Cheers to Summer!: Beer Glasses to Enjoy Your Favorite Brews
Though Didriks will be starting its Summer Cocktails Series next week, we think it's important not to neglect our love of the brew. With the first day of summer arriving today with New England weather in top form, what better way to celebrate the longest day of the year but with your favorite beer and preferably on an outdoor patio?
As beer connoisseurs already know, it's not just the kind of brew and brewer you need to think about when enjoying beer. What you drink out of matters! That means glasses and Didriks knows glasses.
Here are some of our suggestions for glass-and-brew pairings to keep in mind:
The Mug. If you're thirsty, there's nothing more satisfying that a cold one served in a chilled mug, like the Simon Pearce Windsor Tankard(see above). It's a fun and serious piece of glassware that you can clink together with more confidence than other types of glassware. And--this is perhaps the key feature--they hold loads of beer. Great for my favorite kind of brew: the IPA. And the hoppier the better! One of the hoppiest is the Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA. Pour and enjoy. (After work.)
The Globlet. Our choice? Match Pewter Beer Goblet. The majestic piece is manufactured in famous Match pewter. Designed to maintain head with wide mouthed for deep sips, the scoring the inside bottom of the glass creates a carbon dioxide nucleation point, creating a deep head. The goblet style is great for dark ales or dubbels, like Chimay Première (Red).
The Pilsner Glass. Iittala Aarne Beer glasses--tall, slender and tapered--are perfect for showcasing the color, clarity, and carbonation of the Pils. The 12 ounce volume capacity of these glasses will capture the sparkling effervescence and color of a Pils while maintaining its head. My suggestion? Samuel Adams Noble Pils if you want to stay local or opt for the godfather of Pils, Pilsner Urquell.
The Fluted Glass. The world of champagne lends elegance to certain types of beer. Long and narrow bodies ensure that carbonation doesn't dissipate too quickly and showcase a lively carbonation or sparkling color. Stems will often be a bit shorter than the traditional champagne glass like the Chateau Grande Beer glasses. These glasses will enhance and showcases carbonation by releasing volatiles quickly for a more intense upfront aroma. Use with your favorite Pils or a local brew like Allagash Interlude by Allagash Brewing Company based in Portland, Maine.
And finally the humble and familiar:
The Pint Glass. Near cylindrical, with a slight taper and wide-mouth, the most common size in the US is the 16-ounce. It's often the cheapest to make and easy to store and drink out of. And easy on the eyes with the Simon Pearce Ascutney Pint Glass. There's a reason most beers in bars and pubs are served in the pint glass: it will complement almost any beer. Showcase the rich and dark flavor of the River Ale by Massachusetts’ own Berkshire Brewing Company Inc.
Whatever your brew of choice, enjoy it in the glass that will do the craftsmanship of the beverage its full justice.
Cheers!