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larger bottles
Do yo guys think larger bottles are better for aging then say a 12oz. bottle?
In the beer caves, wine stores and specialty stores the better ales are
in at least pint bottles. Mostly, not all.
That got me to wondering if larger bottles are better for aging your brew?
Am I way off?
Marv.
I have no idea if aging in larger bottles is "better" but for me it is easier. Fewer bottles = less chance of me breaking something.
I don't know if they're better for the brew, but I think it's been mentioned in another post that larger bottles are quicker to deal with when washing and bottling...
I wonder if convenience is a factor in the commercial examples of using larger bottles?
When I was bottling I switched to all 22 oz bottles just to save time. I think the commercial guys do it for specialty beers just so they can charge $8 a bottle.
I can't honestly speak for aging beer, as I have never intentionally kept a homebrew to age it, but a larger bottle of wine does age better. The magnum bottles will age a wine much better than typical 750 ml bottle, assuming that storage conditions and such are the same. It wouldn't surprise me if the same was true for beer.
I don't think the size of the bottle would have much difference in aging effectiveness. I've aged in a keg and a 12 oz bottle with no noticeable difference. I don't se how vessel size could affect anything.
I don't know the exact reasons, but I have had the same bottle of wine, same vitnage, and on the same night one being a magnum and one being a standard bottle. The magnum was definitely better. I have always had the same response from any winery or knowledgable wine shop employee as well. They always recommend using a magnum for cellaring wine.
The important difference between wine and beer is that wine is bottled for 2 years or more, beer typically is not.
wine is bottled for 2 years or more
Or a whole, whole lot longer. That's interesting maybe a wine phenomenon, I'll ask my buddy who makes a lot of wine.
You know, I am starting to find more and more wines that are made to be drunk sooner rather than later. I guess maybe it is a sign of the times, but especially the wine made here in the valley in which I live, you wouldn't want to keep too many bottles of wine for more 4 or 5 years after there vintage date. They just don't last too long and peak pretty early. Some of the Napa and Sonoma wines, of course, are a bit different, but even still, if you have too many 2001 or 2002 wines, you would want to drink them now.
My buddy said it's due to the larger volume of liquid in a magnum bottle. If they both have the same headspace a magnum bottle is going to absorb less oxygen in comparison to a smaller bottle (same amount of oxygen, less volume to distribute it in). So that makes sense. I guess a trend now is to fill a bottle 1/2 or 3/4 full and it will age the equivalent of 3 years in one.
That does make sense. So do you think the same would be true for beer? I would now beleive that a keg would keep better than a bottle, as most of the volume occupied by are would be consumed with CO2.
I can see why the wineries would want to age their wines quicker, but it is pretty disappointing to open a 4 year old bottle of what used to be pretty good wine only to find that it has declined quite a bit.
Would depend largely on how you filled each. If you were to flush with CO2 a bottle could be just as good. I dont understand why wineries couldnt do something similar, but I guess youd then be carbing the wine unintentionally.
Speaking of larger bottles... What about the GREEN bottles that Martinelli's sparkling apple cider come in? Would they take the preassure created by the beer, or is it just a bigger bomb? My "Home Beermaking" book reccomends using champagne bottles because they're designed to handle the pressure. The martinelli's bottles seem pretty thick... Truth is I'm getting desparate for bottles, and am trying to limit my cost per bottle so I'm scrounging off anyone I can. That's why I ask...
I've started to buy brews just because it's not a twist off cap,lol.
I wouldn't think it would matter if it was a wine bottle,if they handle the pressure
better, go for it.
Marv.
I think the Martinelli's bottles would work fine.
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