Brace yourself for another one of those posts where I am thinking out loud quite a bit.  Welcome again to some of the inner workings of my mind.

As I have mentioned numerous times before, this site started as a beer journal of sorts for me.  With that I think I can make the site a better overall reference for all things beer, both for myself and for everyone else who stops by.  I do not always enjoy searching around on the web or through the books on my shelves to double check one detail I am curious about so it is time for me to transition some of that information onto this site for easier access.

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Doesn't it seem to have a glow?

I have no idea how long it will take to get all of what I want to do finished, but here is what I am thinking of starting with.  Not that I am at all bored and looking for extra things to do, but I think these few additions will make a great difference over time.

One thing I want to do is to tackle documenting my glassware and give it a page all to itself.  I am thinking of maybe having pictures of each type that I have and discuss what styles go in each and why.  I could also discuss which types I have not added to my collection yet, though I do not think I am missing many.  Just maybe I will even do a few pouring videos to show how I do it and perhaps also to make it possible for someone out there to tell me why they think I am not doing it correctly.

If nothing else it would help me document exactly what glassware I own before I have to move any of it to a closet somewhere to make room for the new stuff.  It will also be a good way to revisit some of the My Tasting Ways posts that I did so long ago.

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Not a great photo, but a beautiful sight.

The other thing I would like to do is give descriptions of all the beer styles a permanent home on a page here.  I have to assume that many if not most people who visit this site do not have a copy of the BJCP Style Guidelines or even as many beer books lying around as I do.  I can usually just spin around in my office chair and get my hands on the answer to the beer question I am looking for.

Of course it would make no sense at all for me to merely transfer information directly from the BJCP Style Guidelines (for example).  What I would like to do is a kind of simplified summary based on what I understand from reading various references along the way.  On top of becoming a good reference here it will help me study up as I have to actually write that stuff down on my own.

This is, however, a far more daunting task than tackling a glassware rundown if only because of the numbers.  If you break down the 23 main styles of beer into all of the sub-styles, that would be 80 different styles to cover (by my count).  That is even without eventually getting to the meads (3 main, 9 total) and ciders (2 main, 9 total).  No matter how I break the task up it will take some serious time to get through.  Maybe I will draw numbers out of a hat to keep it interesting for me?

Also a beautiful sight.

On top of those two things I think I will be moving some pages and other things around to make the site easier to use and to give me more flexibility in the future.  I try to plan out my attack here, but it is often a case of making it up as I go so a few renovations now and again become necessary to keep things moving ahead smoothly.

I am not sure exactly when I will get started on those tasks, but it should be sooner than later.  Stay tuned!

Is there anything else or any other information that you would like to eventually see on this site?

Though there are no serious plans to do so anytime soon, perhaps someday I will own my own brewery.  A guy can dream can’t he?  Even the thought of brewing on a more artisanal level somewhere down the line (maybe just a one barrel system) sounds really nice right now.  Maybe that can be my plan to occupy time after retirement (surely The Wife will love that idea).

There is a specific reason for my drifting off into thoughts of my own brewing operation at this moment since I have plenty of practicing to do before I would ever strongly consider such an option.  The reason is that I have been given the vessel from which I will drink the very first beer from that future brewery.

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The vessel

The Brother-in-law sent me this handmade pint glass (that he made) a few days ago and I was/am extremely excited to have this one of a kind, personalized glass for my collection. 

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The sun even came out for the occasion

I know that I have explained the importance of appearance and the ability to see your beer as part of the overall drinking experience and I realize that this glass does not allow for that.  That is not what this glass is about for me as it is more about the uniqueness of the gift.  I will drink not only the first beer from my future brewery from this glass, but also the first taste from every batch of my homebrew going forward.

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Enough of the BCS is now well carbonated

There are many glasses in my cupboard that I have to drink beer from and I use every one of them.  However when I do drink from them I know that there is at least one person out there who has that exact same glass and has used it to drink perhaps that same beer from. 

