ceramic or stoneware beer bottles

[YamahaXS]

An odd request, but does anyone know of any supplier of new earthware, stoneware, or ceramic beer bottles?

about 5 years ago, I bought a beer (european import) at a bar that came in a stoneware bottle.

It might make for an interesting presentation to have a dozen or so of these things.

Anyways, a preliminary googling provided me with nothing, so I ping the collective mind here.

thanks in advance

[fretlessman71]

Never heard of such a thing being generally available. However, you might contact a brewery that you know uses these bottles and buy some from them, or find out where they get their bottles and see if you can strike a deal somehow.

[danno]

dunno about a source, but St. Sebastiaan currently sells their beers in a 16oz stoneware bottle that's pretty cool looking... I have a couple laying around that I wanted to do something with, but I could be persuaded to let them go for a trade, if you really want them badly enough... :D

[ray m]

Ya might want to try eBay as well. Just for sh#@s & giggles, I think I will peruse their sight!

[chazwicke]

I tried a search on Dogpile.com and only came up with antiques.

[ray m]

Yeah, I looked on ebay and all that was for sale were individual ceramic/stoneware bottles, most of them not having any semblance of a lid.

Yamaha, this is a daunting task, I'm afraid. I don't know where you're gonna find a small set (say, 1 dozen?) of these things.

[BluesHarp]

Originally posted by danno
but I could be persuaded to let them go for a trade,

...speaking of trades, danno...check your PM's...:)

[YamahaXS]

My thanks to the collective!

I believe it was a St. Sebastion, paid almost 9$ for it at the bar so I was sure as hell keeping the bottle.

[batkins]

Rogue uses a stoneware type bottle for their XS series of beer now. These are similar to the Morimoto Imperial Pilsner bottles of the last year.

If you search "rogue morimoto" on google, you will get at least one picture.

I'd suggest calling them. They do bottling of their beers, with custom silk screening on them.

They would probably refer you to the manufacturer of the bottle.

[Saint-Thomas]

I found this old thread while trying to research ceramic/pottery bottles. I really haven't found much out there, just a few brews sold in ceramic bottles. Then again, internet research is not one of my talents. So has anyone found more than the few that were mentioned here?

The reason I'm so curious is that I make my own bottles and I was interested in marketing them. The IIPA from Rogue is what inspired me to make stoneware bottles. I have one brewery talking with me now, but I don't know that I can get my costs (labor) down enough to make it work on that large of a scale. I'm more interested in handmade, art bottles. Even when I make several in the same style, they are different enough to keep me from getting bored.

So far I've only sold to collectors and other homebrewers. And of course I use them for my own brews.
Here's a couple of styles I'm currently producing if anyone wants to have a look-see.
wodden (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v282/kluggernaut/wood.jpg)
fish (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v282/kluggernaut/fish.jpg)
diamond (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v282/kluggernaut/diamond.jpg)

[MichaelM]

Those are great!!

[Mad Scientist]

So, what are the costs?

[Mad Scientist]

Are those slip cast?

[Saint-Thomas]

No they are not slip cast. They are either wheel thrown, or a combo of wheel and handbuilding techniques. Then I hand carve the detail. I am ironing out the last few kinks in a couple of molds I made to slip cast with. The idea being that I could produce a couple of designs using a method that didn't require years of practice and my friends could come make their own bottles for much less $$. I will try to sell these designs too when I finish the molds.

I've also been thinking about how to do custom cases for the bottles. So far, I like the idea of recycling pallet and crate wood, but that project is a while in the future...

I am selling these plus others. The fish are $45, the wood and diamond are $35. It might seem pricey, but keep in mind they are handmade and unique and will last forever with the only consumable part being the rubber gasket. The strength is far greater than glass bottles.

[Cimarronin]

Saint-Thomas, those are beautiful. I love brew in unusual containers, and those would be among the best.

I have some of these great orangish earthenware bottles that originally had liquor in them. They really have this old world look to them. I have been tempted to bottle in them, but wonder whether they would stand up to the pressure. Has anyone done this?

[Saint-Thomas]

Cimarronin: thanks for the compliment!

I think the earthenware bottles would be strong enough to tolerate the pressure. The only thing I would be concerned with is that earthenware is not water tight. Even with glaze, the bond between the clay and glaze can be breached by water. I'm not sure how this would affect the beer but in dinnerware, it's a big no-no. Mostly because the water trapped in the clay can change size (ice, steam) and cause the glaze to break or even the clay itself. Keeping it at a constant temp *should* eliminate those problems- no freezing or microwaving!

Are you certain they are earthenware? One way to test is to put a drop of water on any un-glazed surface and see if it gets wicked up by the clay quickly. If so, you have earthenware. Another test is to rap it with a stick/knife/something and listen. A bell sound or glass sound is indicative of stoneware/porcelain/high temperature. A "clink" that dies quickly is earthenware. This test is not accurate, however, as porcelain could (and often does due to poor fomulations!) have tiny, invisible to the naked eye, cracks thoughout, ususally under the glaze surface. This would result in a "thunk" or "clink" sound.

I'd say go for it anyway! Maybe just try one or two to test.

[Cimarronin]

well, they had Dutch liquor in them. One had something called Korenwijn and the other had Jenever. Today is bottling day, so I think I will give them a shot! (That is, I am going to try to bottle in them, not have a shot of the hooch; the liquor is long gone) :)

[sundontlie]

a brown beer called "Poorter" from Belgium. it is quite an excellent brew and the bottle is a large stoneware swingtop.

couple pics from the inet..
http://www.belgianshop.com/shop/media/BB28083Z-item.jpg
http://static.flickr.com/85/214851060_f4aa1d0da4.jpg

[Saint-Thomas]

Aye! That's the bottle that inspired me to make my own bottles. The owner didn't remember where it had come from, but now I know what beer came in it orignially. Thanks for sharing, very cool.