Everything You Should Know about Canning Beer – and its Real Benefits

Craft beers have certainly come out in a big way, and there are numerous homebrewers who have been able to quickly branch out and bring their own version of refreshing goodness to the public. If you are a homebrewer seeking to expand and market your craft beer to your community – and perhaps even to other towns and even countries in the future – then you need to find a sure way to increase your production output. For this, you need the right beer can seamer. But before we get into seaming and why you need to choose the best seamer for your needs, here’s everything you should know about canning beer – and its real benefits.

Why put your beer in cans?

You may be wondering why beer can seaming is recommended by the experts, because aren’t bottles better and more ‘traditional’, especially for craft beer? But canned beer has been around longer than you may think – in fact, canning beer dates back to the 1900s, and it has primarily remained the beer packaging of choice, particularly with large producers.

The biggest benefit of canning beer is the freshness. You can use different materials for your beer cans, but aluminium is by far the best choice because it is known for preserving the freshness of the product inside. With a can, you can protect your beer against oxygen and light, which are two of the biggest enemies of the perfect beer, as you may already know.

Another factor that adds to beer canning’s appeal is efficiency. Beer canning allows you to be more efficient, and the cans are stackable and much more lightweight than bottles. With canning, you can transport your beer much more efficiently, and it costs less as well.

Yet one more reason why more craft beer producers are putting their beer in cans is sustainability. Beer cans are recyclable, and even though bottles may be sustainable too, cans are easier to recycle – you can get a new beer can in just 60 days, even less.

The beer canning process

A can of beer is essentially comprised of two parts – the lid or end, and the body. When it comes to beer can size, the most common is 12 ounces. When you purchase the body, it will have a flange, with the end containing a ‘curl’. Once the beer can is in the seamer, the beer can seamer raises it, and the end or lid is placed on the can’s top by a tool called a chuck. This chuck will hold the end of the can in place while the seamer seals the can. The seamer will fold the edge of the beer can, and the folding process is referred to as double seaming since it is performed in two phases or stages.

In the first phase or stage, the first roller does its magic, folding the curl to meet the flange. This is now held stationary, but it is still loose, and the second phase or stage will iron out the can’s seam and tighten it. After this process, a compound substance is sprayed onto the beer can’s end to ensure that the double seam is as tightly sealed as possible.

Beer canning is definitely the best way you can expand and enhance your output in production, but when choosing a can seamer, think carefully about your needs, the warranty, and the safety of the seamer as well.