Bro, wanna brew?

Forums › Home brewing (beer, wine, spirits) › Bro, wanna brew?

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#915339 15-Oct-2013 12:38

BlueShift:
Dav4122: ...

What are you doing to scratch up the inside of your plastic bottles?
And, where do you source the Grolsch bottles, do you have to buy them full, then empty them?

I had read that cleaning them with the bottle brush or whatever you use can start to put little scratches on the inside of the bottle that make it easier for beer spoiling nasties to attach to - I just use the no rinse sterilizer for longer to try and offset that - but it could be an old brewers tale for all I know

I bought my swing tops from the brew shop in Hamilton and had them couriered up http://www.brewshop.co.nz/brewing-equipment/bottling-equipment

Johnk

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#915367 15-Oct-2013 13:01

Some good looking stuff on those sites.

Might try put a brew down this Saturday. Keen to get hold of some 330ml glass bottles instead of the bigger swapa crate 750mls.

I presume any bottle I buy full of beer from the local liquor shop and proceed to empty with a few friends can be filled and recapped using the glass capers off those sites?

Dav4122

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Master Geek
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#915369 15-Oct-2013 13:03

I've put together a quick set of photos of my first and current brew
http://flic.kr/s/aHsjKLSReB

Started with a Coopers brewing kit - now I am giving my Dad's old wine making carboy a go with an all grain brew

ubergeeknz

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#915377 15-Oct-2013 13:14

Johnk: Some good looking stuff on those sites.

Might try put a brew down this Saturday. Keen to get hold of some 330ml glass bottles instead of the bigger swapa crate 750mls.

I presume any bottle I buy full of beer from the local liquor shop and proceed to empty with a few friends can be filled and recapped using the glass capers off those sites?

No, most 330mL bottles won't be refillable, they are very thin glass and apt to shatter/explode on you.

The swappa crate bottles definitely are though, but I think they're more like 660mL

lokhor

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#915446 15-Oct-2013 14:18

Some of my friends and I have started doing homebrew using a Coppertun kit.

Since the original kit lager (which turned out nicely btw) we have done an IPA with extra hops in the mash and dry hopping as well as a ginger beer.

All comments are my own opinion, and not that of my employer unless explicitly stated.

benmurphy66

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#915457 15-Oct-2013 14:36

I had purchased three boxes of these http://www.brewshop.co.nz/brewing-equipment/bottling-equipment/750ml-flip-top-bottles.html (from a different shop) and they completely failed for me over three brews. Basically had less than 50% success rate. when I took them back to the shop they said they had had many many returned. I just got some more plastic bottles that I have not had any issues with.

My plan is to start dry hopping the kits next and see how I go with that. I try to change one thing at a time.

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ubergeeknz

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#915458 15-Oct-2013 14:37

benmurphy66: I had purchased three boxes of these http://www.brewshop.co.nz/brewing-equipment/bottling-equipment/750ml-flip-top-bottles.html (from a different shop) and they completely failed for me over three brews. Basically had less than 50% success rate. when I took them back to the shop they said they had had many many returned. I just got some more plastic bottles that I have not had any issues with.

My plan is to start dry hopping the kits next and see how I go with that. I try to change one thing at a time.

Yeah flip tops are not the best. Even commercial brews in flip tops can be iffy. They just don't seal as firmly as crown caps.

MattEast

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#915460 15-Oct-2013 14:45

I started doing this last year, and started off with the Boil in the Bag system, which means you only need one pot to complete the process.
The chaps at Brewers Coop http://www.brewerscoop.co.nz/ are very helpful and recommended the first recipe for me to try out (Pale Ale). You get a good run down of what you need from this site, costs about $400 to get setup, but the full grain brewed beer is so much better than the canned stuff. I've turned out about 10 batches, only had one go wrong, first attempt at dry hopping, but I added the hops to early in the process so introduced a bug.
Good fun, takes about three hours from start to finish, and only needs to be checked occasionally.

Highly recommended...

Matt East

benmurphy66

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#915461 15-Oct-2013 14:45

ubergeeknz:
benmurphy66: I had purchased three boxes of these http://www.brewshop.co.nz/brewing-equipment/bottling-equipment/750ml-flip-top-bottles.html (from a different shop) and they completely failed for me over three brews. Basically had less than 50% success rate. when I took them back to the shop they said they had had many many returned. I just got some more plastic bottles that I have not had any issues with.

My plan is to start dry hopping the kits next and see how I go with that. I try to change one thing at a time.

Yeah flip tops are not the best. Even commercial brews in flip tops can be iffy. They just don't seal as firmly as crown caps.

Based on the conversations I have had recently I think each different type has pros and cons. I got some 1 Litre flip-top bottles which seem ok but those brown ones caused me much pain (3-4 bottles opened to get one I could drink), the shop seemed very displeased with them but gladly refunded me. But I have heard you can have sealing issues with old school metal caps too. Plastic seem to have less trouble but harder to clean and I guess will have a shorter life span overall.

