Reusing large spirit bottles

[Moshall]

Hi all,

I've done a bit of searching on this with no luck, so hopefully i've not missed something glaringly obvious.

I have a couple of large spirit bottles around the house from Duty Free, etc. One specific bottle I want to reuse is a 1.5l Chivas Regal bottle (with a push in cap/cork).

Initially I was thinking of using it as a blowoff for a few brews at a time, but that just seems to be a waste of a good sized bottle. So I was thinking, what about bottling into it? It would be the perfect amount to take to a bbq or a party, or just to share with a few mates.

So, my questions:

1) Has any one had any luck doing this?
2) Will I run into any issues with sterilising the cork in the lid?
3) I'm concerned that if i prime in the bottle, will the cork blow out if i don't secure it some other way (think champagne wire)
4) Is there another way I could easily prime the bottle with a CO2 charger?
5) Is the effort worth it?

Thanks in advance, and g'day in general. I'm kicking myself that I've not signed up sooner, but I've only just been able to return to home brewing in the last couple of months.

M

 

[slcmorro]

1) Never heard of anyone doing it. Doesn't mean they haven't.
2) Possibly.
3) As the cork would be the 'weakest' point in the bottle, if you carbonated and didn't secure it in some way, it would be the first thing to pop out in my estimation.
4) On a Chivas bottle without a thread to attach to? Probably not, at least not without buggering around.
5) No. Not really. It's just a pretty bottle. You'd be better off just bottling like normal, or looking into a growler type setup if you're interested.

Just my 2c.

 

[Moshall]

Ta, i suspected as much.

With a couple of lengths of tubing, it'd make a decent blowoff bottle.