 Beer
Delivery Systems and the Enjoyment of Homebrew
If you have been to Leener's
you have seen the large variety of drinking glasses designed for beer.
First impressions might be that every brewery is trying to look different
and all the fancy shapes and sizes are nothing more than marketing. While
marketing and presentation is a factor, it is not the reason for so many
drinking vessel choices. To understand the beer glass we must understand
glass and its influence on beer. |
| Drinking beer requires the
delivery of beer to the mouth. Who would think that something so simple
would need to be engineered, that’s right engineered! God gave us cups,
cupped hands that is, and they work fine for gulps of water. But their
not very practical for beer. Hollowed out gourds work a little better but
they are not durable. Clay pots hold up better but if you have ever had
three or four clay pots of beer you know that all that lifting can wear
you down. To avoid such unpleasant exercise during an activity who’s purpose
was not to exercise, the ancient Egypt’s designed a beer delivery system
which allowed multiple individuals to suck beer directly from the fermenter.
An invention that later became the hookah and thus the phrase ‘sucking
down a few beers?'. May be. |
| The stone jug eventually
gave way to the wooden bowl. Light and durable but requiring two hands.
At this point in history beer drinking became a ceremonial function as
well as a good time. The need to use two hands to drink left the drinker
defenseless in a time when life was cheap. With both hands full and all
vision obstructed by the bowl, the offering of drinking to someone health
was actual a show of trust. Ceremony and protocol lead to embellishment.
The wooden bowl became as important as the drink itself. The rim of this
bowl was inlaid with gold and the vessel was called a mazer. For the convenience
of the drinker the mazer was fitted with two handles at opposite sides
of the bowl. This was great for protocol but the problem of two fisted
drinking while trying to enjoy a roasted boar and watch your back, all
at the same time remained. A stem and foot were added and mazer began to
look like a chalice. Witness the birth of stemware? |
| At this point it must be
noted that this is not a world history of the invention of drink ware.
Different cultures certainly developed different solutions to this common
need of delivering beer to the mouth. I tend to get lost in history and
lore. Home brew will do that to you. Lets get back to the glass. |
| Until the Industrial Revolution,
when the mass production of glass came about, beer was served in clay,
wood or metal vessels and it was a good thing. Beer was not an attractive
beverage and the vessels concealed the hazy, murky liquid within. Then
came glass. The advent of glass put the beer on display. Suddenly the beer
drinker was forced to look at what was being consumed and it wasn’t pretty.
The brewing industry was about to change. |
| All beer is brewed by the
consumer. If the consumer likes it there will be more. If not, there will
be less. Brewer’s had to respond to the demands of drinkers with cleaner,
brighter beer. This resulted in new technology such as secondary fermentation,
laagering, cold conditioning, filtration and improved mashing methods.
It is obvious that the brewers did their part and a lot more. Glass is
a flexible medium for the artist. Any shape, any size, any design. Beer
is a flexible medium for the brewer. Aroma, flavor, texture, alcohol, body.
Why not match the design of the glass to the character of the beer. Why
not let the glass punctuate the brew, accent the colors, highlight the
high points and accommodate the flaws. |
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| There are two reasons to
drink beer and neither of them is drunkenness. The first is because you
like it. The second is the sensations it gives you during the drinking.
Think of the beer glass as a turbo charger on these sensations. Technically
the beer glass is far more than a delivery system to the mouth. The sensations
and enjoyment of beer are far more complex than the tongue and taste alone.
They start with the eyes. The glass made appearance important and brewers
made appearance impressive. Taste starts with smell. The nose prepares
the taste buds. |
| Overtime, the matching of
beer styles and drinking glass has been refined. Refined to the extent
of being nationalistic and even trademarked. The word Pilsner automatically
recalls the image of tall slender glasses designed to demonstrate the beers
carbonation with rising bubbles and concentrate the delicate aroma of Nobel
hops without overpowering the malty sweetness of a refreshing beer. |
| Belgium has been called
the Disneyland of Beer and the Abbey Ale brewers accent that image by drinking
from bowls, giant snifters and large chalices. The brewer monks who live
on beer alone during fasting don't want to miss a thing. Their glassware
is designed to put your whole face in the beer. Belgian Ales are actually
felt with the eyes, nose and mouth. |
| Glassware is not without
controversy. In England the traditional dimpled mug with handle is now
near its end. Pub owners concerned more about space than beer, are using
the mixer or top hat instead. This glass is the one used in most American
brewpubs too. With it's wide mouth, slanted sides and narrow foot the mixer
does offer the drinker access to the hop and ale yeast characteristics
made famous by English Ales. But then their purpose is storage. When stacked
upside down and right side up next to each other they take up little space
compared with the dimpled mug but the mug is still better for enjoying
English ales. |
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copyright
2004 J.R.Leverentz
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