Bottles and bottling

[andyd]

I've just started a brew after several years away from the hobby. Been doing a bit of research here and elsewhere but I have a couple of questions:

1. I'm planning to bottle my beer but one of the books I consulted recommended transferring the beer to keg post fermentation until clear and then bottling. I'm wondering whether other forum members do this or do you bottle direct from the FV?

2. In the dim and distant past I recall being advised not to use non-returnable glass bottles for home-brew since they wouldn't be strong enough to withstand the pressure of secondary fermentation. Does anyone have experience/advise on this subject.

Any input much appreciated.

Cheers

Andy

 

[RobWalker]

1) Bottling bucket is best IMO. You can bottle directly from the FV but you need to wait for it to clear out, and the issue there is that you need to avoid the stuff at the bottom. I'm imagining they're recommending the keg as a bottling bucket...it's never a bad idea to rack off the yeast cake once it's cleared, but it's not imperative.

2) Check them for cracks and chips and only use strong ones. Magners/bulmers bottles etc are pretty sturdy, but you might wanna avoid anything that feels thin.

 

[Davebispham81]

Hi im no expert and have only been making my own lager and cider for about 9 months now but i can tell you that i never syphon to another bucket to clear if its being bottled, it seems pointless as you have to put sugar in the bottle to carbonate the beer and end up with sediment in the bottle anyway,( i bought a corny keg from norm and dont have to worry about bottling these days although im still having foam problems ). as for the bottles i used plastic bottles although there is nothing wrong with glass bottles, i know lots of people on here use glass so they`re fine, although i read in a post a while ago that some brands make the bottle tops different so your capper wont work on them im sure one of the more experienced brewers can tell you more on that.

hope this helps.

 

[Dave1970]

Get hold of a 'Little Bottler' for your bottling bucket...makes the job a lot easier.
I'm using a real mix of bottles that had beer or cider in, they're all non-returnable. Fullers, Newcastle Brown, Bulmers & Gaymers ones are good & the labels just slip off if you put them through the dishwasher, just remember that any beer not in brown glass needs to be kept in the dark.

 

[PhatFil]

1) Yes i do this now. there are a few good reasons, and even doing it a 3rd time to mix in a priming solution could be a good idea.. saves measuring 40 odd 1/2 teaspoon fulls of spray malt or sugar, not to mention the mess and the low all down the neck of the bottle rate..

2) pet water or pop bottles are free and can take 15psi, and no sharps if they do fail... tho i reuse glass beer bottles and have yet to have one fail.. i like grolsh flip top bottles...

 

[tubthumper]

the reason that transfering to a keg before bottleing was for bulk conditioning
it is mentioned in graham wheelers book home brewing and he mentions the guiness and bass bottling they used to do in pubs
but most now days just transfer to bottling bucket with little botler attached
nice and easy just make sure you have a rag to catch the spill as it drips a little attaching it and when you tranfer to next bottle

 

[TheMumbler]

+1 for little bottler and bottling bucket. If you are bottling a lot a bench capper is well worth the money IMO.

My bottling stick drips all the time so I bottle over a bucket. I did worry about the losses but they are actually pretty minimal. I also have a cloth on hand to wipe up any spills from the floor asap after bottling as it is so easy to tread sticky beer everywhere.

 

[andyd]

Thanks for all the replies. The little bottler looks useful, I'll add this to my shopping list for my equipment upgrade.

For bottles, I have a (probably irrational) preference for glass but I may try some PET bottles as well. I already have a decent number of glass bottles (some very old screw-top beer bottles "borrowed" from my dad and some Grolsch style bottles "liberated" from a pub many years ago as a student. I also have a selection of commercial beer in bottles, which is what prompted my original question since these offer a ready supply for home-brew.

 

[eggman]

Any bottles that have held beer should be ok mate but check how thin they are. When i'm bottling or kegging i just syphon straight out of the fv once it's dropped clear (taking extra care not to disturb the sediment) Given long enough to mature any sediment in the bottle will set on the bottom quite firmly, i find that i can pour the whole bottle pretty much without getting a cloudy pint :thumb:

 

[PhatFil]

Thanks for all the replies. The little bottler looks useful, I'll add this to my shopping list for my equipment upgrade.

For bottles, I have a (probably irrational) preference for glass but I may try some PET bottles as well. I already have a decent number of glass bottles (some very old screw-top beer bottles "borrowed" from my dad and some Grolsch style bottles "liberated" from a pub many years ago as a student. I also have a selection of commercial beer in bottles, which is what prompted my original question since these offer a ready supply for home-brew.

Yep your old bottle stock n new bottle stock should be fine, but if they are gonna go bang its going to happen when they are sat maturing, so just cover each crate with a towel or cloth if your at all worried.. JUst dont over prime...

some commercial bottles are not ideal, I was warned off ??wytchwood brewery bottles?? as the necks/tops dont suit the use of the standard lever crown capper device, there is little or no lip instead a bulge where the capper expects to gain purchase on operation.. saying that i did cap a couple of these ok but it did take a couple of attempts.

I do get the glass preference, and have it myself...but the only drawback with recycled pet bottles is the big ones get a bit flimsy when decanting.. I prefer the 1ltr size ala tonic water size, and while a lil bulky to store, these can be lobbed anywhere without the fear of breaking them. nice easy screwtops too

One last tip.. when you finally get to sup on your bottled beer, rinse out each bottle a few times as soon as you have poured it and leave some water in it to stand.. sediment when left for a overnight period will dry rock hard n glue itself to your bottles.. if you having a session get an old fermentation bin or the like fill it with water n dunk all the empties in there and rince them out the next day in bulk..

You can spend over 1/2 an hour on a single bottle scrapping with the wire end of a bottle brush at the sediment when its allowed to dry on hard..

enjoy