How do you store your beer???

[Stew]

This probably sounds like a stupid question but it keeps bugging me.

I want to know what the best container to store beer bottles in is, and what you guys do.

I use the slab box in which the beer bottles came in, and add a bit of tape for reinforcement. But once the beer bottles have been removed from the plastic wrapped six pack the box becomes worn and is succeptable to tearing.

I've been looking for better containers but cant find any of perfect size. I also find it easier to store the bottles in a box rather than just loose on a shelf.

Any suggestions???

[Hully]

Stew

As noted in a post elsewhere in here.

there is a device that looks like a milkcrate, but for legal reasons cannot be called a milkcrate.

You can find them on your local council throwout.

[Oliver]

I have a "beer cupboard", in which I store most of my beer. It holds 250 bottles, although I don't have this many in it as I worry about its ability to hold 325kg of beer and glass. It's a chipboard cupboard that I bought then stripped the shelves out of, reinforced and reinserted the old shelves and a few extra at intervals conducive to storing 750ml beer bottles.

The rest of my stocks, and my empty bottles, are stored in boxes that hold 12 bottles each.

Some of these boxes are original boxes that the crown seal bottles came in (two Southwark Stout boxes and two XXXX boxes) and others are wine boxes.

Interestingly, I found that Wild Turkey boxes fit 12 of the old style crown seal bottles perfectly, both in height and width.

I find white wine boxes are too narrow to hold these old beer bottles and champagne boxes are too tall, meaning they're hard to stack, and often a bit wide.

Cheers,

Oliver

[Brew Nerd]

Hi Stew,

Big W stores have copies of the Nylex 'hobby box'.
They are plasic, cube, stackable, and hold 16 x 750ml bottles.
I think they are about $6.50 each, last time I checked.
Cause they stack so well, and I'm always slotting my newest beers down the bottom, I've always got this strange feeling that I'm 'growing' beer.

[Dogger Dan]

The fridge.

Dogger

[Paleman]

Ive got a good cupboard. Holds five brews of 30 750 ml bottles. Keeps a good steady temperature when the rest of the shed is hot. In summer the shed can get up to 35 degrees C. But the cupboard seems to stay around 30 - 32 inside.

[flosso]

Yep, have been stacking (and also drying) bottles in those milk crate clones. With drying bottles they are particularly handy as the water can just drain away though the gaps in the bottom.

15 bottles can fit nicely in one so a batch will fit in 2.

[undercover1]

Those "milk crate" style boxes are useful in so many ways, not just for short people... I understand that some brewers find them handy because they are cheap, portable, stackable, easy to find & easy to clean.
And you can colour co-ordinate them- green for ready to drink, red for just bottled, grey for empties, etc.
If I had around 250 longnecks, and umpteen stubbies, in various states of drinkability, that may well be how I would choose to store them.
I also understand that rather then "borrowing" them from alleyways, supermarket loading bays, dumps etc you can actually buy something similar (but not as robust) from IKEA & other poncy homewares stores for only $8 or 10 each!

[Tony]

I've got carried away with some 9mm construction ply and made boxes that hold a slab each. Works really well, especially if put a "lip" on the bottom to make them stackable. Only problem is odd-sized stubbies: crownies are much taller than your average stubbie, and VB stubbies are slightly fatter (not much, but enough that you can only fit 23 in a slab).

Tony

[Stew]

Tony, sounds like a great idea with the ply. I was thikning perhaps of making a few boxes but now i definately will. I think Ill use the ply boxes for the stubbies and the milkcrates for the longnecks.

Safeway have got these new black crates lately, designed by chep that are colapsable availabe in 24, 42 or 60 litres. Clips on the sides allow the sides to fold down.

The 60litre ones would be good for longnecks and the 42's should be fine for stubbies. From memory i believe you could fit about 28 or so stubbies to a create, they are a bit longer and wider than a slab. Their internal dimensions are 547mm x 355mm and however high.

