Do I need a corker for belgian beer bottles?

[BrookdaleBrew]

I was planning to brew a special beer on New Years Day and then open the first 2 bottles next New Years Eve at midnight, then open 2 more bottles every year until they're gone.

I wanted to do corked bottles since they're a little classier but I do not have a corker. Do I absolutely need one or is there another option?

I was going to use these bottles.

 

[pompeiisneaks]

Have you ever tried pushing a cork back inti a bottle? I wouldn't want to do that for more than one or two bottles myself. I think caps still work fine. The reason they cork Belgians and use the special bottles (I believe they're champagne bottles) is because they bottle condition them, and they get to really high psi. You can just finish the ferment outside the bottle and cap them, but it's your call. Do you want a more authentic Belgian, or simplicity?

 

[barrooze]

A corona corker works, but I didn't have one when I bottled my tripel. I used the plastic champagne corks. They seemed to be a bit too skinny though, so I wrapped once around the cork with Teflon tape. The fit was nice and snug after that. Used the wire cages and I was good to go. I have some Belgian corks and they are MUCH larger in diameter than the inner diameter of the Belgian bottle necks. The corona corker tapers the cork gradually so it can fit in the neck. I've heard some people using regular wine corks, using a mallet to work them into the bottle 3/4 of the way and then putting a beer cap on top and using the wire cage to hold that cork in. There are lots of options and this site has a ton of them posted. Just search around until you find the solution that works for you.

 

[Bensiff]

I've only bottled one Belgian and I used the plastic corks. I had the exact opposite problem, they were really tight so I had to use a mallet to tap them in. Then I had to use my channel lock to get most of the corks off. Even with that the corks were noticeably pushing on the wire cages though. Beer turned out fantastic, plastic corks sucked though.

 

[barrooze]

Interesting. I used empty Duvel, Chimay red and blue, and Delirium Tremens bottles. The DT bottles were the tight fit but the other three felt too loose for comfort.

 

[jsb]

I just did a belgian tripel in 750ml bottles with corks and cages. Had I not had a floor corker from my wine making days, this would have bordered on the impossible, and certainly in the not worth the effort category. It really makes a classy presentation, but they are a pain in the butt to open.