Breaking the glass(ware) rules

For serious drinking occasions I will drink any style in one of these.

 

I was recently in Key West with a group of guys, one of whom was a good friend of mine and a fellow beer connoisseur, and we had a bottle of 2014 Parabola and Bull and Bush Legend of the Liquid Brain. All we had in the cottage we were renting were red solo cups. We absolutely refused to drink these fine beers out of red solo cups, so we trekked into town on a mission to find some suitable glassware. We were hoping to find a nice snifter or something along those lines, but we ended up settling for a Key West souvenir pint glass that we found...for $20. The things we do for our beer.

 

I find it ironic that stronger beers such as imperial stouts and IPAs are often poured into glasses such as snifters or oversized wine glasses to pick up "nuances." Often people will confuse bold, strong flavors in these styles of beers as complexity, when I personally feel a nonic pint or something similar would suit these beers just fine. You may want something smaller, but that's simply because these beers are stronger, and one may not want a full point of a 10% imperial stout or IPA.

Beers that are more delicate with no bold outstanding flavors, such as pilsners, bitters, milds, even a Gueuze are often served in simple glassware such as pilsner flutes, stemmed pokals, nonic pints, dimpled mugs, a stange, a tulip pint...etc.

Belgian beers, especially stronger ones, are often served in chalices. Unlike imperial stouts or IPAs, there's no strong roasted notes or bitter/fruit flavors that overpower the beers. Personally, I feel a Belgian quad may be strong, but there's no dominate characteristic that defines this style. There's a wide range of flavors to detect in these strong, but delicate, beers.

Where am I going with this? Personally I feel snifters, the crazy IPA glass, the Sam Adams glass...etc. are all marketing and are mainly an American "thing." If you look at German, Belgian, and English glassware, most of it is quite simple. Dimpled mugs, stanges, nonic pints, chalices...etc. Some glassware is certainly made by design, like the Duvel glass and hefeweizen glasses, both which are made to capture the large heads these beers can generate.

All of that being said, I'm a glassware *****. I love it, and I collect them. There's something cool about drinking a beer in the glass the brewery intended, or at least from a similar style of glassware.

 

Aren't red solo cups appropriate for all beers styles?

 

I generally like working some sort of tulip glass action as it makes me the most interesting beerman in the world.
However traditional pint glasses with CU Boulder alumni logo make me feel cool in front of my friends.
Go Buffs

 

I drink everything out of a snifter glass when I'm home. I get more aroma with that style glass.

 

I have a Lagunitas mason jar that I drink just about everything out of. Definitely my "go to" glass.

 

Yea but I think all they care about is drinking allot of beer and getting trashed!! WE, on the other hand are beer snobs!!

 

Exactly. Anyone who thinks they're prissy or snobbish just needs to do a side-by-side tasting against another glass.

 

Some may find them corny and some may find them to be gimmicky. Whatever they are, to me, they make a difference. The same IPA I had been drinking for years from a pint glass came alive once I tried it in my IPA glass. The aroma was immediately noticeable. And same goes for stouts and my stout glass. May as well include the tulip too. Ok, as in the OP. Maybe the aroma I'm smelling or seeking isn't really what the beer is about. For me? Who cares. I think it's great and it's more enjoyable for me. And I like collecting the glassware!

Actually, last week I took a pint glass and a snifter and I farted into....
Never mind

 

My 16 and 22oz Boston Lager glasses are my go-to reference point for new beers I'm trying, (except for Belgians).

 

Sincere couple of questions here? What is this glass called and does it make a difference? Looks like it would. It also looks like it belong in my glassware collection.

 

When they were first introduced some years ago Sam Adams sent me two. Turns out it is because I was a member here at the time. Way back on the old forums. I had a different name then. I don't know the actual name of this type of glass as it is specific to SA, I think. But I found it made a difference when I tried it on an IPA not long ago. First time ever using it since I got it. I always thought it was made for lagers as they made it (I believe) specifically for their Boston Lager.

 

It was designed originally for Boston Lager but I think it does a great job presenting most beers, lagers and IPA's especially

 

its pretty awesome there normally in a case of two at my local total wine for about 8 bux the only thing i dislike about them is their super fragile on the rim, normally this is my go to for anything excluding sours, porters, and stouts

 

re: the Sam Adams glass, the claim is "the thinner walls... maintain proper beer temperature longer".

Basic science disagrees.

If by "maintain proper beer temperature longer" Koch means to slow the heat transfer from outside of the glass to inside, thinner is not the way to go. Thinner glass transfers heat faster than thicker glass.

But, the thinner glass probably works as well to maintain beer temperature as consuming yeast does to maintain sobriety!

 

BTW, same thing for the "curved shape". Since the curve increases the surface area of the beer-to-glass contact and the surface area of the glass-to-air contact, it actually increases heat transfer.

So, in fact, the "thinner walls and rounded shape" accelerate the change in beer temperature compared with thicker walls and a straight shape.

 

Here's a reasonably-priced starter kit: Threshold™ Variety Beer Glass Set of 6

 

I drink everything out of a pint glass.