A flip-top, swing-top, lightning toggle, or ceramic swing top lids (after the inventor, Charles de Quillfeldt) is a type of closure frequently used for bottles containing carbonated beverages, such as beer or mineral water. The mouth of the bottle is sealed by a stopper, usually made of porcelain or plastic, fitted with a rubber gasket and held in place by a set of wires. The bottle can be opened and resealed repeatedly and without the use of a bottle opener, with the wires acting in the same way as a latch clamp. The ceramic swing top lids was the dominant method of sealing beer and mineral water bottles prior to the invention of the crown cork.
This is sometimes called a bail closure.
Prior to the creation of the ceramic swing top lids bottle, bottles were often made from blown glass and sealed with a cork, which was difficult to open by hand and often unreliable, particularly for carbonated beverages such as mineral water or beer.
