Where can I find bottles?

We have a local recycling center (aka the dump) here. If you have something similar, I would put up a clear descriptive sign and a large carton in a designated area and ask for contributions…green and blue specifically or all colors? If you want brown for a beer bottle tree, that should be easy (but not too beautiful).

Possibly a store that sells wine, any bar or an expensive restaurant may have some colorful empties. Do wine and spirits come in colored bottles? (IANA Drinker.)

If there’s a craft beer brewery near you that also has a tasting room or a bar/grill attached, see if they have bottles that have been discarded.

With that in mind, check out some beer bars, or even a regular bar that serves beer—they have to discard their bottles somehow and they might let you come in and pick out different colors.

I’m a craft beer aficionado and have a small collection of beer bottles with cool labels, like Bitch Creek ESB by Grand Teton Brewery. Most bottles are brown glass to protect the beer from light damage, but some like Nordeast (Minnesota) are clear (so is Corona). Heineken is green. I haven’t seen blue beer bottles yet, but you can get cobalt blue bottles on eBay.

Another option would be to check out a home-brewing shop—they do sell a lot of bottles there.

Any bar or restaurant that serves liquor should be able to help you.
Have fun with this!

If you’re near a winery that does tastings you might check with them. Fascinating history too.

There is always the Bottle Tree Store Amazing what business exist out there.

Amazing what we can learn in a day. 20 minutes ago I had never heard of theses. GQ

Oh, man, I can’t believe I didn’t think about a restaurant! Thanks, everyone!

I would be careful about putting up flyers – the restaurant sounds like a fine idea.

The local teens are going to love this for target practice. :P

To save on gas expense, just phone every restaurant within a decent distance from you and ask what they do with their empty wine bottles.

I’m sure you’ll have what you need in surprisingly little time.

My friend who has a bottle tree reported that it took her forever to fill it.

I think the original intent was for the owner to display the memories they had had from the bottles on the tree. With a little practice, you could probably attach a memory trigger on the inside of each bottle.

It’s wine. Mellow.

@ibstubro I average a bottle of wine a year – I wouldn’t live long enough.

Maybe you could make it a habit of taking wine as a gift, and request the bottle as a memento of the occasion, @syz? Or you can get the “sparkling juice” cheaply, and drink it instead of juice or pop?

Otherwise, I’d probably look for the local recycling center, which should have a wide variety that will be pennies/cheap. Bar/restaurant/taste test are also all good suggestions.

I still think part of the whole thing is to attach some memories to the bottles. Don’t you have wine drinking friends that can give you bottles?