Decanting Growlers

I will be going to FL, SC, NC and want to bring back some growlers to NJ. Many states won’t allow the refilling of other breweries growlers forcing you to purchase the growler of the establishment. I already have way more growlers then I need. Can I fill a brewery growler and decant the beer into one I already own without losing significant carbonation/longevity of the beer. Thanks for your input.


Mark

Maybe I am missing something here but wouldn’t you still have to buy the breweries growler?

I guess he means buying the brewery’s growler, then pour the beer in his own growler and return the newly bought growler straight away, getting his money back.

I’m pretty sure it will lose quite some carbonation, maybe if you pour it really slowly?

FL and SC will fill anyone’s growlers. Only catch is FL has to be a quart or gallon, no 64oz ones allowed.

You will lose a good amount of carbonation and you will add oxidation. Depends on how soon you are going to drink it but I wouldn’t do it.

Originally posted by foppa78
You will lose a good amount of carbonation and you will add oxidation. Depends on how soon you are going to drink it but I wouldn’t do it.

I’d rather pay a few dollars for the new growler than ruin the beer. Perhaps take back the extra growlers you have now for the deposit and then use that money on growlers while you’re traveling

I pour half my growler into a bullet all the time and have let it sit a week or so with hardly any carbonation loss. Pour slowly and the colder the beer the easier it is to pour. If you can’t drink a whole growler in one sitting then I suggest doing this it will keep oxygen out of your beer.

Originally posted by Cliff
Maybe I am missing something here but wouldn’t you still have to buy the breweries growler?

Oh, so you want to buy one growler, decant it. Refill that same growler, decant and repeat, necessitating the purchase of only one growler to get many growler’s full of beer....

Yeah, you are going to lose carbonation and you will pick up more oxidation as has been said. I think on the carbonation front you will ultimately be fine if you are slow and careful about it. I would expect the shelf life of the growlers to be shorter though.

This said, the bars are not going to let you do that on premise. You would still be walking out the door w/ growlers full of their beer w/o their label on it. You’d have to fill the growler, take it to your car, decant, go back in...

Skip growlers, drink the beer at the place, buy bootles if offered.