How many here wish that more breweries would make more use of cans? One of my go to beers is Sierra Nevada's Torpedo and I only buy it in a can because I love cans. I just wish that some of my other favorites would also come in cans. Why? honestly; I have no valid reason... I just like cans.
This topic has been discussed exhaustively here in the past. I also like cans for their portability, durability, storability, minimal headspace, light protection, and other convenient properties. Plus I enjoy impressing girls by crushing them on my forehead.
Portable, lightweight, no oxygen permeability, generally allowed just about everywhere (like beaches and parks and such), so what's not to like? Can't "see" the product - can you really see it in a proper brown bottle either? They might not be as "green" eco-friendly as we're led to believe - that turns some people off. Something about mining operations offsets the alleged eco-benefits to an extent when you consider the entire supply chain. Still a good package, though.
Someone just posted that Founders is using Ball Corporation to can their All Day IPA. I think its a pretty cool idea if I don't have a glass handy like tailgating or camping. Love the Torpedoes though as well! http://beeradvocate.com/community/t...-in-ball-corporation-cans.89137/#post-1381912
Hard to say. 99% of the time I am pouring into a glass. However, it depends on where I am. Obviously cans are awesome for their portability, but bottles keep it cooler, longer (when I drink from vessel, it's usually because I am outside grilling in the sun). I have to say cans, only because I love pounders. If more 16 (.8? whatever pliney and paulaner come in) oz bottle were available, I'd buy those too.
Recycling of metal, plastic, and paper (at a bare minimum) should be mandatory everywhere, even if it's not really enforceable. That would cut down substantially on the need for "fresh" aluminum and give cash-strapped municipalities a new revenue stream. Seattle has had curbside recycling for as long as I can remember, and I'm sure a lot of other areas are the same.
I'm fine with either, however bottles do have a great bonus.... When I was a teen my father thought it would be cute to pour a beer on my mothers best friend and run away like a giant ten year old. He looked over his shoulder from a good distance away while running, only to get clocked in the forehead with an empty beer bottle. Moms best friend was a great soft ball pitcher. Dad split his head open and needed stitches while the bottle remained intact. Try that with a can and it would just be an epic failure.
I suppose if I was in public and had to have a beer, cans are the best option. Otherwise I don't care because I will use a glass anyway, tastes better
No doubt, but it isn't just the matter of recycling is what I am saying. We recycle like fiends here too. But there's an offset caused by the mining in the first place - even if the percentage of virgin material is lower using recycled aluminum. I had posted a link to an article discussing this counter balance when you look at the supply chain as a whole...damned if I can remember where I found the article, but it would be in one of the old threads on cans versus bottles. What this article did, rather than being polarized and one-sided as these things often become, was attempt to present a balanced accounting of the issue. I am in no way denying the merits of recycling, just saying it isn't always as easy as it seems. I'd love for my products to be in aluminum cans - probably 99% of our shelf life issues would simply go away versus our plastic bottles and the opportunity to recycle would be more widespread and much easier than dealing with a mixed plastic stream. We don't want the thread to get nuked, so let's leave it where it lies - there's no argument here anyway since we agree on merits of the principle, just pointing out the complexities we sometimes don't see.
Not sure I agree with the first part, but definitely agree it's not enforceable. That said, I prefer cans for the ease in which I can separate them from other garbage and in turn they are more likely to get recycled. I have a tendency to throw bottles in the regular bag, for whatever reason. I also like the other reasons people mentioned; I especially like the 16 oz variety.
I was being a little bit facetious on the "mandatory" part, but I do hate to see material that can easily be reused just buried in a landfill forever. Waste not and all that. Cans have the added benefit of not having removable labels, so I'm not tempted to hold onto them for that day, sometime in the indefinite future, when I'll have a couple free hours to try to remove the labels to add to my collection before recycling the containers. So in that regard, I can guarantee that my wife prefers cans as well. And she doesn't even drink.
This is an important point for everyone to consider. But, from what I've been able to read, the fact is that cans actually make it into the recycle chain to a much greater extent than bottles. It has to do with the price that a recycler can get for cans compared to glass. The cost of transporting glass and the low value of it means that a much higher percentage of the aluminum is actually going to be recycled.
I don't have a preference but if I had access to a canned sour for when I ski/hike/boat, it would make life much better!
I typically enjoy my beer in proper glassware, but I choose cans. They keep the light out of the beer and seal in freshness better than the bottle. If there is no glassware however, then bottle.
