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I'm not talking about pouring a beer--in the context of rinsing or sanitizing bottles, I'm not quite satisfied just holding each bottle upside down while I wait for the glug-glug-glug of water and air taking turns through the bottleneck. So, short of anything destructive (no shotgunning of bottles) what's method will get me through this the fastest?

Ray
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    I think the answers are largely opinion based, maybe this question and the answers should be made wikis? – brewchez Aug 25 '11 at 11:55
  • I'm fine with it being a wiki... I was actually considering timing each method this weekend, so it would be a bit more objective. – Ray Aug 25 '11 at 12:09
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    Am I seeing this right? You asked a question, then posted FOUR answers to it? What the crap? – GHP Aug 25 '11 at 18:17
  • Converted to wiki – Nathan Koop Aug 25 '11 at 18:38
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    Trick question? – Satanicpuppy Aug 25 '11 at 19:29
  • Is it not acceptable to propose answers to a question? These were some options that seemed reasonable for people to vote for or against. Perhaps I should ask about this on meta? – Ray Aug 25 '11 at 21:37
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    I already put it out on meta, check there for updates. Seems to me vert weird that the software would allow oneself to post multiple answers to the same question. I have answered my own questions in the past, but you have essentially put up a poll here. I don't fault you but it seems weird to me. If one posed a question then covered all the bases with several answers it seems like it would really create a strange shift in rep and the way the community is supposed to work. Its not your fault, I just think you've uncovered a weird loop hole in the software. – brewchez Aug 26 '11 at 01:24
  • I understand. I noticed the meta question after I posted my comment. I don't particularly care about my rep, but I see how one could try to rep-game by doing something like this intentionally. I suppose community wiki takes that element out of the issue, right? – Ray Aug 26 '11 at 01:28

6 Answers6

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Swirl the bottle. I like to point the bottle down, and draw a circle with it, so to speak. The centrifugal force of the circular motion pushes the beer to the bottle walls and created a void in the center, where air can enter.

Pros: Seems to be the fastest method I've tried.

Cons: Is the extra energy worth the time savings? Am I really saving time, when I have to start the whirlpool for each bottle? Do I have the coordination to empty one in each hand without breaking bottles?

Ray
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    When pouring out carboys, I always felt that the swirling was taking just as long as the gluging. It just felt like it was going faster. – brewchez Aug 25 '11 at 11:51
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    I don't know about carboys, but it definitely goes faster for me when I empty bottles the way. It seems to vary how much you swirl it. Too much swirl and the water wants to stay in the bottle. I swirl just enough to let air pass without glugging. – Wulfhart Aug 25 '11 at 17:38
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    This is the most correct answer I know. It's sufficient to start the swirl - after that, it will take care of itself. A good 2 second circular motion is enough. – Max Aug 25 '11 at 19:45
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I'm going with the swirl! It makes a HUGE difference when dumping 6 liter bottles (I put a 5 gallon batch in 3 of these bad-boys): I don't actually use tap-a-draft, but just MillerCoors Home Draft

The reason the swirl works with these is because they're so fat. Now, it doesn't work when you first turn them over. But once about half of the glugging is done, you can muscle a swirl and the liquid tornadoes out of there on the last third!

Might sound like the voice of experience...a friend of mine knows the MillerCoors guy, and these home drafts are not selling very well. So the distributor picks up the bottles, dumps them, and my friend takes out the 'trash', so to speak. And so I get bottles with sour beer that needs oxyclean in the worst way. Then, of course, plenty of rinsing.

Dale
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How fancy do you want to get? I have a friend that has a low power compressor that he has hooked up to a faucet bottle washer, next to the actual bottle washer. This way, he gets the washing done on one nozzle, and then he's able to force liquid out with the other one.

Pros: Fast and easy once set up and will speed up the entire process

Cons: Expensive and difficult to set up initially.

I myself have never gone to that extreme.

Larian LeQuella
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Just bite the bullet and let the water "glug" out. It's the way God intended it.

Ray
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Use a straw.

Air can enter the bottle through the straw while beer exits through the neck.

Pros: Very efficient

Cons: Need a straw. Must consider sanitation of the straw if this is in the context of sanitizing bottles.

Ray
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Hold the bottle at enough of an angle that air can get in while water leaves.

Pros: No glugging

Cons: The flow may be slowed by the shallow angle

Ray
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