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Author Topic: Screw Top Champagne Bottles - Cork or Cap?  (Read 2308 times)

Offline cactusgarrett

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Screw Top Champagne Bottles - Cork or Cap?
« on: December 20, 2017, 07:08:06 am »
In attempts to source bottles for bottling my wild/sour beers, I've come across a couple cases of screw top champagne bottles. The I.D. seems about the same as a typical champagne bottle, suggesting a standard cork would fit, and the bottle necks do have a ridge, suggesting a cage would work, but I'm not sure the corker would "work around" the threaded opening.

So, I'm wondering if anyone has any experience with using screw top champagne bottles. Is a cork and cage the only way to use these? The threads appear larger than a typical screw top wine bottle, so i think using the 28mm screw tops likely wouldn't work.

Offline cactusgarrett

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Re: Screw Top Champagne Bottles - Cork or Cap?
« Reply #1 on: December 28, 2017, 05:50:34 am »
Nothing; really?

Offline smkranz

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Re: Screw Top Champagne Bottles - Cork or Cap?
« Reply #2 on: January 04, 2018, 04:26:03 pm »
Nothing; really?

Pretty simple: It's a pretty responsive and helpful group here, so if someone here had experience with what you have described, someone would have responded.  I've never laid eyes on screw-top champagne bottles, but that's not my beverage or vessel of choice.

Why don't you take one of the bottles to a homebrew shop to see how a cork/cage would fit, or maybe a plastic stopper would fit and avoid the need for a corker?  Corks, stoppers and cages are inexpensive enough and if they don't work with these bottles you could just get some standard champagne bottles.  Or maybe a shop has a corker they'd let you try out.
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Offline cactusgarrett

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Re: Screw Top Champagne Bottles - Cork or Cap?
« Reply #3 on: January 05, 2018, 06:08:56 am »
It's not my choice either. I just solicited people for bottles, and surprisingly was given quite a few screw-tops from different sources (same brand of champagne, too, actually), along with "normal" bottles. This brand must be the "Bud Light" of champagnes or the go-to bulk purchase of establishments. in this area,

The ID of the opening looks consistent with the normal bottles, so i would imagine the corks, themselves, will work. I was just concerned that threads would interfere with the operation of the corker or the effectiveness/integrity of the cages. I do plan on taking one into the LHBS to kick the tires; see if it's a legit option. I DO have access to the plastic, reusable corks (which I've used in the past), but don't care for them too much and would like some better aesthetics.

Thanks!

Offline reverseapachemaster

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Re: Screw Top Champagne Bottles - Cork or Cap?
« Reply #4 on: January 05, 2018, 08:13:57 am »
I'd guess those bottles are less like normal champagne bottles and a lot more like typical screw top white wine bottles but with a prominent punt to make them seem like normal champagne bottles on the shelf. 

I wouldn't personally use screw top bottles with corks. Usually those bottles are designed with thinner glass that does not hold up to the pressure of an expanding cork, much in the same way screw top beer bottles can shatter when used with pry off caps when pried off. Personally I wouldn't want to risk bottles shattering during corking or after as the cork swells. Bottles are not so hard to find or so expensive that it makes sense.
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Offline bjalbin

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Re: Screw Top Champagne Bottles - Cork or Cap?
« Reply #5 on: February 05, 2018, 08:53:01 am »
I've used them with no problem. The guys at my homebrew store were leary about it, though. They suggested using cages at the very least to make sure the cork doesn't get expelled.

Offline cactusgarrett

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Re: Screw Top Champagne Bottles - Cork or Cap?
« Reply #6 on: February 17, 2018, 08:15:18 am »
Update, if anyone cares. It's doable; no issues really. The only potential hiccup was that my corker (the winged Italian one) was a little less secure on the screw-top bottles where it grabs the neck, due to the threads coming down a bit and there being less of a ridge for the "grabbers" to hold. Otherwise, no perceivable issues. I would have liked for the corks to not go in all the way, but i think that's a function of my corker, since I can't go part-way and remove the corker without having it pull the cork back out of the bottle. Now just to sit and wait for them to carb.