Dav4122

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Master Geek
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#915575 15-Oct-2013 16:48

Here is how I fixed my iffy flip top bottles - if you are keen to have a go

Take the cap off - mine are quite easy to do this but i have seen some that have an extra twist of wire to make this harder

re-bend the ends of the wire on the cap so it is shorter - which makes the seal tighter

reattach and test it closes and opens with more pressure than before you started

ubergeeknz

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#915577 15-Oct-2013 16:50

benmurphy66:
Based on the conversations I have had recently I think each different type has pros and cons. I got some 1 Litre flip-top bottles which seem ok but those brown ones caused me much pain (3-4 bottles opened to get one I could drink), the shop seemed very displeased with them but gladly refunded me. But I have heard you can have sealing issues with old school metal caps too. Plastic seem to have less trouble but harder to clean and I guess will have a shorter life span overall

Just keep in mind that plastic is permeable (c/w glass) and your beer won't keep quite as well in a plastic bottle as it would in glass :) Crown caps, applied correctly, are very reliable.

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benmurphy66

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#915587 15-Oct-2013 17:01

ubergeeknz:
benmurphy66:
Based on the conversations I have had recently I think each different type has pros and cons. I got some 1 Litre flip-top bottles which seem ok but those brown ones caused me much pain (3-4 bottles opened to get one I could drink), the shop seemed very displeased with them but gladly refunded me. But I have heard you can have sealing issues with old school metal caps too. Plastic seem to have less trouble but harder to clean and I guess will have a shorter life span overall

Just keep in mind that plastic is permeable (c/w glass) and your beer won't keep quite as well in a plastic bottle as it would in glass :) Crown caps, applied correctly, are very reliable.

Beer having to last to long isn't a problem I have had yet..... :) but I agree glass will be better overall. plan to try Crown caps.

robjg63

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#915593 15-Oct-2013 17:07

I am a little surprised about the talk about bottles. But it seems a lot to do with personal preference...

While I am not a heavy homebrew maker, I have used only plastic bottles and not had an issue.
The one time I had a flat brew I used the coopers glucose pellets for the bottle conditioning. I always use ordinary white sugar now (its cheaper anyway) and always works.

You can reuse the plastic tops quite a few times as well. You just have to take the time to use sterilizer on the bottles and caps before you bottle.

If you rinse your plastic bottles with hot water after you have emptied (drank) them they dont seem to retain any residue and you shouldnt need to use a scratchy bottlebrush.

The general comments I have seen is that glass has a rougher surface in the bottle and is actually harder to sterilize. Of course if something goes wrong with your beer and it gets overcarbonated you could get bottles breaking - plastic isnt brittle so is a bit more forgiving.

The beer can go flat in plastic - the gas can escape through the walls apparently - If you take a year to drink your beer then it might be an issue - but thats a long time!

If you have a good source of 750ml glass bottles and a capper then use them - otherwise plastic works well enough.

NEVER reuse those 330ml glass stubbies - as noted above it could be dangerous.

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lokhor

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#915658 15-Oct-2013 18:59

robjg63: I am a little surprised about the talk about bottles. But it seems a lot to do with personal preference...

While I am not a heavy homebrew maker, I have used only plastic bottles and not had an issue.
The one time I had a flat brew I used the coopers glucose pellets for the bottle conditioning. I always use ordinary white sugar now (its cheaper anyway) and always works.

You can reuse the plastic tops quite a few times as well. You just have to take the time to use sterilizer on the bottles and caps before you bottle.

If you rinse your plastic bottles with hot water after you have emptied (drank) them they dont seem to retain any residue and you shouldnt need to use a scratchy bottlebrush.

The general comments I have seen is that glass has a rougher surface in the bottle and is actually harder to sterilize. Of course if something goes wrong with your beer and it gets overcarbonated you could get bottles breaking - plastic isnt brittle so is a bit more forgiving.

The beer can go flat in plastic - the gas can escape through the walls apparently - If you take a year to drink your beer then it might be an issue - but thats a long time!

If you have a good source of 750ml glass bottles and a capper then use them - otherwise plastic works well enough.

NEVER reuse those 330ml glass stubbies - as noted above it could be dangerous.

I use 330ml glass bottles and use crown caps and have had no problems.

All comments are my own opinion, and not that of my employer unless explicitly stated.

Dav4122

73 posts

Master Geek
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#915679 15-Oct-2013 19:44

So enough bottle talk - what are people's favourite styles of beer that they have brewed?

Do you have a fool proof recipe or kit that you want to tell us all about?

I am partial to a good pilsner and will hunt out the recipe I used last to post here

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