A Proper Serving of Beer
While American beer once meant light
lager, today it encompasses a wide array of flavors concocted by
innovative craft brewers whose varieties — and in some cases alcohol
content — approach the breadth of wine and spirits.
In fact, there's now so much to learn
about beer styles and how to serve them that the president of the
Craft Beer Institute, Ray Daniels, has launched a sort of beer
sommelier certification program. That's because all that variety has
complicated not only pairing beer with food, but also the mechanics
of serving it.
Like wines, each variety of beer
benefits from different serving styles. Proper service means paying
attention to glassware, the serving temperature and how the beer is
poured.
A proper serving of beer presents the
head well, offers the right portion, shows off the color and aroma,
and honors brewers' efforts with a nice visual presentation, says
Randy Mosher, a beer consultant who teaches at the Siebel Institute
of Technology in Chicago, which specialized in brewing.
"Beer should be an aromatic and
taste-and-texture experience. But we all know, what the stuff looks
like has a huge impact to how people perceive things," he says.
Here, Mosher offers some general
tips:
Match the
strength of the beer to the size of the glass
For amber ales, the typical American "shaker" pint (the standard,
straight pint common at most bars) is fine. For a more bitter barley
wine, with higher alcohol content and bigger flavor, choose a
snifter, which traps aroma and is smaller. "You wouldn't want a pint
of barley wine. Well, you may want one, but shouldn't have one,"
Mosher says.
In general, a glass that curves
inward, so the rim turns up, helps concentrate aromas. A classic
pilsner flute with its tall, tapered conical shape serves to wedge
foam in and give it support, Mosher says. Try one for a cream ale.
Pour a little,
wait a little
Don't tilt the glass. The idea is to keep the head. Pour some beer
into your glass, let the head foam up a bit and settle, then keep
pouring. It might take two or three pours. The idea is to keep the
head while releasing some of the carbonation that otherwise can
leave you feeling bloated.
"By doing it that way, it knocks a
little gas out of the beer. It makes it taste smoother, less harsh.
All those bubbles are filled with aroma, so if they're popping,
they're releasing aroma," Mosher says.
"It's nice to have a thick head on beer. it feels good on the lips.
Watch the
temperature
Like wine, different beers taste best at different temperatures.
Lagers are served cooler than ales, darker beers are served warmer
than pale, and stronger beers are served warmer than weaker ones,
Mosher says.
While American-style lagers should be
served between 35 F to 38 F, English style beers should be served as
warm as 50 F. Serve an India pale ale or a porter at around 50 F to
55 F.
Mosher acknowledges this can be tough
to manage. "Not everybody has 12 different coolers," he says.
Assuming you don't have multiple refrigerators or beer coolers, keep
them in your regular refrigerator.
Before drinking, let the beer sit on
the counter for about 15 minutes. This should get it to a better
temperature.
Mosher does urge leaving the frozen
beer glasses for only the lightest American industrial beers, such
as Bud, Miller or Coors.
"You never want to put a really good beer in a frozen glass. It's a
waste of money," he says. "The aromas just can't get out. They get
locked into the liquid. So at slightly warmer temperatures, they
have the ability to jump out of the glass and get into your nose." | 
