The only real advantage to foam is to reduce the carbonation level of most beer. A beer that is too fizzy lacks full savour and is hard to digest, as well.
Sipping through a thick layer of foam has, it is true, an appeal to some, but then consider cask conditioned ale - little or no foam is created, yet it stands as an exemplary way to enjoy beer.
I'd rather be served full, unfoamed measure and create my own foam, as needed, by decanting into a second glass, or using a stir stick to create a head.
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NO.
A small amount of foam tastes good, more decidedly does not.
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As the importer of “Radeberger Pils” told me, “the Irish killed the (foam) head because they were afraid of short change” take it as it may be, true pils lovers in Germany. - north of the river Main - would never dream of serving or drinking a headless pils, Prost!
On my first visit to Germany in 1986, I walked into a bar in Trier and ordered a beer. The bar was not busy. The bartender poured my pilsner halfway, and then set it down on the back bar, and resumed his telephone call, ignoring me. I silently stewed, wondering why he was ignoring me. A few minutes later, he put down the phone, topped off my beer with its huge white head, and served it to me. As I appreciated this wonderful beer, I wondered if this was common practice. It was, and it was beautiful. Some bars even had a refrigerated area on the back bar to set these resting half-full beers. Busy bars would pour a few halfway ahead of time, and top them off when ordered. Those fabulous German pilsners and exports were among the most memorable parts of the trip.
This is nothing new.
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Ed McMahon was the voice of the 1976 (note the year) Budweiser commercial about pouring your beer down the center of the glass to get the head. What this article points out is nothing new. https://youtu.be/7QFKiU0RLqA
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More stories about beer and less politics please!
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one of the best brews i had was in prague and it is served intentionally 90% foam. Since university i've always ordered an empty extra glass to make foam since it is the best part of a beer(and you can drink more). Agree with Ronn, that the Belgiums along with the Czech are the worlds' best brewers.
I encourage Americans to visit Belgium or certain bars there that sell quality beer and watch how the bartenders serve up their beers. They often use what amounts to pastry spatulas to level off the foam on certain beers, while on others like Pils or geuze on tap, let it pile up and they pour slower.
Different recipes, different pours, different glasses.
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In my former Hamburger favorite pub, I got taught that a well-poured beer (Pils) needs at least ten (10) minutes. Thus pouring beer is showtime as well.
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I first saw a pils being poured when I was with a local friend in a small local bar in Munich about 1982 - I saw the barkeep take a wine glass shape (I was told was the correct glass for pils) - and then proceed to fill it with foam, then set it down, leave if for a while for the foam to settle, then repeat, over the course of perhaps 5 minutes as the article says.
I was intrigued at the time - what the' is all that about !?
But now I could go one.
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In the early 80s, I was in Hamburg with my wife and mother for a conference. My first beer brought on the thought “ service is so slow”. Five minutes is a long time to wait for my first beer in Germany. When it came the head was tall, and the beer was delicious. I asked and quickly found out the reason for the wait, and the method of the pour. It was worth it.
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The article misses the true point t of serving beer with foam: beer lives naturally in a C02 environment, by serving beer with thick foam the beer liquid is kept away from the surrounding multi- gas polluting atmosphere. By sealing the beer in it's natural state in the serving glass, the true beer flavor is fully preserved for maximal enjoyment. Period!
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I went to college in Wisconsin in the early 1970s, and was not a beer drinker before that. The mythology was that you wanted to pour a beer with the least amount of foam possible. I've stuck to that ever since. And I have to say that I prefer that over a beer with more foam.
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"The glasses have clear markings that denote a specific metric liquid measure, such as the half-liter...."
Such a deal? I can personally attest to this being required by law in Germany, when I first went there in 1991. I wouldn't be surprised if it's almost as old as the Reinheitsgebot.
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I rearly drink beer now, but when I do I drink Pilsner Urquell.
I acquired taste for it in 1980’s during student summer job in Prague, what was then Czechoslovakia.
Local friend introduced us to the art of beer culture, including detailed description of process of beer pouring into an appropriate size glass.
There was always a proper amount of foam on top. At that time I probably couldn’t appreciate the whole art and was more interested in other attributes of beer, like ability of this drink to make me happy and relaxed.I got immersed more into beer culture, when I resided for 2 years in Bavaria.
It is difficult though to find places in US, which would pay attention to proper craftmanship of pouring and serving beer.
And that is why I switched largely to drinking GSM’s from Paso Robles area, which is less than 2.5 hours drive from the place I live.
Stay thirsty my friends!
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@Marek Domanski
Look around. Almost every city and many town have beer bars and brewpubs that serve great beer well.
Kind of hard to believe that this is news. It's been pretty obvious for a long time. But better late than never, I guess. Also, the Czech word for milk is "mleko", not "mliko".
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Both are correct. “Mléko” is formal and “mlíko” is a slang. Bartenders in a pub would always use the latter.
One of my lasting memories in my life, quaffing a foamy, fresh pulled Budweiser at the 430 Club on Broad Street in Elizabeth, N.J. with my father. It was my first legal beer (1972). You knew the beer was fresh the brewery was on Route 1 in Newark, about 5 miles from 430. The Club is long gone but the memory is like yesterday.
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The head on a beer helps with the appreciation of the aromatic volatile compounds that are part of a really good beer. You taste largely with your nose, after all. As I say, the head helps with the nose; nose being the appreciation of the smell along with the flavor, much like in red wine or brandy.
