The best bottles for bottling.

[Beerbeque]

All my bottles are Sierra Nevada. I got rid of all the rest. I use mainly 12oz and a few SN 24oz. I store my bottles in SN 12 pack boxes.

 

[CJ-3]

If you are going to bottle I highly recommend a bench capper as opposed to a wing capper.
As soon as I started using a bench capper I never had another issue with capping a bottle.

 

[AZCoolerBrewer]

If you are going to bottle I highly recommend a bench capper as opposed to a wing capper.
As soon as I started using a bench capper I never had another issue with capping a bottle.

You are right that a bench capper takes a lot of variables out of capping a bottle, but they cost 3 times as much as a wing capper. If value is what you are looking for then make sure you get the long shoulder bottles like Sam Adams uses.

 

[IcicleToes]

I've become a fan of the Anchor bottles. I've noticed the inner diameter is slightly larger than many other bottles, which makes it easier to get a bottle brush in there. The shape is pretty unique as well.

 

[flseadog]

Ok, so I bottled for the first time and I have to say it was a pain in my arse. I took the clamp and some extra bottle caps and tried two bottles before I did anything and I thought...wow...this is easy. Fast forward....

Now I have a handful of bottles filled with beer and went to clamp the top on...1 bottle took me up to 5-7 tries. I went to my LHBS and told the guy my story and he goes oh yeah....that beer has horrible bottles. So, then and there I learned that some bottles are easier than other to cap.

So...in your experience whats the best beer to buy and save for bottling?

My favorite bottles are Samuel Adams. The labels come off easy with PBW and hot water and they are the easiest I have found for capping. The long section at the top of the neck gives my capper a good grip.

 

[kh54s10]

Old thread, but.. I find many brands work the same. There are some bottles where the part of the neck that a wing capper grabs is shorter. Just look and discard those. A bench capper solves this problem.

As to labels. I save any bottles from craft beers. Give them a soak in generic oxygen cleaner, then if the label does not come off easily, I recycle them.

I got rid of all my Samuel Adams bottles because of the molded in logo.... Just a peeve. 12+ cases. Advertised for free - got no response so they got recycled.....

 

[Home_alone1]

I have a mix of Orval , green and brown 750’s , German 33ml bottles , brown Belgian 750ml bottles that take corks and regular brown bottles from the Hbs . All seem good to go , I’m a scavenger !

Also I’ve been saving champagne bottles , they seem nice.

 

[bleme]

I started with a bunch of Sapporo bottles from the local sushi restaurant. They came in both 12oz and 22oz. Then I started giving beer to my boss, who drinks Grolsch. He started giving me all his Grolsch bottles and I switched to those. They are green, which is a minor problem, but they seem twice as heavy as the Sapporo bottles and don't need a capper.

Dang necromancers....

 

[brownni5]

Repeated time and again - if you collect stubbies (Sierra Nevada, Lagunitas, Founders, etc.) you need to either the wing capper and get a bench capper. Perfectly decent bottles otherwise. Sam Adams, Deschutes and Bells are some that I've found cap well and the label floats right off in warm water.

 

[LostHopper]

Sam Adams, Deschutes, Big Sky (sometimes Big Sky labels are tough to remove)..


I realize it's a small sample size but I had two Sweetwater bottles break at the neck when capping. No bloodshed but it was a waste of 24 oz of beer. Only bottle I've ever seen break while capping.