Some Belgian Ales are bottle conditioned (i.e., refermented within the bottle creating carbonation). Below is a video of a 'bartender' at the Duvel brewery discussing the pour of Duvel. At around the 1:50 mark you will see her discuss a pouring technique where you decant the bottle for the big glass to result in a clear beer and then pouring the last little bit (after gently swirling) into a separate small glass. She mentions that you could add this small portion to the main glass, drink the small portion separately or... This sediment will impact the sensory qualities of the beer if added. Also you should keep in mind that this sediment is spent yeast which can cause extra gas in your GI tract depending on your individual gut. Cheers!
I've only ever seen a bottle of Hefeweizen rolled on its side after 7/8 of the bottle had been poured. Never before capping.
Interesting video. I will have to try pouring the sediment portion into a separate glass for comparison to the clear beer.
Quote "To loosen yeast in a beer bottle by hand before opening (like a Hazy IPA or Hefeweizen), gently swirl the bottle in a circular motion to rouse the sediment, or if it's cold, warm it slightly first; then carefully pour most of the beer, leaving the hazy bit in the bottle, and gently swirl the final bit into your glass for that full flavor, but avoid hard shaking which causes excessive foaming. Steps to Rouse Yeast in a Bottle (Hazy Beer) Check Temperature: If the beer is very cold, let it warm up a bit at room temperature; warmer yeast is more active and mixes easier. Hold by the Neck: Grip the bottle by the neck to keep the base accessible for swirling. Gentle Swirl: Rotate the base of the bottle in slow, wide circles to lift the yeast from the bottom, keeping it suspended. Pour Carefully: Pour about three-quarters of the beer into your glass. Swirl the Remainder: With the hazy bit left in the bottle, give it one last swirl to mix the sediment, then pour it into your glass. What to Avoid Hard Shaking: Shaking the bottle vigorously before opening can over-agitate the carbonation and cause a massive, foamy overflow (a "lava flow"). This technique helps incorporate the flavorful yeast sediment into your beer, enhancing its cloudy appearance and taste, especially for styles like Hefeweizens or New England IPAs." End quote. The foot note for this is AI. Is it not wonderful? I love Fransikaner Hefe Weiss. Always try to get the sediment into my glass. Now I have a mission tomorrow to get me some yeast. After church of course. Cheers!
With all due respect, what in the beer Godz green earth are you talking about??? You’re trying to create a gusher??? I think I need to go lie down. This is a beer nerd world I’m not familiar with.
OK, decades ago when we could get Coopers Real Ale from Australia & a couple other Coopers brews, I ALWAYS poured out the yeast sediment into my glass & drank it down. Lovely stuff. Nowadays, I'll just swirl the can/bottle a little & then pour gently, trying to NOT get any pulpy/sludgey/whatever into the glass regardless of brew (sure wish Coopers would come back to Kansas!). & I've never been a fan of whatever that white/tannish/chunky/what-IS-that-sediment? I've had from many brews over the last few years, mostly NE beers or pastry whatevers. & don't EVEN get me started on all the breweries that don't include a nitrogen widget but yet tell me that I should, "invert-shake-up can/turn-can-upside-down-three-times-and-pour-hard-down-center-of-glass" and THAT somehow makes a beer, "NITRO"?!?!? (lookin' at YOU Left Hand, Boulevard, etc.) NO....IT FUCKING DOESN'T!!!!! .....we now return you to the original question of this thread, about swirlys & etc. & shit.....
I worry that flipping the can/bottle around in your hands could increase the chance of fumbling the beer. The less risky choice to achieve the same outcome is to just hold the beer vessel in your hand, climb up on a desk and do this;
If the beer is canned/bottled/racked with an (artificial) infusion of nitrogen, it's a "nitro" beer. Might not be as satisfying (or easy?) for you as the widgetted stouts and ales but, for others, "Nitro" on the label is a necessary warning to avoid it. Even Diageo eventually dropped the widget from the bottled version of Guinness Draught.
Yes. Sometimes. It depends on the beer. Makes the event of pouring a brew kind of a mini safari into the wild jungle of the unopened (perhaps a new-to-you beer). It appears here that some folks misinterpret the term flip. Not shake up like a can of spray paint. I'm not gonna tell anyone here what the proper way is to pour a beer because there are so many. That's for a cicerone. So, do you like clear beer more so than cloudy? Or are you like me and like everything that's in the bottle/can? <> The 1st time I poured a bottle of Duvel (approx 1986) I learned a good lesson. Well, two actually. One being that a Duvel glass is optimum for their beers and also to be more analytical about what's in that bottle! Upon my next pour I emptied the bottle very slowly that had been sitting unmoved for a few days and left the sediment in the bottle. Also the pour had almost no head. It was my 1st back-to-back comp I guess. I was delighted that I could have this beer two different ways and that not everyone knew this. Eureka!! I dunno when I decided that I prefer the yeast, sediment, etc in my pours. If I don't want it for whatever reason, I know how to deal with it. I flip beers, roll them, tap the can/bottle base on a bar top towel, and yes a few times I will actually gently shake a beer esp if I know beforehand it is yeasty, has a heavy volume of sediment, and if the beer has been sitting on it's ass for a couple of weeks unmoved. In fact I just did this to Blackstack TDH Thread Count Triple Dry Hopped Double IPA. 2 weeks old. Do whatever you want to do to eek the most out of your beers. Enjoy what you drink! Cheers!! Flipped, rolled, base tapped, and swirled. A beautiful pour, a beautiful beer. This sedi would have been big floaties had I not agitated the can.
One of my favorite beers, they recommend swirling to include sediment in the pour, they call it the "switchback swirl," see below. Whether one does is personal preference. I feel like I just pour and whatever happens happens, FWIW I've never had a pour of this beer I haven't enjoyed if that info counts for anything. Two quotes regarding unfiltered/sediment from Switchback:
Roll between hands. Hold upside down. Leave last couple ounces in the can. That's my NEIPA method. Never thought to do it with anything else.
Well said — and this is where context matters more than hard rules. From a service standpoint, and speaking as a Cicerone, the goal is usually to present the beer as the brewer intended. That means knowing whether yeast, sediment, or haze is part of the design or something to manage around. Belgian styles, saisons, and some mixed-culture beers are a very different conversation than a bright lager or filtered IPA. With hazies, it’s often less about sediment and more about protein-polyphenol haze that’s meant to stay in suspension. If a can’s been sitting, a gentle roll or inversion can make sense — not to agitate carbonation, but to re-homogenize the beer. The key is control and intent: knowing when a careful pour leaves yeast behind by design, versus when a full pour (or gentle reintroduction) delivers the texture and flavor the brewer built in. And once the beer leaves the bar, preference rules. Some want it clear, some want everything in the glass. A good server knows how to pour — and how to listen. No single flip or no-flip rule. Just informed handling, respect for the style, and enjoying the beer your way. Saluti!
As many have said, it depends. Depends on several variables. The most significant variable being personal preference. Here is Affligem’s approach…
I found it interesting that the voice guy referred to removing the cap via "uncork". Apparently Affligem is in the Belgian area that speaks Flemish/Dutch since the video concludes with "Proost". And that is indeed one fancy serving tray/system for this beer! Proost!
Great marketing, but if the yeast affects the taste that much then they need to spend some money pulling the yeast out so the consumer doesn’t lose 10% of their bottle.
