Try this little experiment at home and this will clearly show you why you should always enjoy beer from a glass:
- you will need: a bottle of light beer (preferably bud light), four glasses
- to start, open the bottle and pour 1/3 of the beer barely down the side of the glass (release as little carbonation as possible)
- pour the second third of the bottle down the middle of the second glass (try and get about 1-1 ½ inches of head at the top.
- pour the last third of the beer in the third glass the same way you poured sample #2.
- Take the third sample and pour it back and forth between it and the empty glass four times.
- smell and taste in order 1-3 without swirling the glasses
This will be three different tastes from one single beer. Beer is meant to be poured in a glass, releasing carbonation (1-1 ½ inches of head). When CO2 molecules are released, flavor compounds are released in the product giving it the intended full bodied flavor. This also keeps the beer from being over carbonated (aka less filling).
The first sample is over carbonated, really crisp and clean, but lacking in flavor. This is like your first few sips out of a bottle.
The second sample has significant more flavor, which comes from releasing CO2 and it will have less of a bubbly bite to it. This will be like the middle of your bottle of beer because as you tip back a bottle several times to drink, you release CO2 along the way.
The third sample will be oxidized (too much interaction with oxygen aka too much CO2 released). This will lend a stale, cardboardy flavor and very flat taste. This is like the bottom of your beer. Ever wondered why the bottom sucks and nobody wants to drink it? Too much carbonation released, too much interaction with oxygen, all from tipping back a bottle with an enclosed neck and opening several times.
Pour your beer in a glass, and every time you tip it back for a drink, you don’t lose too much CO2 and therefore have a great beer all the way to the bottom. This will work with any beer, however the amateur beer taster will more easily taste the differences in a light beer without being distracted by other, more intense flavors.
~Sláinte
This is really interesting! I’ve always wondered why the end of a bottle of beer always tasted so different. I figured it had something to do with the CO2/oxygen reaction, but you’ve explained it really well! I’ll have to try this experiment sometime!
I’m not a very big fan of beer, but this makes me want to give it another shot. I never really thought about the impact of CO2/O2 in the realm of beer but this makes a lot of sense. I now know that the next time somebody wants me to finish their beer, I’m saying no. Its just not quite worth it.
Thanks for the explanation!
I found this to be very interesting. The next time I crack open a PBR, I will have to try this. It makes sense why beer sometimes tastes flat toward the bottom and by using a glass, you would be able to enjoy the beer more. What is your take on a bottle of beer as opposed to a can of beer? I have heard that bottled beer stays fresh for longer and actually tastes better but I am not sure of that. I think beer is good in all forms though!
This is an interesting experiment you have going here, it seems like a lot of people tend to underestimate the power of the glass. What about different kinds of glasses though. Is there something to be said about class vs. plastic, or wide mouth vs. narrow, or bowled vs. straight. How do you go about selecting a glass?