German wheat beer usually sits in high glass, which is curved from a wide mouth to a narrow base. Stella Artois arrives at a tight funnel with a small foot. And this is just the beginning. How many different forms of beer glass are there? And what is the right glass? If a beer lover says that a glass doesn’t matter and it’s ok to drink from a bottle, there’s something he needs to know.
Beer glasses became a sure fire when, in the late 1800s, commercial glass products met with lagers - transparent mittens glittered in transparent containers. It took a long time for the breweries to realize that they could call their names on the glasses and give them to the bars that served the beer. The bar got points for free; brewers got an advertisement.
In Belgium, perhaps the country with the most beer brands in the world took it to heart - each of the country’s 450 beers has its own glass.
But, like in the world of wine, some enthusiasts claim that you need the right glass, as a way to combat the carbonation of beer. The shape of the glass of beer is a function of carbonization in beer, the surface area at the bottom of the glass and the surface finish of the glass itself.
Surface defects in the nucleation of glass, a kind of incubator for the formation of bubbles. Then, the surface area, combined with the height, work together to ensure the right mix of geometry for each beer. Carbonization carries the aromas of beer through liquid and into the air when the bubbles burst at the top.
Pilsner, with its high carbonation, requires a wide upper and thin bottom of a high funnel shape: the bubbles quickly disperse upwards, releasing the aroma. For a non-carbonated beer, you will need a glass with a fairly large surface area at the bottom to stimulate carbon dioxide emissions, and then a large surface area upwards to also allow the consumer to enjoy the flavor.
An interesting study of bear glasses showed that the thicker the glass, the more they were found, the worse the beer retains its temperature; thick glass at room temperature has more thermal mass, pushing heat into a cold beer. Laser etchings at the base of the glass raise the bubbles, which bring flavor to the drinker. A big bulge at the top captures the aroma.
Modern beer glasses do not benefit the taste when they go through recent research in the field of glass. Wide mouths of pints for a shaker, lack of aroma capture curves in Pilsner glasses and a thick glass of beer steins damaged beer more than it helps.
An amazing suggestion for a beer drinker is to try using a glass. The glasses are designed to help you get the most out of your wine and do the same for beer.
Wash your glasses thoroughly and never cool your glass, which changes the temperature of the beer.
