# Pretty bottles



## arcticsid (Apr 9, 2009)

I was looking through briefly at the bottles that were given to me. I have two cases of these blue ones. Apparently there is a couple in Homer making wine for commercial sale. The other is like only 375ml, have a few of those, I quess the rest of em(17 cases) are just standard. But, aren't those blue ones cool?

While were on the bottle subject. Is there any advantage to using bottles with a (punt), I think you call them. The indentation in the bottom, some of them have them and some not. Any thoughts?
Troy


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## Wine4Me (Apr 10, 2009)

Those blues one you have are pretty.. I got some that are a darker blue.. Also pretty but harder to fill because I have trouble seeing when its filled... uummmmm, maybe I need better lighting?? lol


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## Tom (Apr 10, 2009)

Any bottle will work. Only problem is storage. Its hard to find a box tall enough.


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## arcticsid (Apr 10, 2009)

I got lucky, have 2 cases in their original box, might save them till fall, if I can fight off the bears I may use them for blueberry which is what was in them originally.


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## St Allie (Apr 10, 2009)

Those blue ones are gorgeous and would lend themselves really well to a couple of bottles of blueberry liqueur tucked away for special occasions Troy..

I have been saving the clear mateus ones as well for my homemade liqueurs.

http://www.thedrum.co.uk/pub/files/photos/news/8072/main.p9___mateus_three.jpg

Allie


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## Tom (Apr 10, 2009)

St_Allie said:


> Those blue ones are gorgeous and would lend themselves really well to a couple of bottles of blueberry liqueur tucked away for special occasions Troy..
> 
> I have been saving the clear mateus ones as well for my homemade liqueurs.
> 
> ...



Speaking about liqueurs. Does any one make cello's like lemon cello from extract etc...


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## St Allie (Apr 10, 2009)

funny you should ask Tom.. I have one going at the moment.. only one week into the infusion process so far.

Would you like the recipe?

Allie


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## Tom (Apr 10, 2009)

St_Allie said:


> funny you should ask Tom.. I have one going at the moment.. only one week into the infusion process so far.
> 
> Would you like the recipe?
> 
> Allie


No thanks,
I make Lemon, Cinnamin, Orange, Lime, and Vanilla from my home made extract.
I was wondering who else makes cellos. Nice to see you do. I been making cellos for almost 2 years now. Hmmmm..... Hic Hic 

BTW what are you making?
Maybe some others may want your recipe. hint hint..


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## St Allie (Apr 10, 2009)

.. I infuse the spirit with the fruit and zests...
Currently have 

strawberry
morello cherry
and lemoncillo liqueurs.

Have enough lime zest tucked away in the freezer to make a lime version of the lemoncillo and was going to do another version when my grapefruit are ready.

Are you using a steam extraction process?

Allie


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## Wade E (Apr 10, 2009)

Those are called Cobalt Blue Hock bottles as I jusst bought 3 cases of them a few eeks ago and bottled my Peach Ice wine in them. I havent made the cellos yet n=but will be using my own home made stuff if yall know what I mean!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## Tom (Apr 10, 2009)

No I do not have a steam Juicer..
I use the Zest of the lemons soaked in Everclear for months. Then mix w/ simple syrup when bottling


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## arcticsid (Apr 10, 2009)

Not even sure what else is in all those cases, there may be some other neat ones, and you're right the blue ones need to be saved for something special.


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## arcticsid (Apr 10, 2009)

The liqeur topic is great, we could go on about that. I only made one several years ago. Used high quality brandy sugar and a couple bags of frozen sour cherries. Smashed em up, mixed them all together, put them in a jar and was patient enough to wait a couple months. It was fantastic, haven't made any since, don't know why. Have made homemade Baileys Irish Cream many times, it's cheap and delicious.


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## St Allie (Apr 10, 2009)

Everclear is illegal here. I use a good quality vodka or gin.. Gin works really well with strawberries.

Allie


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## Boozehag (Apr 10, 2009)

What is everclear?

I have some pretty bottles, Ill take a photo, not sure if Ill use any of them though they look too hard to clean!


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## Tom (Apr 10, 2009)

It's 190 Proof grain alcohol 95%


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## Boozehag (Apr 10, 2009)

Wow! Hmmm cant see why its illegal here though!


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## arcticsid (Apr 10, 2009)

I thought distilling your own booze was legal in NZ, why would everclear be illegal there? I can tell you one thing, that stuff makes the natives here crazy, and most of the white guys who drink it too!


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## St Allie (Apr 11, 2009)

Troy,

Distilling is legal here, purchasing alcohol of that strength isn't. I have had trouble purchasing basic grain alcohol of over 40% here.

