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Are Cans Really Better?


PaulO
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When I was learning about beer, it was commonly accepted that the hierarchy of beer was: draft beer (from a keg), bottles, then cans last. Nowadays a lot of craft beer comes in cans. Some people say actually cans are "better". I bought some SA Oktoberfest in cans, and it's pretty good. I haven't done a side by side with the same from a bottle, but plan on it. Still it's hard to get away from the widely held belief that the keg tap makes any beer magically delicious.

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When I was learning about beer, it was commonly accepted that the hierarchy of beer was: draft beer (from a keg), bottles, then cans last. Nowadays a lot of craft beer comes in cans. Some people say actually cans are "better". I bought some SA Oktoberfest in cans, and it's pretty good. I haven't done a side by side with the same from a bottle, but plan on it. Still it's hard to get away from the widely held belief that the keg tap makes any beer magically delicious.

Cans= definitely better for transportation, transportation costs, storage efficiency, and shelf life.

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Cans are better containers for beer in any measurable sense. The greatest enemy is exposure to light. A prof somewhere did the research showing where a fresh beer in a regular glass exposed to direct sunlight began to deteriorate in less than one minute. So that new one served to you in the outdoor beer garden goes South faster than you can drink it if your table is in the Sun.

Cans are the best protection against light.

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One of my wife's relatives (a research chemist) worked for a company that specialized in food-safe, hospital-safe, etc., coatings. Before he retired (some 20 years ago), he was most proud of developing a coating for aluminum cans and other sealed containers that was absolutely nonreactive to alcohol, light acids, etc. So when I saw an article in, I think "All About Beer" several years ago re: the move to cans, I read it carefully. Sure enough, one of the things the craft berwers wanted to know was how "safe" that coating is. VERY safe was the conclusion. I did not hesitate to buy cans after that.

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My father has taught me a lot...with that being said he is a man of principles and he won't change unless he wants to. It is his firm belief that beer should be drank out of bottles. Every time I bought beer and he saw that they were cans, I caught some shit. He prefers bottles to draft beer. I personally don't mind beer out of a can, but, I got to stick to what my dad taught me or, beer should be drank out of bottles...end of story.

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My father has taught me a lot...with that being said he is a man of principles and he won't change unless he wants to. It is his firm belief that beer should be drank out of bottles. Every time I bought beer and he saw that they were cans, I caught some shit. He prefers bottles to draft beer. I personally don't mind beer out of a can, but, I got to stick to what my dad taught me or, beer should be drank out of bottles...end of story.

I agree with both you and your Dad - I'll will only drink beer that is on draft, in a bottle, or in a can. Sometimes, I'll drink it out of a growler or a bucket. Once I even drank it when I had no milk for my corn flakes, but I was in college then. I do that no more.

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Harry, how was the beer and corn flakes? I did beer and cheerios once in school...not the worst thing I have ever eaten

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Personally, I’ll stick with bottles in most situations whenever possible and reasonably convenient. With bottles:

1. I don’t have to wash off the top before opening.

2. There are no nagging BPA or other plastic coating concerns (plastic was thought completely inert for quite a few years, until it wasn’t, and now the move is on to rehabilitate its image; with glass, we have a material proven inert and safe through the centuries).

3. My beer cellar doesn’t look as boring and gross as it would if it were full of cans.

4. If I don’t feel like decanting or can’t get hold of a clean glass, I still have a semipleasant vessel to drink from. (How many of your favorite glasses are made of metal and/or plastic?)

5. I am left with a container I can reuse (without remanufacturing it) again and again, such as for homebrew.

6. I never have to wonder, “Did the beer’s contact with the glass give it this weird taste?”

7. Foggy travel situations are rendered safe by blowing across the opening at just the right angle.

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Well, the bottle cap isn't made of glass, is it?

no, but fortunately it is a tiny area relative to rest of the container, and when the beer is kept upright and under stable conditions it would seem to have practically no opportunity to influence the liquid.

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None of my glasses are made of plastic or metal. If they were plastic or metal, they wouldn't be glasses, they'd be cups.

hey, why do I get the feeling I just walked into a room full of wiseguys who don't like the color of my jacket? :grin: However, I stand corrected (or definitionally confirmed, if you prefer).

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I may be the only one here who absolutely loves taking a can of beer from an ice cooler on a hot day and drinking straight from the can. To me, it is one of the great pleasures of life.

I also enjoy the "aluminum bottles" that I can sometimes find Budweiser in.

Tim

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I seek out canned beer when I hit the local craft beer pick-a-six store.

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hey, why do I get the feeling I just walked into a room full of wiseguys who don't like the color of my jacket? :grin: However, I stand corrected (or definitionally confirmed, if you prefer).
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Refusing to wash the top of the can?? Apparently you have never opened a can of beer that spent time in my basement. Not even sure it is possible to pour a liquid through all that cobwebbing.

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Refusing to wash the top of the can?? Apparently you have never opened a can of beer that spent time in my basement. Not even sure it is possible to pour a liquid through all that cobwebbing.

Just more protein! Eating bugs is hip now, you know.

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