# Why Do Some Women Peel Labels Off Their Beer Bottles When At The Bar **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 12, 2005, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920 "2005-04-12T03:42:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Klaatu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Klaatu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Klaatu)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/1 "2005-04-12T03:42:14Z")
I just heard this referenced in a country song even, and it prompted me to ask. I have lived in a few states, and as a tradesman, have always found a neighborhood bar to hang out at after work. I like being a regular, and after 30 years in bars, I see at least half the women I know or just meet do this. What gives ladies? šŸ™‚ ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/2 "2005-04-12T03:48:05Z")
If they pull the label off intact, then they can give it someone as a free sex coupon. Do you think he bought it? ---
**Author:** ![Queen\_Bruin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Queen\_Bruin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Queen_Bruin)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/3 "2005-04-12T03:52:13Z")
Canā€™t speak for the rest of my sex, but I always did it because I just didnā€™t like being at a bar or club and needed desperately to appear very, very busy. Also, I needed something to do with my hands, since I donā€™t smoke anymore. FTR, I was at said bar/club for Mr. Creatureā€™s band which has since broken up. I donā€™t feel the need to peel off my beer labels at home. Oh, and of course to give them away as free sex coupons. I only gave them to my husband, though. šŸ˜‰ ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/4 "2005-04-12T03:59:53Z")
My husband pulls lables off his bottles, too. I donā€™t drink beer, but Iā€™ve been known to pull lables off of other beverage bottles. (Remember when soda used to come in bottles with sort of a foam slip cover around it? I used to try to peel those off in one continuous piece.) I donā€™t think it signifies anything than being a fidgety person-- needing something to occupy oneā€™s hands. ---
**Author:** ![FilmGeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@FilmGeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FilmGeek)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/5 "2005-04-12T04:03:38Z")
I do it, at home and at bars. Just something to do with my hands. ---
**Author:** ![Klaatu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Klaatu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Klaatu)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/6 "2005-04-12T04:07:17Z")
I always kinda figured, at least with a lady I just met, that my lame pickup lines werenā€™t working, and it was a subtle signal to say ā€œOk, dude, thanks for the beer but go awayā€ ā˜¹ ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/7 "2005-04-12T04:47:52Z")
Iā€™ve seen plenty of guys do this, too. More guys than women, actually, although thatā€™s probably mostly a function of the fact that I know more guys than women. If I drank beer, Iā€™d probably do the same thing. I get fidgety in social situations, and tend to fiddle with whateverā€™s in front of me to use up some of that nervous energy. ---
**Author:** ![BabaBooey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/dfb087/32.png) [@BabaBooey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BabaBooey)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/8 "2005-04-12T05:06:24Z")
I do it personally to help distinguish my beer from other peopleā€™s when several are sitting fairly close to each other (got a penis, though). ---
**Author:** ![Ms\_Macphisto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b487fb/32.png) [@Ms\_Macphisto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms_Macphisto)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/9 "2005-04-12T05:27:48Z")
Itā€™s just something to do with my hands. I also tend to fiddle around with whatever comes to hand, so when Iā€™m at a bar, that means peeling the label off my beer bottle. It has nothing to do with boredom or wanting to get rid of the person Iā€™m talking to. ---
**Author:** ![Low\_Key\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ed655f/32.png) [@Low\_Key\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Low_Key_1)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 6:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/10 "2005-04-12T06:48:02Z")
College students Iā€™m sure will tell you about beer bottle psychology. Peeling off the labels is a sign of sexual frustration and which label you peel off (front, back, or neck) indicates that you want a certain type of sex. So, basically it is just something that fidgety people do - both men and women to a similar extent as far as I can tell (I do it) - and that can also be used to steer the conversation towards sex. This conversation topic can then easily be used for flirting, and finding out how interested someone is. ---