Auckland is the biggest city in NZ too.

Everclear comes in two strengths as far as I can ascertain. Neither are available to me locally.

So I buy good quality vodka or gin as a replacement.

Allie


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## Wade E (Apr 11, 2009)

Or make your own!!!!!  Making over 200 gallons of wine is illegal here and Ive been guilty of that 1 or 2 times!


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## Tom (Apr 11, 2009)

Just 1 or 2 times???


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## St Allie (Apr 11, 2009)

Hehehe Wade,

well.... I could start my own bootleggers forum if I did...

Allie 

( NZ Mafia... Mafioso?)

PS... 200 gallons? You're not drinking it fast enough!!!..


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## arcticsid (Apr 11, 2009)

"1 or 2 times?", whos counting?


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## Boozehag (Apr 11, 2009)

you have a limit? Wow....do we Allie?


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## Wade E (Apr 11, 2009)

100 gallons per person of age per household with a limit of 200 gallons. If I were single id really be in trouble! Theyde be coming to take me away hehe haha hoho!


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## arcticsid (Apr 11, 2009)

No problem Wade, all you need to do is convince them your children drink wine!
I've always wondered how much that is enforced in the US, in Alaska, you can pretty do what you want unlesss you are trying to make a profit. They really don't like home brew in the `villages , for obvious reasons, and unless you are growing a whole bunch of Arctic Tomatoes they look `the other way. I always wondered how they would look at a guy making a lil distillates, accidentally.


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## Luc (Apr 12, 2009)

As far as I know we do not have a limit over here, as long as you are not selling everything is fine.

Now distilling is strictly forbidden over here.
Not because of the dangers, but just because of all the tax-revenues the government would be missing.........

Back to the bottles.

I really like the blue ones and have some myself.
But before bottling I would do a test if I were you.
Putting a blush wine or a red wine in those blue bottles
might give you an awkward color in the end.

My strawberry bottled in blue bottles made it look
purplish from the outside........

Best to put a white wine in them.

Besides that I love that color.

Luc


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## arcticsid (Apr 12, 2009)

*Distillers should be Spanked*

Yep, how dare those who choose to distill alcohol cheat their governments out of something they don't deserve to begin with. They should be spanked!!! On the bottles, pretty glad to have them, I hope I can produce something worth putting in them. I am very thankful to my friends down the road who saved me all those bottles. I had never expected to see any pretty blue ones like that.


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## Boozehag (Apr 12, 2009)

Luc are you allowed to sell your home made wine? We are not here in NZ.

We are allowed to make anything we want as in wine, beer, spirits, liquers but not sell it. I have heard of some who do (under the table) but never publicly.

There was a case on TV a few weeks ago where a young mother drank some home brewed vodka or gin not knowing it was practically pure ethanol of which one drink as in one nip can kill you and she drank about 3 ltimes that. She died not long after. So i guess the law isnt just about the loss of revenue for the government it is also for the protection of the people. I still cant believe someone gave that to her as they would have known how strong it was.


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## arcticsid (Apr 12, 2009)

Coll, I doubt anyone in here has sold any of their products or traded it for anything.  LOL


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## Boozehag (May 24, 2009)

Finally got around to photgraphing my most unusual bottles, I have others but these are my favourite ones!


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## arcticsid (May 24, 2009)

Geez Coll, I hope you make something quite special to give those bottles the justice they demand.


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## Boozehag (May 24, 2009)

Working on it!


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## Madriver Wines (Jun 3, 2009)

How about a Niagra for the green bottle? Or Granny Smith Apple !!


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## Boozehag (Jun 3, 2009)

Niagra sounds good!

Im just finishing a Pinot Gri at the moment it might be good for that too!


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## Madriver Wines (Jun 4, 2009)

I was over to Wade's house for the Christmas holidays and took a pic of his Christmas tree for all to enjoy.


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## Tom (Jun 4, 2009)

Looks like green Grolsch beer bottles to me... lol
I just could not see any one here to have that many EMPTY ones. Now I could make a HUGH tree with my 90+ full cases.


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## Madriver Wines (Jun 4, 2009)

I will help you with the stacking ! :<Or was it racking??


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## Tom (Jun 4, 2009)

Madriver Wines said:


> I will help you with the stacking ! :<Or was it racking??


Yea Yea..
I know what you really mean..
You mean help DRINKING not stacking.. LOL !
Next time you are in NJ come over and ......


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## Madriver Wines (Jun 5, 2009)

I have to admit........Your right. I was only thinking of the wine. Never been to NJ but I now have a good reason to go.


