Bottling in Flip Top Growlers

[dafad36]

I am relatively new to the joy of homebrewing and am constantly worried about ruining or wasting beer that I brew.

In an effort to cut down on my bottle cleaning I was thinking about bottling some of my beer (most of my beer) in some flip top growlers I have.

Has anyone else done this, any bad results?

Thanks
Russ

 

[Baron von BeeGee]

No problems at all, just a lot of beer at a go which isn't necessarily bad!

 

[chicagobluesman]

Just make sure they are Grolsch flip style lids. I've heard that growlers with screw tops lids might have some problems (too much leaking, not strong enough, etc...)

But maybe someone else here could comment differently on this point?

Cheers!

 

[Baron von BeeGee]

I would tend to agree on the lids. I have a screw top growler I use for starters and the cap doesn't have the plastic gasket underneath it like a soda or water bottle, so I don't think it would really seal all that well, although I haven't tried. It doesn't leak when I shake the crap out of my starter, though!

 

[DeRoux's Broux]

stay away from screw tops. anyone who has bought a growler of brew from their favorite brewpub, knows they go flat after a couple days.
i liekd the E-Z Cap 16 oz flip top bottles (Grolsch type). most HBS have them new. i just didn't like the green bottles of the Grolsch.

 

[dafad36]

Thanks guys. I have a couple of the flip top Grolsch style growlers with the metal handles. They are pretty sturdy and slightly medieval looking things from the Victory brewery. Sounds like its a go. Appreciate the help!

 

[homebrewhound]

Hi everyone,

Some friends of mine and I are thinking about doing some homebrewing and have heard about these flip-top growlers some of you mentioned.

Where's a good place to order around 2 (maybe 3) dozen? The places I've seen that sell singles look a little pricey, and I was hoping there could be a bulk discount from a wholesaler.

Thanks,

Sean

 

[Regulation]

I ordered from Koch-USA.com.. They sell them wholesale 15-20 $ each... The site seems to be down, they are the same metal handled growlers on all the brew sites.. I'll try and dig up the guys email for you seeing as the site is down.. Min order is 10.

 

[Regulation]

Here's the email..

[email protected]

150$ for 10 and 33$ to ship to Texas

 

[jskinner10]

So how high should you fill the growler with beer? Still leave the 3/4 of an inch to 1 inch of space at the top?

 

[joeystroud]

@homebrewhound & @Regulation: Just got an email from one of our vendors in Wilmington (where Koch *was* apparently based out of) regarding the fate of the business. Apparently, the building they operated out of doesn't have the sign up anymore. Weird, yeah? Anywho, like I posted in another forum, there's a PA company called Tote Glass that my company is using now.

http://toteglass.com/

The Koch email doesn't seem to be getting any response, and hasn't for about a week, based on my inbox.

@jskinner10

I always leave about a gap about big enough to dip my thumb in from the top (inch, inch and a 1/4, maybe?).

Cheers,
Joey

 

[homebrewhound]

Thanks, Joey.

I called the guys you listed, and they sent me a price list pretty quick. They don't break case packs, but the cost per unit isn't too bad.

My buddies and I are deliberating on ordering some. Does the color of the glass (brown or green) make any difference? I heard about something called "getting lightstruck"?

Thanks,

Sean

 

[jeffjm]

Get the brown. Light affects the hop compounds in beer and can create a skunky taste in a relatively short amount of time. Brown glass does a better job than green of protecting against this, but even so it shouldn't be exposed to any more light than necessary.