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From: rcd@nbires.UUCP (Dick Dunn)
Newsgroups: net.misc,net.wines
Subject: Re: Bottle colors
Message-ID: <464@opus.nbires.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 16-Jul-86 00:46:57 EDT
Article-I.D.: opus.464
Posted: Wed Jul 16 00:46:57 1986
Date-Received: Thu, 17-Jul-86 06:38:16 EDT
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Xref: watmath net.misc:9898 net.wines:784

> Why is is that beer bottles are sometimes brown, sometimes green, and
> sometimes clear, but never blue or red or anything else?

Beer bottles are brown or green because these colors help absorb light at
wavelengths that cause unwanted photochemical reactions in the beer.  Beer
which has been exposed to light develops an off-taste, technically known as
"light-struck" and colloquially known as "skunky" or "this stuff tastes like$#%!

A darkish brown is probably the best choice.  Green works OK but not as
well.  Clear bottles are used by brewers who either don't care or don't
know any better (or are more influenced by their marketing dept than by
sound practice, which amounts to one of the two preceding conclusions:-).
Green and brown glass also happen to be cheaper to make.  (If you're in an
area which gets Coors products, you may have heard their endless hype and
hoopla about Killian's, in the "red" bottle--which if you've seen it is
just ordinary brown glass.)  Blue probably wouldn't make it, just as a
matter of violating tradition, even if it were a good color choice.  (I
suspect it's not, since it would pass the shorter visible wavelengths.)
-- 
Dick Dunn	{hao,ucbvax,allegra}!nbires!rcd		(303)444-5710 x3086
   ...At last it's the real thing...or close enough to pretend.