I'm not much of a lager guy because the lagering process is designed to minimize those compounds in the first place. There is absolutely no point in foaming up a *ud/**ors Lite, because there are no aromatic compounds to enjoy.
Oh, and the lovely photo that leads off the piece shows giant bubbles that are completely round, suggesting that the beer was injected with CO2, artificially increasing the carbonation and foaming ability. I learned that that was a "cheat" in home-brewing beer. None of the beers I brewed at home ever had much of long-lasting head. I never got that good. :^(
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I read in another respected newspaper that even POTUS likes - the craft beer folks who actually make these beers - guess what - they prefer drinking mass produced American beers.
The reason - they are less filling.
Bud, Bud lite, Miller are among their favorites.
I used to drink beer a lot - after all, I am a baseball fan.
But now just turned 70 - I hardly drink beer any longer -niw it's vodka, gin and whiskies. Rarely any cocktails.
And I never really cared for craft beers - because they are generally too heavy. And some of their fans - well, I am an oil patch guy - a bit too sophisticated for me.
Somewhere in the article - foam is made out be "pomp".
Unfortunately, pouring at a slow pace of 4 or 5 minutes - make "circumstances" of it - means long lines.
Try going to a football or a soccer game in Britain.
As it is their facilities are not exactly fan friendly.
Stand in a line at a vendor for a beer - and pray that someone is not ordering a Guinness.
If yes, you are likely to miss the second half.
I think these craft beers folks are employing another marketing gimmick - not that there is anything wrong with it.
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"The prime culprit is the shaker pint, the default glass at many bars and breweries — a sturdy, affordable 16-ounce vessel designed for mixing cocktails. “I call shaker pints the cockroaches of beer glasses,” said Randy Mosher, the author of “Tasting Beer.” "
Mercy! Thanks for giving some ink to the scam of the shaker pint. A "pint" is not pint, more often then not. As the article points out, with any amount of foam, the consumer will not be getting 16 oz of beer. Nice trick. The 20 oz. glass should be the regulated mandate in this country for serving beer using the moniker "pint." Demand it, folks.
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Surprised no mention in this article on the growing popularity of nitro beers, which make for wonderfully creamy heads of foam.
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Today our President is showing his expertise with foam. Especially at the mouth.
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@Jay Why More to the point – why do so many Americans like this cheap foam instead of quality!?
This is a great article. It brings to mind Hospoda, the restaurant that used to be attached to the Czech consulate on the UES. They had unfiltered Pilsner Urquell on tap and a list of the different levels of foam you could get and how each affected the flavor and drinking experience. Next to the bar was a glass floor so you could look down into the tap room. I miss that place.
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I have my own preference. The most gentle glass-tilted pour to conserve the CO2. I enjoy the effervescence for the mouth and throat feel. To get a beer this this way i often buy a bottle of pilsner and pour it myself. Enjoyment!
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I wouldn't say it's finally being discovered by American brewers. Maybe rediscovered. I still remember the commercials for Rheingold Beer and the 10 minute head.
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@BruceG "the one beer to have when your having more than one"
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Genuine question here: Do the Germans and/or Czechs take 5-7 mins to pour a pils?
Also, shaker "pint" glass rip-offs seem to be more and more prevalent as of late. Two common examples: 1) glasses that are slightly smaller in circumference. Only those that are accustomed to "hand feeling" would ever notice. 2) more glass and thus weight at the base. The weight seems right, but you are losing a couple of ounces at the bottom of the glass.
Good bartenders will fess-up (one admitted that it was only 12.5 oz!); most have no clue. Many places have dropped the word "pint" altogether. An honest move, but a bummer for those of us that are accustomed to 16 oz.
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@AWJ - That's the way it used to be at least when I learned how to draw a proper draught of Pilsener in northern Germany. The idea was to fill the glass close to the top in stage 1, let it sit for a few minutes and then draw during stages 2 and 3 in such a way as to push a solid cylindrical head of foam that would rise an inch or so up above the rim of the glass. Many Pilsener glasses would support formation of a solid head of foam by narrowing towards the top.
Now, modern purists (incl. the German Brewers Association) are poo-pooing the slow (7 minute) draw because it also results in somewhat stale beer. Also, some barkeeps would have a bunch of glasses of beer sit around half filled and just top them off as the orders came in, resulting in somewhat stale beer being served.
While I never tried it - and it may well have been an urban myth (or Grimms' Fairy Tale) - there was a saying that a proper head of foam was supposed to support a 2 Mark coin (maybe like a silver half dollar?).
Either way, may the foam be with you.
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Just a little bit of foam please! The side pour technique is still valid to get a reasonable amount of foam.
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A charming article. But, I think that the foam head is something for the people with moustaches to relate to. Those whose moustache is twisted and points upwards, and is covered with a non-wettable paste, have nothing to worry about. Others, with walrus-like moustasches, may have either to wipe or wash them after drinking beer with a head of foam.
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@Tuv Wxyz, I can assure you that we mustache wearers are quite accustomed to, well practiced, and actually relish the act of sucking the beer foam from said mustaches.
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Great article!
I wondered why beer with a head in Munich this summer tasted so darn good.
And the bartender took all of 10 seconds to fill my tankard from a continuously running tap.
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The head on my pint of Guinness is the best part, absolutely love it. Thank you again for a lovely beer article!
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