Brewing without bottles

[firstttimebrew]

Hi!

I'm making my first batch of beer to try out brewing. The kit I have produces 20 pints but unfortunately I don't have bottles to put the beer into afterwards.

Is there any other way of storing the beer?

Would it be possible to use Glass Clip Lid Jars instead?

Thanks!

 

[Peruvian802]

Your beer will bottle condition (carbonate in the bottle) so you have to be sure that the container can handle that pressure. Most can not.
The kit should have come with caps. I recommend buying a few 12 packs and drinking them over the next few weeks while your beer ferments. Then clean and sanitize them before using them for your homebrew. You will need a capper as well.

 

[HB_in_Subic]

Depending on availability, you could go the Grolsch bottle path and reuse those bottles without a bottle capper. You will need almost 2 cases of Grolsch (43-44 bottles) for a typical 5 gallon batch.

A cheap alternative is green Plastic Soda bottles. They hold the seal for the CO2 and can handle the pressure.

 

[unionrdr]

Or 48 to 54 - 12 ounce bottles for 5 gallons of beer. Brewing supply shops also have cases of bottles if that's cheaper for you versus buying craft beer that comes in pop top bottles, which can be expensive.
Some other containers aren't designed to hold the pressure put on them by the carbonation, so be careful!

 

[dwhite60]

I'm using some one liter soda bottles. They work well. They're reusable so far. Easily contain carbonation pressure. They're cheap. Caps are reusable.

Could probably go to a recycling center and get twenty pretty easily.

All the Best,
D. White

 

[CJ-3]

Hi!

I'm making my first batch of beer to try out brewing. The kit I have produces 20 pints but unfortunately I don't have bottles to put the beer into afterwards.

Is there any other way of storing the beer?

Would it be possible to use Glass Clip Lid Jars instead?

Thanks!

Try putting your location in your profile so it can he seen by everyone. It's a friendly group here and someone may have empties you can have.

 

[firstttimebrew]

Thanks for all the advice and tips guys. I will probably use 2L Plastic Bottles. Any more advice for using them? How long can I keep beer in them after fermentation?

 

[nrjones89]

I personally would not use plastic pop bottles. They are made of PET and would permeate oxygen. The whole point of bottling your beers is to avoid oxidation.

If you really don't want to drink a bunch of beer, you could call around and ask local bars to hold onto a couple pry off bottles.

 

[unionrdr]

2l is a lot of beer. 1l bottles would be a better serving size. the average ale will last about 2 months before o2 supposedly starts permeating the plastic. Glass holds up better in the long haul. But the plastic would be ok for now.

 

[PADave]

If you have not made the batch, you got plenty of time to make empties. Get yourself a case of good beer, make sure it's got non-twist off caps, and drink them. Let your beer ferment for 3 weeks and you got plenty of time to get enough bottles.

 

[Brownalemikie]

^^ yep, what he said. I bought a case of Sam Adams summer variety and got to sample some good brews while acquiring 24 non-screw cap bottles.

 

[KenEnnis]

ask some of your friends if they have some empty beer bottles. that's how I got started.
make sure you clean and sanitize them. the bottles should be amber in color as sunlight
affects the flavor of your beer.

 

[CJ-3]

Thanks for all the advice and tips guys. I will probably use 2L Plastic Bottles. Any more advice for using them? How long can I keep beer in them after fermentation?

Here are my issues with using 2 liter pop bottles:

2 liters is a lot to drink in one sitting.

If you pour more than once from the bottle you may shake up the sediment from the bottom and drinking yeast slurry isn't for everyone.

If you only have one or two drinks per evening you will lose a lot of carbonation each time you open the bottle. Much like the last Coke out of a 2 liter bottle has far less carbonation than the first one did.

Give some more thought to using glass bottles.

 

[55x11]

Hi!

I'm making my first batch of beer to try out brewing. The kit I have produces 20 pints but unfortunately I don't have bottles to put the beer into afterwards.

Is there any other way of storing the beer?

Would it be possible to use Glass Clip Lid Jars instead?

Thanks!

Do you have any stainless steel growlers? They can handle the carbonation pressure.

You could also drink your beer flat and slightly oxidized.

 

[IslandLizard]

Try putting your location in your profile so it can he seen by everyone. It's a friendly group here and someone may have empties you can have.

This^
One of my pet peeves here is missing locations... very essential when you ask for info or help.

Craigslist and places like that usually offer bottles for free or at a very low price (cleaned, bombers, fliptops). Ask a bartender, friends, or rummage the recycling containers after one of your neighbors had a party. Student housing are good resources too.

 

[IslandLizard]

Forgot the obvious: Start kegging right away!

 

[Stillraining]

Hi!

I'm making my first batch of beer to try out brewing. The kit I have produces 20 pints but unfortunately I don't have bottles to put the beer into afterwards.

Is there any other way of storing the beer?

Would it be possible to use Glass Clip Lid Jars instead?

Thanks!

Post your location..someone on here like me may live by you.. and I would just give you the bottles.