Weck Canning Jars (Bottle)

Avid juice canners swear that home-canned juice retains its freshness and flavor for months, even years. Weck bottle jars are curved at the neck so it is easier to pour once you’re ready to break one open. Unlike regular canning jars, the shape of these jars funnels the liquid into a clean stream, instead of spilling out in a splashy waterfall. 

Weck bottle jars are available in two sizes — 1 liter or ½ liter. Both sizes come in packs of six.

Weck jars are made with thick glass to withstand boiling, sterilizing and processing over and over again. Glass lids will never rust, and the tab on the replaceable rubber rings, when facing downwards, indicates clearly that the seal on a jar is intact.

The point of canning is to hermetically seal the outside world from the sterilized interior of the jar, preventing the food inside from spoiling. Weck jars are designed to make it easy to tell whether or not this all-important seal has been made.

Canning juice is similar to canning jams and vegetables — heated liquid is poured into sterilized jars which are then processed in a water bath or pressure canner. Check the recipe to see which processing technique your juice needs. A general rule of thumb is that high-acid fruits and vegetables can be canned in a pot of boiling water, while low-acid vegetables need a high-pressure canner. 

Weck jars come in straight jars, round jars and cylinder jars. Replacement rubber seals, lids and clamps are also available. 

Before using each Weck jar, run your fingertip along the rim and the sealing lid to check for chips and cracks. A new rubber ring is required each time. Check these for cracks by pinching the edges between your thumb and forefinger and running it along the ring’s circumfrence. Any breakage in the sealing mechanism will prevent an air-tight seal from forming.

If the jars aren’t properly sealed or sterilized, the juice inside will spoil or develop harmful bacteria.

Just before processing, the lids need to be held in place by a pair of spring-loaded stainless steel clamps. After the vacuum seal has formed and once the jars are fully cooled, the clamps can be removed and stored for next time.

To open the jars, tug at the rubber ring until you hear the seal release with a whizzing sound. The lids should lift off easily.

All-glass jars have been around since the 1800s, but in the early days there was no way to tell if the jar was properly sealed until you opened it months later and found the contents rancid, or not. The design of these jars made it much easier to tell, and that much closer to making canning a more fool-proof, less disappointing endeavor.

Designer Johann Weck first released his jars on January 1, 1900. A vegetarian and teetotaler, Weck was adamant about devising a reliable, healthy and natural way of preserving anything from asparagus to blackberries.

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