Bottles vs Cans

I don't think the move to cans has anything to do with limited access to materials

 

The can shortage of circa 2020 seems to past us. Cans just seem more popular at the moment, but I doubt glass ever goes completely away.

 

This article shows that the answer is nuanced. In my opinion, I'd say that yes, canning does affect quality. For the better. Have you ever had Modelo or Heineken from a can vs a bottle? Canned is much better. Brown glass is better than clear or green, but cans still win for easier storage.

Now, I do wish more craft brewers would use a 12 oz format vs 16.

 

Cans are here to stay, just the shipping cost savings. But bottles will always have their place.

 

I prefer cans!

 

CANS:
-Protect beer from skunking due to light.
-Easier to carry up to your 3rd floor apartment.
-Easier to hold.
-Easier to open.
-Easier to drink.
-You don’t have to rattle 12 empty bottles back down stairs to the dumpster.

BOTTLES:
-Feels cooler to drink out of.

THE WINNER:
Bottles

No, in all seriousness I don’t have a preference either way, but it has to be cheaper for the company to move cans than bottles, that’s probably why you see them more.

I have had a Heineken out of a can and out of a bottle, and there is a difference in taste for sure.

 

I prefer cans nine times out of ten, maybe ten times out of ten. But I do agree with whoever said earlier that I'd like to see more 12 oz cans instead of 16 oz.

 

Lots of problems with glass;

• Heavy
• Don't stack as well as cans, and take more vertical space
  
• More likely to seep than cans
  
• Fragile
• Beers in clear and green bottles skunk with 2-3 minutes of sunlight
• Glass takes more energy to recycle than aluminum (though aluminum uses more power to produce the first time)
  
• Last I heard, a vast majority of glass thrown in your recycling bin ends up in the landfill because many/most glass recycling plants have shut down, and it's not worth shipping. Some is crushed and used in pavement

 

If a beer is packaged in bottles and cans with the same amount of oxygen (TPO - Total Packaged Oxygen) then the cans are better from a quality perspective.

Also cans are better in terms of being completely impervious to light (i.e., no lightstruck/skunking concern).

Cheers!

 

Bottles are still better for higher pressure beers, such as wilds, mixed fermentation saisons and lambic where additional fermentation may be going on and creating more CO2. Cans are more likely to explode from additional fermentation in the package. Also bottles are a proven long term aging vessel (say decades) vs cans.

Other than that, cans are petty much better in every way.

That said, quality of the packaging line and quality control at the brewery plays a big part. Shitty canning line won't be as good as a state of the art bottling line with a lab and carefully monitored DO levels etc...

 

Despite all evidence to the contrary, bottles are better.

 

Mark me down for a fan of the can. I get a weird taste direct from bottles sometimes. Metallic. I just wish brewers were able to make a NEIPA without all the shit in the bottom of the can so I could drink them without pouring in a glass. Most other styles work perfect and I like my freedom to enjoy out of a can direct.

 

True. I have had a can blow up on me. Messy.

 

I think it tastes better out if a bottle. I think cans are more fun to collect. But I pour so I get whatever is more convenient at the time

 

I like both. But have found when a certain beer is available in both, I always choose the can alternative. Guess that tells my opinion.

 

Cans

 

Con for cans: they absolutely **** the environment to create the raw aluminum.

Pro for cans: infinitely recyclable.

 

I didn't see any difference for tasting purposes between the two, but I find it frustrating that we have limited 12oz cans so I have to pay much more when you really want to drink with moderation and sometimes buy a higher alcohol beer volume. For the environment, I heard that here in Canada we have we can't recycle beer cans and have to send them to the US!

 

The one that starts out with this perplexing comment?

Wha?

And the research quoted seems more about "cellaring" than what most would consider "fresh" beer, since they didn't start sampling the beers until they were already 6 months old. At least that's how I read this (emphasis added) maybe that second "Then" shouldn't be there?:

Lightstruck is the "poetic" choice?