Most Popular Types of Beer Glasses
How often do you pay any attention to the glass beer mug you drink your beer from? If you think about it at all it’s probably just to check that nothing is growing in the bottom of the glass and that there isn’t any visible dirt sticking anywhere. After all, as one who likes to brew your own beer, the focus is on the product and not on the glass.
This is so wrong on so many levels! The beer glass, formally known as “beer glassware”, performs an unsung but vitally important function in how much you enjoy that tall, cold one after a long day at work. There are many, many different types of beer glassware, each with its own shape designed to be used with a specific type of beer. Here is a list of the most common types of beer glassware and the types of beer they are associated with. Utilizing the beer glass developed for the type of beer you are brewing will do wonders to enhance your drinking experience.
BEER STEIN: These German beer glasses are,typically, a very heavy container made from silver, pewter, porcelain, or even wood. It is often heavily decorated with elaborate scrolling and other decorations including precious or semi-precious stones. Most often it is equipped with an attached lid the drinker can raise with his thumb. The lid came about during the 1300s in response to the “Black Plague” to stop disease carrying flies from getting into the beer.
Steins were developed for use with the heavy German beers of the period and, because of their weight, are more often collected and displayed rather than being used for drinking beer.
The steins are also often used for personalized beer mugs with family crests, or military insignia.
WHEAT BEER GLASS: Made to enhance the enjoyment of “wheat beer” brewed with high concentrations of malted barley. Like the stein, this shape was also developed in Germany and is also known as a “Weizenbier”. This is a large glass, usually holding about 18 ounces although some can be as small as half that. The glass itself is tall, very narrow at the bottom and very wide at the top. The wide mouth allows room for a thick head that contains the aroma and is very nice to look at.
PILSNER BEER GLASSES: Designed to be used with “pilsner” beers. These are tall, with a shape that evenly tapers from a wider mouth to a narrower base with no curves. The shape of the Pilsner glass provides a stage for the light, gold color of the traditional pilsner beer while the wide mouth allows formation of a foamy head to keep in the flavor and aroma of the hops.
FLUTE GLASS: This glass is most often associated with sparkling wines like Champagne but is also often used for Belgian lambic beers and beers flavored with fruit.
PINT GLASS: Most often associated with the English pub, the pint glass contains 1 imperial pint and is used to serve English ales and stouts. It is rather short, with a mouth just a bit larger than the base.
TULIP GLASS: This is another glass originally made for white wine. It is shaped with the rim of the glass is not as large as the mid point. For beer drinkers, this shape does an excellent job of trapping the rich aroma and thick head of beers such as Scottish and Belgian ales.
STANGE and BECHER: These are both cylindrical glasses and are most often used to serve Kolsch or Altbier type beers. Both hold about the same amount, but the Becher I shorter and fatter than the Stange.
YARD GLASS: So called because it stands about a yard (3 feet) high, the glass has a bulb at the bottom and a shaft that becomes continually wider towards the rim. Because of its height, it is not stable and is most commonly hung on a wall when not being used. This glass probably originated in 17th Century England and was as much more a testament to the glassblower who created it than anyone drinking from it. Today, it is most often used in drinking games and not for by serious beer drinkers.
The shape and size of the glass you use affects your appreciation of your home brew. When it is time to sample your next brew, use a glass that has been developed over centuries to enhance the drinking experience. Your brew deserves no less!
