Best type of beer for soap

[MatthewDM]

What is the best type of beer to use in soap?

 

[Obsidian]

Depends on what you want for looks. A light beer will make a lighter soap, a dark stout will make more of a caramel colored bar. I prefer a dark stout, I like soap thats looks like beer. I don't know if the different kinds really affect anything besides color, I don't make enough beer soap to know.

 

[lsg]

When I made beer soap, I used what my son gave me, Pabst Blue Ribbon. It made great soap with lots of suds. I think any regular beer would do. It might not have the label appeal that fancy beers have, but it gets the job done.

 

[Seawolfe]

I used a whole bottle of Arrogant Bastard for my fist beer soap Half frozen and mixed with the lye, and half cooked down to about 2 ounces and added after trace. It's less than a week old, unscented, and was stinky stinky stinky until yesterday. Now it's mellowing to a beery hoppy smell.

 

[LunaSkye]

While I only made 4 soaps with beer in it, I like using a stout the most. It had the best smell for me when it was curing.

 

[sudsy_kiwi]

I apologise if this is a bit of a noob question, or is covered elsewhere...but I read something somewhere else about a "wine soap" and wasn't sure if they were meaning it was made with actual wine. That got me wondering about the possibility of using coffee, wine, beer and other non-water liquids. I've since discovered that coffee and beer at least are possible. So...

Are there any restrictions on what liquids may be used in place of regular ole water?

And, is there anything special required when working with alcohol?

Thanks in advance for any help that may be forthcoming

 

[Lion Of Judah]

I apologise if this is a bit of a noob question, or is covered elsewhere...but I read something somewhere else about a "wine soap" and wasn't sure if they were meaning it was made with actual wine. That got me wondering about the possibility of using coffee, wine, beer and other non-water liquids. I've since discovered that coffee and beer at least are possible. So...

Are there any restrictions on what liquids may be used in place of regular ole water?

And, is there anything special required when working with alcohol?

Thanks in advance for any help that may be forthcoming

No Apology needed, the heart of this forum is questions , we are all at different stages but the love for soap and soap making is real . it gives us a chance to test our knowledge base and upgrade it with new info as it becomes available .
you can use wine in replacement for your water in making soap . you just have to get out as much of the alcohol as you can , for it can cause seizing , ricing , and acceleration. given the different skill and comfort levels among the different soap makers there are different ways of working with wine, i.e: some freeze it to avoid the volcano effect when adding lye and "scorching" the wine as well , while some just add the lye moderately without problem. i will give you a link of a friend of mine that makes for good reading [overall good to have ] that will enlighten you on working with beer and wine >>> http://annelwatson.com/soapmaking/creative/october/beerwinesoap.html#thoughts
once you become accustom to working with them you may develop your own comfort level
in closing , "yes" you can replace your water with most liquids , you just got to know whats in the liquid and how it may react with the lye, and what contributions if any that it adds to you finish product ...... the soap.

 

[kdaniels8811]

Boil the alcohol off or when the lye is added it will volcano - voice of experience! Search the threads for specifics. I simmer wine and just leave beer open for days. I soap very cool and in the sink in case it starts to overheat. You will know a volcano when you see one, the soap batter foams and rises really quickly. Read and learn before attempting.

 

[sudsy_kiwi]

Thanks for your replies, and @Lion of Judah thank you for the link, very useful resource andI'm looking forward to a bit of experimentation :smile:

 

[scottief]

I used boddingtons. It turned it an amazing bright orange. It looks amazing. I tried gunnies but it was not very nice. Pale brown colour.

 

[DeeAnna]

What kind of beer to use? Beer that I don't like to drink. Or beer that's cheap. Or beer that I just want to try out in soap. My answers might seem trite, but that's really how I look at it.