Apologies on if this should be in CS, but it seemed more IMHO to me.
Over the course of my boozing, I mean, life, I have had many interesting beers. Today, however, my fine municipal area has been blessed with its very own BevMo, meaning I don’t have to take a pilgrimage to another town to stock up on Salvator. So I went crazy at the grand opening and have some beer I thought I’d try because I liked the label (today’s sample: Duchesse de Bourgogne - not my usual faire, but I think it would compliment BBQ’d chicken really well). I don’t usually go for the “cool label” shopping method, but I was feeling a little beer-crazy this afternoon.
And the labels of my standard beers would be nice to save, as well. I was thinking I’d like to make Christmas ornaments out of them or something. So is there a way to free up the glue without tearing the label? Does anyone else do this? I know wine enthusiasts save corks, and label-saving seems like a logical counterpoint for the budding beer snob. Saving the whole bottle is too space-intensive for me, and I’d rather have something to keep aside from the liver damage (I kid).
Tangentially: if anyone can identify the painter of Mary of Burgundy shown on the label, I’d be much obliged. My google-fu is broken.
Use some of these. As a matter of fact, I think Bevmo carries them! 
“The artwork on the label of Duchesse de Bourgogne is a famous portrait of Mary by the artist Hugo Maertens.”
(Found here.)
Freakin’ awesome! silenus, you sir truly embody your username. Is there any aspect to general debauchery that you don’t know about?
pinkfreud, thank you, you’re awesome. I’m off to hit the Gardner’s after I get dinner rolling.
Different labels use different glues, so what works for one won’t necessarily work for another. But a lot of beer bottle labels will come off easily if you fill the bottle with hot water and leave it for a minute or two – that melts the glue, and you can then “slide” the label off the bottle. I use this method to get the labels off before putting the bottles in the recycling and it works with most brands I drink.
You are obliged to remove the labels before recycling? Really? :dubious:
I find that a bit difficult to believe, too. The bottles here are pulverized and used in concrete, which leaves a lot of room for less than delicate ways to remove the label.
Thanks Colophon! I think I will try that with this bottle of Celebrator after I polish it off! (I save the little goat charms that come with each bottle, too.).
I just put the bottles in a bucket of hot water and the labels usually float off on their own.
The peoblem with that is it usually deforms the label. If you are going to collect them, they really should be as perfect as possible. Using the label removers gives you a perfect label that can then be turned into an ornament or whathaveyou.