A VB slab is 410 x 270 so a bottle has a diameter of 68mm. 8.04 bottles would fit lengthways so would be quite snug.

http://www.chep.com/chepdoc/en/docs/pro ... ily_ap.pdf


These would be an excelent storage method i believe if somehow you could perhaps seek a distributor...... eg. Safeway

Happy hunting

[Tipsy]

Hi Stew,

Big W stores have copies of the Nylex 'hobby box'.
They are plasic, cube, stackable, and hold 16 x 750ml bottles.
I think they are about $6.50 each, last time I checked.
Cause they stack so well, and I'm always slotting my newest beers down the bottom, I've always got this strange feeling that I'm 'growing' beer.

I use these boxes for my 750ml bottles, but my 640ml bottles I foolishly bought are too tall. The bloody things wont fit in my cupboard and just barely fit in the fridge standing up

[Tony]

Stew,

The dimensions I use for 9mm ply are:
Base & top: 418mm x 284mm
Sides: 418mm x 220mm
Ends: 266mm x 220mm <-- corrected

I just butt-joint these together with a few 30mm x 2mm nails and plenty of PVA glue - seems to be working well so far.

I also tack a couple of strips of 10mm square (or so, whatever I have lying around) across the ends of the base and tops, on the underside, so that it fits neatly (but not too neatly) inside the walls of the box underneath.

This size works for Carlton Mid/Draught), Lion Nathan (XXXX, Tooheys, etc), Boags Strong Arm, Coopers (Pale/Sparkling/Best Extra Stout/etc, don't know about the other shape used for the Special Old Stout/CB/Vintage). As previously stated, VB is slightly too fat (maybe make the base 423 x 289), and crownies are way too tall.

Tony

[K9]

Stew,

I've tried a range of storage methods over the years and have resorted to using the book cartons from removalists. All I do is tape up both ends and then cut it in half so that the taped ends become the bottom. These will store 24 stubbies (green thingies with extinct dog on them).

If I want to get fancy I then cut a piece of cardboard to sit inside the lip of the box to act as a lid. The advantage of this is that you can then store them under the bed where they will be nice and warm in winter and nice and cool in summer. I have also cleaned out the linen cupboard and taken to storing the boxes of stubbies in that.

I find that if you just do it and demonstrate the usefulness of these two locations, sheilas soon get the hang of it and find alternate locations for the other useless stuff that you have evicted.

[dab123]

when i purchased my bottles ( allmost 300 king browns)
they where all stacked in milk crates . and I have'nt yet
got around to giveing them up , wonder how many other
home brewers are in the same situation ?
now that my conscience has been tapped, realy must
do something about it .!!!

[john2]

i store my beer in a big old fridge it fits about 200 long necks and keeps them at about 16 deg, is that to cold?

[Dogger Dan]

John,

Thats pretty warm actually, I like mine around 4 deg

Dogger

[Guest]

I've got a stack of styrofoam broccoli boxes from the vegetable store. They come with lids and stack really well. Also they have good light and heat insulation.

[Shaun]

I've got a stack of styrofoam broccoli boxes from the vegetable store. They come with lids and stack really well. Also they have good light and heat insulation.

I know a bloke in Richmond Sydney who used these as well, they work well. I use a 6x4 book shelve that hold 5 lots of 30 tallies or 60 stubbies. I hang a blanket over the front of to keep it cool. As an over flow and empty storage I have what looks like milk creates.

[grabman]

I use a variety of locations and methods.
Empties are stored in devices that resemble milk crates, but aren't anymore.
Just bottled brews are restacked in said devices for initial aging then transferred to the brew shelves bought from IKEA, this is a modular storage unit that will hold around 600 stubs/bottles, I've hung a curtain across front. Then the kegs are stored in fridge, while being consumed with two other kegs carbonating in brew room.

[Oliver]

i store my beer in a big old fridge it fits about 200 long necks and keeps them at about 16 deg, is that to cold?

...

Thats pretty warm actually, I like mine around 4 deg

I gather, John, that you store them at 16C then transfer them to another fridge to chill them before you drink?

16C is an excellent temperature at which to store beer. I only wish I had the facilities to do the same.

Cheers,

Oliver