How To Chill a Bottle of Beer FAST

eLet’s face it, beer taste better and is more enjoyable to drink when it’s cold. The cool texture compliments the rich hop flavors, making it the perfect beverage for any occasion. But what should you do if you forget to place your newly purchased beer in the refrigerator? When you go to grab a ‘cold one,’ you may notice the 6-pack sitting on top of the kitchen counter. Rather than trying to down lukewarm beer (never a good idea), try the following methods listed below to freeze your beverage in no time at all.

Method #1) Icy Salt Water

You might be surprised to learn that one of the most effective ways for flash-chilling a bottle of beer (or several bottles) is to submerge them in icy salt water for a couple of minutes. Place your beers standing upright inside a large bucket, pot, bowl, bathtub, sink, etc., and fill it with about 8 inches of ice. It’s important that you place enough ice inside the container to cover the top of your beer. Next, fill it up with cold water (not hot, obviously). Last but not least, pour a ‘generous’ amount of table salt into the container and let your beers sit for 5-10 minutes. Once this amount of time has passed, pull one out and give it a test drive. If all goes well, you should have an icy cool beverage that’s a real treat to your taste buds.

So, how exactly does icy salt water cool beers? The reason why this technique works is because salt has a lower freezing point than water; therefore, it creates a nice cool solution of freezing water that covers your beer. This method has saved thousands of people from having to drink lukewarm beer, and it could save you from such hardships as well!

Method #2) Frozen Rag

As long you plan on drinking just a single beer, you should give the frozen rag method a try. Just like its name suggests, this method involves placing a wet rag (not quite frozen yet) around a bottle of beer and letting it inside the freezer or ice cooler. The cold temperatures will freeze the moisture on the rag, creating a frozen koozie so to speak.

While the frozen rag method really works, it does have one fundamental flaw: you can only wrap a few beers at a time. If you’re looking to flash chill a 6-pack or more, use the first method involving icy salt water.