Do you keep your empty bottles?

Bottles take up far too much space. I have saved labels from time to time, bottles are only saved for homebrews.

 

I recycle all my empties and I keep some (rare or really nice ones) on a shelf in the garage.

 

yup. Use them for homebrew.

 

I've got far too many full beers to worry about empty bottles

 

I generally keep labels because it takes up less space. I keep bottles to use in homebrew, but I have pretty much enough right now. If it is a really nice bottle or something that was difficult to get I may keep the bottle.

 

I keep most of mine. I am a pinterest addict and use them to fulfill my womanly need to repurpose things.

 

I keep my favorites or other rare beers, all others are recycled.

 

I save a few bottles from rare or special beers; otherwise I try to remove labels w/ varying success and recycle the glass. Belgian & German beers seem to have the easiest labels to remove; Firestone Walker, Great Divide, Avery & Founders are among the hardest.

Anyone who knows a surefire method to remove labels (especially if it's not particularly energy-, water-, or labor-intensive), please let me know. I've got about six grocery bags of bottles in the basement I'd like to get the labels off of.

 

I used to keep mine. I put them on the chair-rail that went around my basement. As soon as I went all the way around the room, I figured I should probably stop, so I recycled them all. I looked weird walking into the redemtion center with two full shopping carts full of empty bottles.

 

I only keep a very few select bottles that have artwork on the bottles themselves. Rogue Voodoo maple bacon Ale is one example. Otherwise, I take the labels off beers I really like and keep them in a journal. As Shogo said above, I have too many full bottles (~1000) to worry about where to store empties.

 

Yea i have Blushing Monk, CBS, Nosferatu, BA Blackout, LEM, Ed Fitz, Zombie Dust, and BB. Either rare or sweet labels.

 

Soaking in (really) hot water has worked for me. Many will fall right off, others you need to peel back slowly. Really tricky ones I use a razor blade when necessary. It really does not take too much water. The only labels I have problems with are the sticker labels from Short's and Dark Horse.

 

We keep a couple of cases for my husband's homebrew when he doesn't have room to keg. A few select empties (Greg Koch signed an arrogant bastard for my husband) ... the rest I recycle over craigslist to homebrewers or craftspeople. We don't have curbside glass recycling so I would rather give them away to someone than have to drive them to the recycling center.

 

When I first got into beer I wanted to save an empty from every new beer I tried. Turns out, that takes up a ridiculous amount of space that I don't have. Right now I probably have a dozen rarer empty bottles that I've held on to. I do keep a cap from each new beer though.

 

I've tried this and it works pretty well, but some labels are really stubborn and it uses a lot of water, unless maybe I should heat the water on the stove (haven't tried that). Steaming them works about as well, I've used a large pasta pot w/ strainer for that. Sticking bottles in the oven at pretty low temps (250 or so) seems to work too, but sometimes the heat cracks the ink on the label - especially on Alpine bottles for some reason.

 

To get the labels off that are not waxy, I fill a bowl with boiling soapy water (regular dish soap). I then fill the bottle up to the top of the label with boiling water, then place it in the bowl. I let it sit for 15 minutes and most will just come right off. On occasion I need to use a straight razor to help them come off. So far, this method has worked great for me.

 

My spare bedroom has over 150 bottles in it...dont tell my wife.

 

I used to keep the really special bottles and ones I really liked, but they started taking up entirely too much space. I recently gave the ones I'd saved the ol' heave ho.