Monday Rant: Nothin' Wrong With a Pint Glass

There's always been debate among beer drinkers about whether or not the type of glass you drink your beer out of changes the experience of said beer.

It's always been my opinion that the type of glass used to consume a beer only slightly affects the the experience you're going to have. Yes, if you drink a pilsner or a lightly-colored lager out of a tall pilsner glass, the look of the beer is slightly improved. The head is focused towards the crown of the brew and the carbonation is easier to see.

If you use a witbier glass, the aroma of the beer is more easily directed to your nose due to the glass's curves. There's also plenty of room for a foamier head. If you use a Belgian Tulip, it features a longer stem, which is to be held in order to keep your beer cooler for a longer period of time. The list goes on and on.

You can look up as many beer glass posts, articles and reviews as your heart desires, but you should notice that one glass is usually forgotten about: the typical pint glass.

The folk of the craft beer world can go on and on about how much a certain glass improves the experience of drinking beer when paired with the proper style, but from my experience I can only deduct that the actual change in experience is only minimal.

Can the visual aspects of a beer be greatly improved due to the glass it's served in? Sure. Is it going to smell and/or taste completely different if drank out of a different glass? Not really.

Speaking of visual pleasures when it comes to our favorite beers, I don't think there's a glass out there that's more forgotten about, but yet offers the most consistency in terms of visual pleasure. The pint glass is served in most local pubs and features thick, rounded edges at the top of the glass. If you pour a foamy beer into it, the head is comfortably taken care of.

Your final product is a beer with a healthy crown at the top. Very, very visually pleasing. There also isn't any curves or odd shapes to change the direction of the carbonation or aroma either.

I've always been one to experiment and enjoy certain types of beer glassware I have, but sometimes it's just nostalgic to bring out and fill up a traditional pint glass.