A Micro-Bottler for Microbreweries

When Ryan Miller got sticker shock after looking at bottling lines for his brewery in planning, SaltFire Brewing Co., the Utah man realized there was a need for a more affordable unit. So he set out to fill the need himself.

Two years later, Miller has sold more than 200 Micro Filling Systems all over the US and Europe, even as far as China and Australia.

With a price tag of just under $2,000 (compared to as much as $10,000 for other bottling units) the manual four-head counter-pressure filling system can fill bottles of many sizes, including growlers, at a speed of up to 350 bombers an hour. Plus, its portable size and lower cost comes in handy in a variety of situations.

“It’s been a huge help for the small brewer to allow them to bootstrap their way up to a larger system,” Miller says. “Other small breweries simply don’t have the space for a large bottling or canning line. Our system is compact, light, easy to use, and it fits up on a shelf and out of the way when you aren’t using it.”

The Micro Filling System is attractive to more than cash- or space-strapped brewers, though. “Several larger brewers have bought the system simply for their sour programs. It’s vital [that] they keep the packaging of these beers completely separate from their main production lines to avoid costly contaminations,” Miller says. “Others have bought it for their barrel-aging programs, where it doesn’t make sense to hook up a single barrel to a massive rotary bottling or canning line.”

An added bonus for Miller? The sales of the Micro Filling Systems have helped fund SaltFire Brewing, which will open in Salt Lake City in summer 2017.

“We’re closer [to opening] than ever thanks to the sales success of this machine,” he says.

Learn more at microfillingsystems.com. ■