The great Comidista says that drinking beer is not the same as tasting beer. But what is clear is our beer culture, in general, does not go much further than well-drunk beers, in a short, well-chilled glass.

I'm sorry to tell you, oh friend, that we have been deceived. As with wine, or with any other drink, the container from which we drink it changes the perception we will have of it. The shape, the material, the ambient temperature of it... will enhance the characteristics of a good beer, or on the contrary, it will make it taste very little. And it's a shame, because a craft beer takes a lot of care and many tests behind it to lose even one of its nuances.

It may seem insignificant, but if you try to drink the same beer in two glasses of different shapes, you will see that it gives the impression that you are drinking two different beers.

That's why I'm going to tell you the main types of beer glasses. And don't worry, apart from borrowing them from bars (a practice that we don't recommend and that we know that none of us do…), these glasses and cups are very easy to find in bazaars or specialized home stores.

These are some of the most common and popular types of beer drinking glasses. They are classified into glasses, jugs and cups:

Nonic pint glass.

With a capacity of 568 ml, it is the standard format in the UK. Widened at the top that favors a creamy foam and allows a better grip. Serve ales, porters, or stouts in it.

Weizen glass.

Long and widened at the top, with thin walls. It normally has a capacity of 200 ml of drink and space for the abundant foam, as well as to maintain its aroma and colour. It is recommended for wheat beers (weizen in German) such as: wheat ale, hefeweizen, dunkelweizen, weizenbock and kristalweizen.

Pilsner or pilsen glass.

Its conical shape maintains the flavor and aroma of the hops, as well as retaining the bubbles and enjoying the clarity of light beers. It usually contains 350 to 400 ml.

• Recommended for all types of lagers (such as Americana, Vienna or Bock) and Pilseners.
• Recommended for high alcohol content beers such as: barleywines, imperial stout, eisbock and barrel-aged beers.

Stange glass.

In German stange means pole, that is, something narrow, straight and cylindrical. It concentrates the aromas of hops and malt and keeps the carbonation at adequate levels. Recommended for lambic, bock, kölsch, Czech pilsner, rye, gose, altbier and rauchbier fine beers.

Paint.

It is one of the vessels most used by the “Craft” movement. Very versatile and widely used in the United Kingdom, Ireland and the United States. In each region it varies, since the capacity of a pint in the United States is less than an English pint. Typically used for British or Irish beer styles such as Stouts, Porters, Bitters or IPA beers and their derived styles.

There are several subcategories:

• Nonic Pint : Very common in UK, also called English Pint or Imperial Pint. Its capacity is approximately 588 ml, although there are smaller formats.According to the legend, the undulations of the upper part of the glass were at the request of the hoteliers, so that intoxicated consumers, having their hands somewhat insensitive due to the British cold, would not drop the glass by accident and the glass would end up shattered, losing continuously tableware
• Irish Pint : Similar to English Pint, but with less pronounced undulations on the top.
• Shaker glass: Also called American pint. One of the most used glasses in the "Craft" movement, partly because of its easy storage. Its capacity is approximately 473 ml, but there are also smaller formats.

• Classic jug. They can come in various sizes, but their main feature is the handle to hold them and prevent heat transfer from the hand to the beer. They are usually made of thick glass walls to provide greater durability and insulation. Recommended for German, American, English, Irish and, of course, Mexican beers of all kinds.

• Stein jug. It differs from the classic jug by having a hinged lid and a lever to open it with the thumb of the hand, as well as being made of materials such as ceramic and metal (although stein is German for "stone"). They can contain up to 1 liter of drink. Nowadays they are used more as a decoration, although you can still serve lager, Vienna, München or bock beers in them.
• Chalice Cup. Also called goblet or chalice, it has a great capacity to hold its head. Its wide mouth design favors large and abundant sips, and a wide stem to hold the beer without altering its temperature. Chalice cups have thicker walls than goblet cups. Recommended for strong dark beers such as Belgian IPA's, strong dark ale, dubbel, tripel and quad.
• München Cup (Munich). Its main function is to highlight the color and, by allowing the beer to come into contact with the outside, to retain both foam and adequate carbonation. Designed for plisner beers (also known as pils or pilsener, light and fresh).
• Flute glass. Narrow and elongated in shape, very similar to a champagne glass, only its stem is shorter. This shape allows the flavor of the beer to concentrate and release all the aromas in a short time. Serve lambic, gueuze, brut, weizenbock, wisbock and fruit beers in it.
• Tulip glass. It takes its name from resembling a tulip, a shape that keeps its head longer to better appreciate the flavor of malt and hops. Perfect for full-bodied, aromatic beers such as Scottish or Belgian ales, or beers with strong flavors and high alcohol content.

The perfect tasting glass doesn't exist……

Yes, it exists, and it's called cup AnDer 1.0. Created by a team led by Derek Walsh himself, the taster André Köppen and the designer and developer of Alfred De Groot, who wanted to fill the need for an official tasting glass that did not yet exist in the world, the beer. The process lasted three years from when the idea arose until the first prototypes came out. It has everything you need to appreciate all the nuances of craft beer, which is why it has been the official tasting glass of Barcelona Beer Fest since 2016.

Its capacity is 20 cl, but it is designed to taste between 10 and 15 at a time, so that when it is served, the necessary foam can be generated to value this element as well; It is suitable for all types of beers, it is pleasant to the touch, stable and having a stem and not having to directly touch the container keeps the liquid cold for longer

Its shape accompanies all the steps of the tasting process, from checking the color and grounds to the moment of drinking it -its chalice shape accelerates and stifles the flow of liquid in the mouth, which makes it concentrate the aromas- going through the moment of moving it in circles resting on the table to see what kind of bubbles it develops.

It is clear that not everyone needs a professional tasting glass, but if you like craft beer or, directly, prepare your own at home, it is a very interesting way to assess it with the best tool.

At Beer Sapiens we have some beer glasses and accessories, as well as beer packs (La Sagra and La Ribera) that We give away a beer glass next to the craft beers, so you can start your beer collection.

Sources: https://elcomidista.elpais.com, https://saboryestilo.com.mx

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