64 fluid ounce Growler style beer bottle in brown glass with a screw top cap

A growler (US) () is a glass, ceramic, or stainless steel

bottle A bottle is a narrow-necked container made of an impermeable material (such as glass, plastic or aluminium) in various shapes and sizes that stores and transports liquids. Its mouth, at the bottling line, can be sealed with an internal stopp ...

(or

jug A jug is a type of container commonly used to hold liquids. It has an opening, sometimes narrow, from which to pour or drink, and has a handle, and often a pouring lip. Jugs throughout history have been made of metal, and ceramic, or glass, and ...

) used to transport draft beer. They are commonly sold at breweries and brewpubs as a means to sell

take-out A take-out or takeout (U.S., Canada, and the Philippines); carry-out or to-go (Scotland and some dialects in the U.S. and Canada); takeaway (England, Wales, Australia, Lebanon, South Africa, Northern Ireland, Ireland, and occasionally in Nort ...

craft beer. Rarely, beers are bottled in growlers for retail sale. The significant growth of craft breweries and the growing popularity of

home brewing Homebrewing is the brewing of beer or other alcoholic beverages on a small scale for personal, non-commercial purposes. Supplies, such as kits and fermentation tanks, can be purchased locally at specialty stores or online. Beer was brewed do ...

has also led to an emerging market for the sale of collectible growlers. Some U.S.

grocery store A grocery store ( AE), grocery shop ( BE) or simply grocery is a store that primarily retails a general range of food products, which may be fresh or packaged. In everyday U.S. usage, however, "grocery store" is a synonym for supermarket, a ...

convenience store A convenience store, convenience shop, corner store or corner shop is a small retail business that stocks a range of everyday items such as coffee, groceries, snack foods, confectionery, soft drinks, ice creams, tobacco products, lottery ticket ...

s, bars and restaurants have growler filling stations. A crowler (

portmanteau A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of words46-mlor 40 imp oz 136-ml or litre (33.8 oz or 35.2 imp oz) in size.

Overview

Composition

Growlers are generally made of glass and have either a screw-on cap or a hinged porcelain gasket

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...

, which can maintain freshness for a week or more. A properly sealed growler will hold

carbonation Carbonation is the chemical reaction of carbon dioxide to give carbonates, bicarbonates, and carbonic acid. In chemistry, the term is sometimes used in place of carboxylation, which refers to the formation of carboxylic acids. In inorganic ch ...

indefinitely and store beer like any other sanitized bottle. Some growler caps are equipped with valves to allow replacement of

carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide (chemical formula ) is a chemical compound made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in the gas state at room temperature. In the air, carbon dioxide is transpar ...

lost while racking. The modern glass growler was first introduced by Charlie and Ernie Otto of

Otto Brothers' Brewing Company Otto is a masculine German given name and a surname. It originates as an Old High German short form (variants ''Audo'', '' Odo'', ''Udo'') of Germanic names beginning in ''aud-'', an element meaning "wealth, prosperity". The name is recorded f ...

in Wilson, Wyoming, in 1989. The two most popular colors for growlers are amber (a brownish hue) or clear (often called "flint"). Clear growlers are often 25% to 35% more per unit than their amber counterparts. Glass handles are the most common type of handle for growlers, although metal handles, with more ornate designs, can also be found. Some growlers do not have handles; this is especially common with growlers smaller than 64 U.S. fl oz that have Grolsch-style flip-tops.

Use

Growlers can be refilled for between $5 and $30 in the United States. Their initial purchase can carry a significant (sometimes non-compulsory) deposit.

Sizes

While is the most popular growler size, growlers are commonly found in 32 U.S. fl oz (1 US Quart, sometimes known as a "howler", which may be short for "half growler"), 128 U.S. fl oz (1 US Gallon), , and 2-litre sizes as well.

Etymology

The term likely dates from the late 19th century when fresh beer was carried from the local pub to one's home by means of a small

galvanized Galvanization or galvanizing ( also spelled galvanisation or galvanising) is the process of applying a protective zinc coating to steel or iron, to prevent rusting. The most common method is hot-dip galvanizing, in which the parts are submerged ...

pail A bucket is typically a watertight, vertical cylinder or truncated cone or square, with an open top and a flat bottom, attached to a semicircular carrying handle called the ''bail''. A bucket is usually an open-top container. In contrast, a ...

. It is claimed the sound that the carbon dioxide made when it escaped from the lid as the beer sloshed around sounded like a growl.

Overview

Composition

Use

Sizes

Etymology

See also

References

Further reading