hoping the corks will hold. They were the biggest corks that the brewshop sold. I just don't see why it would be an issue when you can buy sparkling wine at the liquor store and it's in the same bottles.
 
Just a follow up even though Cheyne commented on it. I have the bigger 29mm bottle caps which are made for capping champagne bottles. I flipped the brackets around in my red barron capper to handle the 29mm neck but no success. I think you need a 29mm bell to cap the 29mm caps. @Cheyne: were you all 29mm when you capped or were you able to get the 26mm caps on the champagne bottles?

And in case anyone is looking to reuse bottles and doesn't want to or doesn't drink champagne, lambics are a good second. The bottles are 750ml champagne bottles able to be carbed. SWMBO LOVES Lindemans Raspberry lambic... another point for me... another bottle for apfelwein!
 
I just don't see why it would be an issue when you can buy sparkling wine at the liquor store and it's in the same bottles.

They may look similar but I can guarantee you they are different. Wine is still and as such there is no pressure so a thinner glass bottle can be used. There is no reason for a winery to spend extra money on a bottle that can hold pressure when that feature is not used. I personally wouldn't trust wine bottles with anything but still beverages.

Another tip is to buy cheap sparkling fruit juices at the grocery store if you want 750ml bottles that can hold pressure and be capped. Another option is to hit up the nearest hotel that does wedding receptions and see if they can save the champagne bottles for you. Worth a shot for free bottles.
 
JediJoel- I took a regular beer bottle cap and put it on the champagne bottles i sell here. It worked fine.
 
I just don't see why it would be an issue when you can buy sparkling wine at the liquor store and it's in the same bottles.

They are not in the same bottles. You bottled your beer in still-wine bottles. Sparkling-wine is bottled in champagne bottles. I would be worried about this - exploding bottles are dangerous.
 
Well, I had my first bottle explode tonight. I'll be sticking most of them in the fridge to stop them from exploding hopefully. Anything I can't fit in there will be re-bottled in beer bottles. Lesson learned.
 
You'll want to rebottle all that you can. The carbonation is there, the pressure is there. Chilling will slow it down, but the glass is already under stress.

Even chilled, have a solid grip on your corkscrew.
Once you get the cork started, the pressure will probably push it the rest of the way.
And there will be plenty of pressure. I had to do the same with a batch that didn't stabilize and started to ferment in the bottles. 2 popped corks, before I got them opened up.
 
take cork scew all the way though cork and pull it out and let pressure bleed slowly. other wise you will foam up and get a mess everywhere. Chilling will help
 
So, I assume getting them close to freezing, uncorking, and rebottling would be the best bet? Could I just let them sit opened for about 20 minutes and then re-cork them? I've never had to deal with rebottling, so I'm not sure of any downsides. Oxydizing?
 
i had a funny saison bottling session this weekend. i scored a whole bunch of champagne bottles outside a wedding venue over labor day. i had them on the floor ready to be filled with saison and thought i should check to see if they cap before i fill them. well i picked up what was apparently a smaller size bottle and the cap fit perfectly. i then filled 5 more bottles to find they would not cap. i immediately got a cup and drank some uncarbed saison :>)

oh well, i'll just save all those bottles and get the plastic stoppers and wire to tighten for future batches. i think champagne bottles look cool, hold lots of beer, and are perfect for gifts.
 
Back
Top