Anyone do this??

[astebbi1]

I get these bottles from work (1.5ltr) and they seem to hold up pretty well..
I've been using the green ones but I can get clear also.. Is green really that much better??
I've heard it depends on if you're making red or white..



I've never really named my batches but when this one is done I think I'll have to come up with something because I came across some nifty labels..

 

[Deezil]

The difference between green & clear bottles, with red & white wines, has to do with the interaction between sunlight & wine.. And the amount of time the wine spends in the bottle.

Since whites are generally made to be consumed early (1-2 years), sunlight has little if no effect on the quality of wines & its a marketing ploy that putting a pretty wine in a clear bottle so people can see the color of it, helps it sell / makes it more attractive.

But reds that are aged in the bottles upwards of 3-4+ years, can be affected by the sunlight that comes through the bottle - so i think somewhere along the line it just became commonly accepted practice to put reds in green bottles (there may be more reasons that im not aware of though)

Anywho, thats the general overview of it.. Some others might be able to provide more details on aspects of it
​

 

[astebbi1]

Hmm so does that mean if I'm drinking my red wine less than two months after I make it it's ok to put it in clear bottles??
I keep them in the basement in the dark anyway so there's not much light ever really getting to them..

 

[Deezil]

Lol, if you're drinking it 2 months after you made it, you're just missing out. Put a couple bottles away until atleast the 1-yr mark & see what patience gets ya... Even if its the cheap stuff, i bet it'll improve in quality atleast a few times over. Another year would probably improve it even more after that

 

[djrockinsteve]

I use magnums for that little extra leftover wine that I can use to top off a Carboy. I never bottled a wine in them but it is fine to do so.

 

[astebbi1]

Thanks Deezil I'll definitely save Two bottles to experiment with taste.. You're really a big help I appreciate it a lot!!

 

[cpfan]

astebbi1:

Those look like screw top bottles. I'm concerned about re-using the screw caps, and new screw caps are not available. Many people on here are dead set against corking them.

Using them is basically your choice, but many on here wouldn't.

Steve

 

[astebbi1]

Thanks for the concern Steve.. I thought I'd be able to reuse these a couple times at least.. Why aren't they usually reused like this??

 

[Deezil]

Theres sanitation / sealing worries, with re-used screw caps.

And theres the issue of the neck of the bottle shattering, if theres a cork in it - the glass on the neck of screw top bottles is thinner than whats recommended for bottles that accept corks..

Personally, i've re-used some 1.5L bottles with screw caps, just to keep Skeeter Pee cold in the fridge... I wash the bottles & caps well under hot-hot water (our water heater is turned up a lil extra, the 'hot' water will darn-near burn you), hit em with kmeta, and filled them with finished wine... But i always kept them in the fridge this way too, to keep them too cold to blow their tops if anything were to happen.. Nothing long-term.