I know that no one out there has this new glass.  On top of that, when I drink my homebrew from it I know that I am drinking a one of a kind beer from a one of a kind glass.  There is just something really special about that in my mind.  I think we all like the idea having something that no one else can have.

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The first of many drinks to come

Thank you, thank you, thank you and cheers to The Brother-in-law!

It’s not that I am at all above drinking beer from a bottle or can (see Old Chub review), but proper glassware is very important to the overall beer drinking experience.   When I started this whole beer evaluation thing I read quite a bit about types of beer glasses to help me get a handle on it all.  There is a lot of additional information out there, but here I will let you in on what I do and the rules that I play by.

High quality beers deserve a glass.  As a comparison for the fermented grape juice drinkers out there (myself included), how many of you drink straight from the wine bottle?  (Maybe you shouldn’t answer that.)  An unfiltered beer is very similar to a wine with sediment in it.  If you don’t want the particulates to come with the beverage, it really needs to be poured into a vessel.  I am not saying that you should bring your favorite pilsner glass to the beach or to a back yard BBQ, but it’s worth the extra effort when the opportunity is there.

Appearance and aroma are very important to the enjoyment of a good beer.  As with food, looking good and smelling good can affect the perception of taste.  I would be willing to guess that most of us are more likely to eat or try something if it looks and smells enticing.  When a beer is still in the bottle or can, you don’t get the bonus of using the senses of sight and smell.  For me there have been many times where I have enjoyed a beer much more served in a glass than the same beer straight from the bottle.  You inhale as you take a drink and the aroma adds to and can alter your sense of the flavor.

One of the big dogs.

One of the big dogs.

Though I probably go further with my beer glassware at home than most will want to, it is all still very basic.

I keep my glasses for beer clean.  I hand wash them and let the glasses air dry to avoid soap residues and whatever might be on the drying towel from staying with them.  That stuff can affect the head retention and alter the taste (which will be highlighted in the “Pouring” installment coming next in this series).  Also, most of my beer glasses are just that – beer glasses.  They are not for soda or milk or juice, though an occasional glass of water may be served in one.

It is best to have the glass be close to the same temperature as the beer you will be pouring into it.  I am not the best at thinking that far ahead about my beer choice so a room temperature glass for me is pretty common.  Though we have all pulled a frosty mug out of the freezer to enjoy a beer at some point in our lives, it’s not the best idea if you want the most flavor from your beer.  The ice on the glass waters the beer down and does the same with much of the taste.

I didn’t go out and buy any glasses when I decided to start recording beer evaluations.  I guess that I had accumulated to many types over the years to be more than enough for what I need.  As far as what I have and make use of at home on a somewhat regular basis:

  • Mug/Steins (one wider with dimples, one more narrow)
  • Pint Glass (someday to be an imperial pint glass)
  • Oversized wine glass / Snifter
  • Sampler glass (one of those from a brewery tour)
  • Wine/champagne flute
  • Ommegang glass (almost a tulip shape)
  • Pilsner glass
  • Weizen glass
  • Stange (something slender and fairly close to one anyway)
A few tools of the trade.

A few tools of the trade.

My general rules are pretty straightforward.  The beers that are very aromatic and have higher alcohol contents go in larger, more open glasses like the oversized wine glass.  Good dark ales and the like often end up in the pint glass or mug.  The lighter, more delicate beers go in more slender glasses (with the pilsner and weizen glasses being self explanatory).  There are many beers that I am unsure about and I will reference Beeradvocate for a final decision since it has a really good list of what styles belong where.  When in doubt, it probably is good to err on the side of a larger glass to help open up and enjoy the aroma of the beer.

How important is all of this?  I have read (and I believe seen on a Three Sheets episode involving a “ski patrol”) that many, if not all of the breweries in Belgium have a specific glass that is to be used with their beer.  They are chosen or designed to accentuate certain qualities in their brew.  If it’s that important to breweries in Belgium (which make some of the best beer in the world), then I will take the time to at least grab a pint glass for my next beer.

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