**Author:** ![clayton\_e](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c57346/32.png) [@clayton\_e](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clayton_e)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 9:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/11 "2005-04-12T09:27:02Z")
I know some women that I party with who do this and at least one has told me they do it just to make sure they know how much theyā€™ve had to drink (I guess its an ok idea, but if you think youā€™ve had enough youā€™ve probably had enough and donā€™t need to know if one more is ā€œokā€). Iā€™ll take them off from time to time if its a beer that I canā€™t get back home (i.e. Molson Dry) I stick them to random things, mirror in the bathroom, textbook covers, fridge, etcā€¦ for the heck of it. ---
**Author:** ![Weaver\_of\_Nightmares](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/73ab20/32.png) [@Weaver\_of\_Nightmares](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weaver_of_Nightmares)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 9:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/12 "2005-04-12T09:49:57Z")
> [@Low Key](#): > > College students Iā€™m sure will tell you about beer bottle psychology. Peeling off the labels is a sign of sexual frustration and which label you peel off (front, back, or neck) indicates that you want a certain type of sex. Thatā€™s what Iā€™ve been told. The frustration-part, not the location == what type of sex you want. I peel labels off bottles, regardless of where I am, home or at a bar. It gives my hands something to do, and it keeps me occupied if Iā€™m feeling bored or nervous. ---
**Author:** ![manx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/65b543/32.png) [@manx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/manx)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 10:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/13 "2005-04-12T10:34:38Z")
I peel labels off bottles, pull rings off cans, chew edges on cups. Iā€™m a fidgety person - I leave a trail of destruction wherever I go. Itā€™s not that Iā€™m bored, or even very stressed. Itā€™s something Iā€™ve always done, and Iā€™m really the only person I know who does it. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/14 "2005-04-12T11:41:04Z")
Iā€™m another bottle peeler, but Iā€™m a guy. Again, just to echo other posters, Iā€™m a fidgety person, and feel a need to always fo something with my hands. Hell for me is being in a meeting with not even a pen to twirl around on my fingers. ---
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/15 "2005-04-12T11:50:02Z")
> [@Klaatu](#): > > I just heard this referenced in a country song even, and it prompted me to ask. > [@](#): > > - > > I like a good beer buzz early in the morning > And Billy likes to peel the labels > From his bottles of Bud > He shreds them on the bar - - From Sheryl Crowā€™s ā€œAll I Wanna Doā€ So, itā€™s guys, too. Mainly just fidgeting. ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/16 "2005-04-12T12:00:31Z")
I do it and Iā€™m a guy. ---
**Author:** ![audiobottle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@audiobottle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/audiobottle)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/17 "2005-04-12T13:07:43Z")
Ugh, in Michigan I hated it when people would peel the labels off their beers. It makes it really difficult to recyle them and get that 10 cent deposit back because the automatic machines wouldnā€™t be able to read the bar code. Same goes for the people who crush their cans. Unless it was on their forehead. Those I just didnā€™t mess with. ---
**Author:** ![Greenback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/2bfe46/32.png) [@Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greenback)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/18 "2005-04-12T13:20:34Z")
> [@](#): > > She was fightinā€™ them off > At a corner table, > She had a long neck bottle, > She was peeling the label -Toby Keith Which song was it **Klaatu**? Weā€™ll keep posting tunes till we get a hit. ---
**Author:** ![TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tellmei_mnotcrazy/32/3419_2.png) [@TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TellMeI_mNotCrazy)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/19 "2005-04-12T14:37:08Z")
Definitely just something to keep my hands busy. If Iā€™m drinking out of a can, chances are very high that Iā€™ll use my thumbnails to dent theā€¦ what the hell is itā€¦ the part where the can widens out from the rim. I make little vertical dents all away around that with my thumbnails. I also pull out the rubbery bit from bottle tops, fold straw wrappers into little accordions, and break up the plastic drink stirrers. I canā€™t stand not having something to do with my hands. ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2005, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920/20 "2005-04-12T15:01:14Z")
Because the condensation softens the labels, and itā€™s easy? Dunno why I do it, itā€™s just vaguely satisfying to get the whole label off in one piece. Sort of like popping bubble wrap, only less noisy. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-women-peel-labels-off-their-beer-bottles-when-at-the-bar/298920.md?page=2)