Fermenting Vessel Question!

Alright just getting started brewing...want to experiment with a bunch of small batches, so my question is can I use glass bottles such as wine bottles to ferment if I simply fit an airlock snuggly through a cork? If this doesnt work, does anyone have suggestions for other small/inexpensive containers that would work? really dont know what the hell I’m doing but I figured getting as many little batches going would be the quickest way to learn.

Thanks!

A wine bottle would be pretty small to ferment in unless you only want to get 2 bottles out of each small batch. You probably wouldnt even get 2 bottles out of it due to trub and transfer. Even transferring that small of an amount would be difficult. I have a couple 1 gallon glass jugs that previously help whole foods cider that work pretty well for a small batch. I dont think I would use anything smaller than that. I normally dont even ferment in these but use them for trying different dry hops and fruit additions in secondary.

Originally posted by mattp215215
really dont know what the hell I’m doing but I figured getting as many little batches going would be the quickest way to learn.

I think many little batches may introduce more variables than you want to deal with starting out. I may recommend doing a standard 5-6 gallon batch first to get your techniques (brewing and sanitizing) down first.

thanks for the input...so basically it would be a better idea to get some gallon containers and make a 5 gallon batch then mess with dry hopping and whatnot?

Also, in general would a snug fitting cork with an airlock work fine?

It might allow the cork to pop out before the wine bottle explodes. Play it safe and avoid fermenting in a wine bottle.

I highly recommend you read this before you begin, it will answer most of your questions and give you good idea of what to expect.

http://www.howtobrew.com/intro.html

Also, where do you live? Is there a homebrewing club or store nearby?

ok exploding is no good...I actually have read a lot of how to brew, I live in the middle of just about no where for the moment, but I did order a brew kit off northern brewer

Thank you very much everyone on your pleasant pointers you’ve shared. This is actually helpful to me.

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