Bacterial Growth on Bottles

[Cacaman]

Hi, i asked my cousins to save all their beer bottles that weren't twisty tops. After a party they had, they left me a case of "Modelo" beer bottles sitting in the backyard for about a week or so before i went to pick them up. They are some nice little clear fat 12 oz bottles, and thought they would go great with appfelwein.

Anyways, I was heating up some water to put the bottles in a cooler, so that i can let them soak in oxyclean, to facilitate the label removal process. To my surprise i saw some nasty looking bacterial colonization at the bottom of the Modelo bottles. Im guessing the last few drops of beer, mixed with the humid weather for a week let bacteria (or whatever that is) grow at the bottom of the bottles. I checked the dark normal bottles (like real ale bottles), and those looked fine, it was just the Modelo ones.

Right now the bottles are soaking in hot water with oxyclean, and don't know whether these bottles will be good to use or not. I tried to rinse off most of the spore looking stuff, and placed them inside the cooler of hot water. In a few hours i planned on throwing in some iodaphor into the oxyclean water to try to disinfect some of that stuff. Suggestions? Does anyone think the bottles will still be useable?

 

[topend]

Been there, dealt with that. Fill up the bottles and soak in hot OxyClean solution for a couple hours, the infection should pop loose. Pour out the solution, use a bottle washer and blow out all the mess and solution, and look through the bottle opening to the bottom of the bottle (for brown bottles, not needed with clear) and see if there is anymore gunk. Repeat if necessary.

When it's bottling time, check the bottles again and soak them in starsan for a few minutes before bottling. Do not rinse the bottles after pouring out the starsan.

I have used countless bottles that came to me with infections in the bottom, and I have never had a spoiled beer using this technique.

 

[mikebowman]

Yeah, no worries. I usually just try and rinse them out as best as I can, but if that doesn't work, soaking them in a bit of boiling water usually helps. Then a good rinse, star San, and good to go!

 

[Cacaman]

Great! Thanks guys!