Glass or plastic bottle: which is better?

Homemade moonshine, wine and beer end up in a bottle. Someone uses PET containers for this, and someone only uses glass. On thematic forums, the question is raised again and again, which material is better. Often a bottle with a capacity of 0.5 or 1 liter is advised to buy from glass without explanation: they say, and so it is clear. In this article we will tell you why glass containers are better and how to clog them.

Advantages of a glass bottle over a plastic one:

1. Reduce harm to health

The composition of glass is simple – broken and melted glass, sand, soda. Each of the components is harmless to health. Glass at the molecular level does not “give away” any elements. If you buy a bottle not made of glass, but made of plastic, then the drink will absorb the products of processed oil. For example, PET contains dibutyl phthalate. It dissolves on contact with ethyl. As a result, dibutyl phthalate gets into the drink, and then into our body. It affects the nervous and endocrine systems. The manufacturer may combine this dangerous substance with other toxic compounds to make the product durable. They accumulate in the body and provoke serious diseases.

2. Increase the shelf life of the drink

Someone decides to save. Instead of buying 0.5 glass bottles, they reuse plastic products. For example, Aleksey, an experienced brewer, practices the multiple use of PET containers. After 3-5 times he changes the bottles for new ones. The dangers of this approach are as follows:

The longer the alcohol is exposed to the plastic, the more toxins get into the drink. And the smaller the volume of the container, the larger the contact area. Therefore, a bottle with a capacity of 1 liter will introduce fewer harmful substances into alcohol compared to a half-liter model.
PET products peel off over time. This happens at a microscopic level, so the process cannot be noticed in time. So, in secret from you, a significant proportion of harmful substances enters the body.

Glassware is completely neutral to alcohol. This means that it can be reused anytime. In a glass bottle, the drink will enrich its aroma over time, rather than acquire a chemical aftertaste.

3. Protect from contact with air

PET products do not insulate liquid well. The reason for this is the different sizes of plastic molecules and environments. So, from the outside, UV rays and oxygen enter the contents of the container. This impairs the taste and aroma of alcohol.

A plastic bottle does not hold carbon dioxide either. When beer is carbonized, CO2 leaves the container. As a result, this leads to the following disadvantages:

stale taste;
no foam;
low shelf life.

A glass bottle is an excellent barrier against the mutual penetration of different media. This means that oxygen will never penetrate through the walls of the container, and carbon dioxide will remain in the beer. The darkened material will create additional protection from the sun’s rays.

What corks are suitable for bottles for vodka, wine and beer?

However, air can penetrate not only through the walls of the container, but also through a poorly closed lid. In this case, the alcohol will quickly evaporate, and the drink will lose its strength. The Samogon B-12 company offers to buy glass bottles with a volume of 0.5 or 1 liter with a cork. In our online store you will find the containers themselves, and different types of lids, and capping devices.

Glass vodka bottle with guala cap.

The guala cap is a disposable plastic cap. After use, you need to cut it off and install a new one.

Guala cork in tandem with a glass vodka bottle has the following advantages:

prevents air from getting in. This allows you to keep the aroma of alcohol even with prolonged use of the contents; opens effortlessly installation does not require additional tools. The cap is fixed on the neck of the bottle by hand. To do this, it is enough to press the cork until it stops.

Although the material of the product is food grade plastic, it is important to avoid contact with alcohol during storage. We have listed the reasons above.

Dark glass wine bottle and oak bark cork

The cork is elastic, so it fits snugly against the walls of the neck. Through its micropores, a little oxygen will enter the wine. This will allow the drink to “breathe”.

A glass bottle of wine is sealed with one of two devices:

manually. The device consists of two parts. One needs to be installed on the neck of the bottle and fix the cork in the cell. Place the other half on top and press firmly. As a result, the cork will slip inside.
automatically. The design has two levers. The stopper is installed on the neck. Then the device wraps around it. It remains only to simultaneously press both levers. They go down, and the cork is pushed into the glass neck.

Whichever capping mechanism you choose, it is important to take the following two steps before use:

1. Boil the cork. This will disinfect it and make it easier to pass.
2. Pick up a non-slip surface. So the container will not tip over when fixing the cork.

Glass beer bottle 0.5l with crown cap

A crown cap is a metal cap with a seal. It has a bent edge, which is tightly clamped when capped. This creates a hermetic connection: nothing will get inside the container, and carbon dioxide will remain. But it is not enough just to buy glass bottles with a capacity of 0.5 liters and crown caps for them. To fix the lid correctly, it is important to choose it and the crimping mechanism in proportion to the neck of the container. Moonshine B-12 offers three models: Gloria, mobile device and Greta.

Crown capping of a glass bottle looks like this:

1. The cover is fixed on the magnet of the device.
2. The cartridge with the stopper is lowered to the stop against the neck.
3. Crimping mechanism at this time passes below.

As a result, the sharp edges of the lid are bent, and the rounded elements are crimped along the diameter of the neck.

To summarize: it is important to buy bottles of vodka, beer or wine made of glass. So you take care of the health of loved ones, the fullness of taste and the expiration date of the drink.