Most people don’t think too much into pouring their beer. But, it can really affect the taste of the beer. The different notes that the brewer wants you to taste can really be activated during the pour.
First, you need to start with glassware. You’ll need to pick the right glass for the beer you’re drinking. For a breakdown of exactly what glass should be used with each style of beer, check out this blog.
Next, here are the steps for the pour:
Rinse your glass
Most everyone skips this step. I mean, why would you have to rinse your glass? You just grabbed it out of the cabinet or dishwasher. Trust me, you need to rinse it. If it’s fresh out of the dishwasher, there will be left over oils or soap residue. If it was sitting in your cabinet it not only has that but there will also be some dust that collected in it. These can hurt the taste of the beer and the formation of the beer’s head.
Tilt your glass
Hold your glass at a 45-degree angle
Start the pour
Start pouring your beer while still holding the glass at 45-degrees. The beer should hit about halfway down on the glass, then continue down the side of the glass to the bottom. Pour fairly hard so that the flow is steady and vigorous.
Hold the glass upright
When the beer glass is about halfway full, go back to holding it upright. When you switch to holding it upright, start pouring in the center of the beer.
Admire the head on the perfectly poured beer
If you’ve followed these instructions perfectly, there should be about a 1”-1.5” head on your beer. It's actually a common misconception that head on beer is bad. You want somewhat of a head because that releases different aromas and flavors. Read this article by CraftBeer.com for a breakdown of exactly what the head does for the beer.
That’s it! You just completed the perfect pour. Now get to tasting! If you’re unsure of the right way to taste and rate a beer, download the free guide below.
Just a reminder, you don't just have to pour beer in that glass. You can pour a beer cocktail, or beertail. Here are some delicious beertail recipes for you to try out!
Cheers!
