What kind of bottles should i use

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TDorty3

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I have never bottled before. Soon I will be bottling my first batch.

Am I able to cap on bottles that were twist-offs like old Honey Brown or Budweiser bottles?

Does it matter if they're twist off bottles or not?

Is there a type of beer bottle that you prefer?

Should I buy new ones?

I don't want to ruin my first batch. Please let me know. I appreciate it.

-tim
 
TDorty3 said:
Am I able to cap on bottles that were twist-offs

Nope, you will not get a good seal on these bottles.

TDorty3 said:
Is there a type of beer bottle that you prefer?

I use the 22oz bottles. Less time spent cleaning them and filling them than is spent if you have 12oz bottles. The 'type'? well, just the brown glass 22oz bottles that you can find at most LHBS's and on brewing supply web sites.

TDorty3 said:
Should I buy new ones?

I bought all new ones. This depends on your budget and how quickly you need them. If you buy beer in bottles, you will have to search for beers which do not use twist off tops. Where I live, this is actually a challenge. This is pretty much a 'Bud Light' community. Sam Adams has the right top and it's pretty common even here. I have noticed some discussion on 'how to remove the labels' from beer bottles. I avoided all of this headache and bought new. If you need them in the next couple of days, that would be an awful lot of beer drinking to get enough bottles.

I started with 24 of the 22oz bottles and 24 of the 12oz bottles. I wanted some 12oz bottles so I could have 'samplers' to drink at different ages. Also I store yeast in the 12oz bottles. I quickly discovered that if I was going to brew as often as I like, this would not suffice. I brew 5gal batches every other week and I did a few weeks in a row just to get the beer inventory up higher so I would be able to let batches age longer before cracking into them. I now have 84 22oz bottles (7 cases of 12) and 48 12oz (2 cases of 24). Rought estimate which will change significantly due to price and shipping charges (if you incurr that expense) $90 in bottles. Once again, I have alot of bottles so I can stockade my beer!

I will move to kegging eventually but I have alot of other projects in brewing to undertake first!
 
We just have been saving up our bottles. I drink Alot of Guiness, those bottles work nicely. you can just slit the plastic wrap label with a utility knife and pull the nitrogen capsule thingy out with a pair of needle nose pliers and you're good to go. My roomate drinks alot of Bass, those bottles arew also pop tops. As are Sam Adams, St pauly Girl, Dos Equis, tecate, corona, and a few others.
 
FYI, I can't get Heineken or Bass bottles to take a cap. I don't know if it's the design of the bottle, or my capper (red baron).
 
92greenyj said:
We just have been saving up our bottles. I drink Alot of Guiness, those bottles work nicely. you can just slit the plastic wrap label with a utility knife and pull the nitrogen capsule thingy out with a pair of needle nose pliers and you're good to go. My roomate drinks alot of Bass, those bottles arew also pop tops. As are Sam Adams, St pauly Girl, Dos Equis, tecate, corona, and a few others.


Did you notice those bottles only say they are 11.2 ounces? I know its because of the widget inside (displacement) but I wonder if it actually holds 12 ounces. Hmmmm....

The only ones I've noticed that don't work are Bass bottles. Do you guys use those? Hmmmm....

I've heard there is a special cap you can buy for twist-off bottles. I've yet to find these caps. I've also heard you need a bench capper instead of the wing cappers that most nOOb kits come with. I have some really cool 16oz. twist-offs that I'm saving to bottle some of my brew in, but need to find those caps.

Soak the bottles in oxy-clean for a while, no peeling, no labor. The labels will be floating in the water in less than an hour.
 
im pretty sure they hold twelve ounces with the nitrogen capsule removed.

As for the Bass bottles, we've had no problems capping em with a wing capper. half our beers are bottled in em
 
I used to have problems capping bass, and heiniken bottles because my wing capper needed more of a "lip" to grab. Then, I got a bench capper. Now I can bottle anything.

I'd buy a 3-4 cases of 12 oz bottles (or their equivilent in 24 oz bottles) to get started. For the first couple batches, you'll probably be drinking them pretty quickly. Eventually, you'll probably need 8-10 cases if you're like me. When I bottle the three brews I have in the secondary, I'll be wiped out.

I like stockpiling beer, as you can probably tell from my sig. But I still have four batches to brew this summer to reach my goal. I guess it's time to buy some bottles.
 
I mentioned this earlier, but whenever I place caps on the bottles I give them a twisting downward motion. IMO this seats the cap better. I know the Heinie bottles don't feel right when capping, like they are too small.

Cap a bottle and turn it upside down (over your sink) to test the seal. Give it a try.

My German style beers are bottled in flippies. I usually bottle 12 oz bottles for giveaways. This way if I don't get them back there is no great loss.

I have about 16 cases of bottles already filled. I have about 6 cases of 12 oz, 5 -6 cases of ,5 liter flippies and another 3 cases of Grolsch flippies still empty. I also have about 14 (more) 5 liter kegs I can (WILL) fill. I can see the work ahead of me now.......

I have 2 batches of Paulaner-style Hefe Weizen conditioning right now as well as a lightly gingered Wit beer.

I bottled a Czech Bud yesterday (my second batch of this). It took 99 days from start to finish. (It was only by coincidence that the days match my sig.)

I transferred a Hefe Weizen on Sat. I have another batch planned for tonight...another (second) Kolsch or something lighter.

I'll save the really light beer for when the jalapeno's are ready....

Choices.... :D
 

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