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## ruggierm1 (Jun 8, 2009)

I just made a batch of limoncello. It didn't turn out as well as I had hoped. The problem with the recipe I used was that it called for an overabundance of simple syrup. the end product was a something that tasted like a lemon cough drop. Next time I make, I'll try halfing the syrup and see how it turns out.


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## Tom (Jun 8, 2009)

I make that and not tasted like yours. What did you do?
I zested 6-8+ lemons and soaked them in Everclear (in a 24oz jar) for a month. Add 4-5 oz and the rest simple strup to a 375ml bottle


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## Madriver Wines (Jun 8, 2009)

lets see the bottles they are in.


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## Tom (Jun 8, 2009)

Madriver Wines said:


> lets see the bottles they are in.


OK here is a ORANGE CELLO !
and my 2 beer taps for my homebrew. Currently on tap is a Chocolate Oatmeal Stout and a Killians Red


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## arcticsid (Jun 9, 2009)

So take that!! Steve!!!


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## ruggierm1 (Jun 9, 2009)

Tom said:


> I make that and not tasted like yours. What did you do?
> I zested 6-8+ lemons and soaked them in Everclear (in a 24oz jar) for a month. Add 4-5 oz and the rest simple strup to a 375ml bottle



I used the peel of 15 lemons and soaked in 100 proof vodka for a month. Added another bottle of 100 proof and simple syrup (4 cups of sugar to 5 cups of water), let sit for another month and bottle.


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## Tom (Jun 9, 2009)

The recipe you used worked for the person who made it. But, all of our tastes are different. As you are adding the simple syrup TASTE it as you mix it and then that's YOUR recipe.


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## ruggierm1 (Jun 9, 2009)

Tom said:


> The recipe you used worked for the person who made it. But, all of our tastes are different. As you are adding the simple syrup TASTE it as you mix it and then that's YOUR recipe.



Lessons learned Tom. I will definitely be doing that next time.


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## Madriver Wines (Jun 9, 2009)

arcticsid said:


> So take that!! Steve!!!


 Dude I was defending your thread ha ha. Oh and that was an ugly bottle Tom


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## Tom (Jun 9, 2009)

May be so.
BUTT, it sure tastes good!
Goes to show you a "pretty" bottle will not make a bad wine  taste good..


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## arcticsid (Jun 9, 2009)

Enough bad wine however wil make the girls prettier at closing time.


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## Madriver Wines (Jun 9, 2009)

arcticsid said:


> Enough bad wine however wil make the girls prettier at closing time.


 Amen brother! My wife is upset about my new signature. Do ya see anything wrong with it? Hum maybe the intervention part??


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## Tom (Jun 9, 2009)

I see no problem with the intervention part.
I DO have a problem with the wife on a ra,page part.
Remember what SWMBO means?


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## St Allie (Jun 9, 2009)

Tom said:


> Remember what SWMBO means?




good to see you understand relationship dynamics Tom..


Allie


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## Tom (Jun 9, 2009)

After being 40 years married this August some things do wear off..LOL


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## arcticsid (Jun 10, 2009)

my oh my Tom 4o yrs is a long time for that poor woman to go through the wine stench. At least she enjoys wine, I would do anything to trade these f...ng mosguitoes for a good woman. My Mom is coming next thursday and I have shot out damn near evry window trying to eliminate these, and I have to try to explain to her why my house smells like...well.... wine.


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## arcticsid (Jun 10, 2009)

And you're right, I once had a pair of socks once and they did wear off, well peeled off, like six months later. No, I didn't ferment them they did thatthemselves. These kids have no idea what is out there besides snifing glue!!!!!


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## Madriver Wines (Jun 10, 2009)

Whew where to start with that post ha ha. I was kidding about the rampage part. Joyce and I have been married for 32 years ourselves. She does complain about wine making but not about the drinking of it. I have removed it because I am not wanting to offend anyone, having too much fun and learning alot here.
Steve


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## Tom (Jun 10, 2009)

Last fall I had 30 6 gallon carboys fermenting in my living room and family room. She only asked why and accepted my answer.. Then again my wife and daughter go thru 2 bottles a day when I'm not home. When I am it's 3 a day. So, I need to keep up with it..


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## ruggierm1 (Jun 11, 2009)

So it's not just me? We all seem to share the same addiction.


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## Tom (Jun 11, 2009)

Nah.. Pretty "normal" here. In the fall I get CA and Italian juice and still have alot of my fruit wines fermenting at the same time.
I "only" have 15 carboys aging now and more fruit wines on radar when they get in season.


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