Pint Sized Pours

By way of an introduction to this observation, imagine for a moment that your dick shrinks by 20% overnight. Now consider that the British pint is 20oz while a US pint is 16oz...

I drink from a British nonic pint all the time; I have one by me now, the cupboard is filled with them and I have one at work for water. It’s the glass most pubs use, most of the time, and I’m warmly familiar with how it feels when it’s full, when it’s empty and all the way in between. There’s also a certain comfort to holding it, a feeling that it’s designed to snugly fit in the hand; the perfect size and weight to hold a drink. So, when a nonic of frothing, golden-orange beer slides across the bar to me in California, I think nothing of it, sensing a touch of the familiar with the excitement of the new... but that only lasted until I picked it up.

It was a 16oz nonic. Lighter, thinner, noticeably smaller and it didn’t fill the pocket of the hand. Imagine your dick shrinks by 20%... it’s weird. I can’t even remember what beer was in the glass, I was just fascinated by this slightly smaller glass in a very familiar shape (I was probably quite drunk at the time too, which didn't help).

This also, loosely, leads to the size of pours. The US doesn’t have the pint, half, third restrictions that the UK has, rather, you ask for a beer and depending on what it is and where you are it comes in a different and appropriate glass. Many ‘normal’ beers come in 16oz shaker glasses (which I like drinking beer from; they feel good in the hand, like a soft drink glass only more potently filled), but I was served 2, 4, 8, 10, and 12oz glasses, maybe other volumes too, in a wide variety of glassware. I like the freedom to pour different measures and it works perfectly for the wide range of beers on offer in many beer bars over there. To be honest, there isn’t the necessity to have this freedom in the UK, but I still like the idea of no preset amounts, which makes me think of a comment Zak made on this post about ordering beer in a financial volume rather than physical (£2 of beer, please). That’s an interesting idea.

I like that we have set measurements in the UK and I don’t want to change the pint, half and third. I would, however, like to see thirds more widely used in the pubs which need them (because they sell stronger beer) and more care taken over appropriate glassware, because, as good as a pint is, I don't always want to drink a pint of each beer I have and some beers are just better suited to particular shaped glasses.

I’m in a campaigning mood and want to kick off a few different ones... I’m thinking of starting one for a fifth-of-a-pint glass (about 4oz)... who is with me?! The day we get a one-fifth-pint in the UK will be the day extreme beer properly arrives. Bring It On!

The picture is a bit dodgy, I apologise. It shows two glasses from the Toronado, one of a just-finished saison (12oz glass, I think) and the other of an IPA in a shaker pint.

The Hop Press: A pint of imperial stout, please

This week’s Hop Press post is inspired by the Old Ale festival at The White Horse, Parsons Green. You see, the smallest measure of beer they served was a half pint and I don’t really think a half pint of 11% beer is all that sensible in the pub, especially when there are so many other (strong) beers you or I want to drink.

I think that so much of British drinking revolves around the pint glass but as the beers change the glasses need to also. I like third-pints but we don’t see them anywhere, plus I’d argue that they are seen as emasculating to your usual pint drinker (it’s a mentality-thing based on the principal that beer is served in a pint glass. Full stop). There was recent move to introduce a two-thirds glass but personally I think making the third-pint more visible would be better.

The nature of British beer is evolving and I think the vessels it is served in needs to evolve too. What do you think? Are you happy with a half-pint of imperial stout at a beer festival or would you rather it was served in a smaller glass? Or do you just want a full pint and be done with it.

Here's the full post.

I’ve only scratched the surface on this one. It’s a big area to look at, encapsulating the drinker, the drink, the history, the culture; it needs to look at who drinks what and the changing beer scene plus it needs to take into account the beer geek side of things… and the whole thing is wrapped up inside a ‘please drink responsibly’ banner.

Just a two-thirds for me please, mate

Would you order two-thirds of a pint? It seems that soon we might be able to. I like the idea in principle but the more I consider it the less I think it has going for it. As I commented on Tandleman’s blog, this could be a good thing for premium strength beers or for those people who have to drive and want a beer (a pint is too much of most beers to stay under the limit, but two-thirds just scrapes it). But my question is why bring out a two-third measure? Is it to cut down the volumes people drink? Or, is it, as the press release suggests, to add more flexibility to what volumes people can drink?

It may add flexibility but how many people will order two-thirds of a pint? A half is at least a credible measure, but two-thirds… It’s almost like saying I’ll have two-thirds of a pizza (what about the rest of it?!). The jump in volume (100ml more than a half, 190ml less than a pint) is not significant enough to make most go for two-thirds over a full, handsome, to the brim pint, or a cheeky little half for the road. On top of this, will many pubs even serve two-thirds? The Rake is the only bar I know that even sells thirds, and that is a very specialist beer bar. Other than that, I only know of a few larger beer festivals which offer thirds as a measure. Will two-thirds be any different to the third?

Maybe a two-third can be saved for stronger beers (6% ABV, say), but is this really likely? For 6%-8%, maybe, but beyond this wouldn’t you just go for a half? I don’t think this is about the beer in the glass and I don’t think it comes off the back of binge drinking, so it’s just about consumer choice, it seems.

Another thing, which I’ve only noticed while working on this, is how awkward it is to say, think and write ‘two-thirds’; it just doesn’t feel right and it doesn’t sit well with me - I can't imagine ever ordering one.

One important point is that British drinking revolves around the pint glass. Us beer geeks drink thoughtlessly by the half, but in reality – in the actual pub – how many people order half pints? Maybe it’s stoic machismo, maybe it’s just habit, but we go to the pub for a few pints. The pint won’t be lost because if it is then it’ll take the soul of British beer with it, but can it work alongside a slightly smaller glass? For me, this whole two-third-thing falls on the questions: who will order two-thirds of a pint? And, why will they order it? I don’t know the answer to either.

Should've Gone To...

I was drinking Oude Geuze Boon in the garden the other day, enjoying the sun and some Kurt Vonnegut, so it goes. Anyway, I was drinking it out of my Gadds glass and noticed that the sun reflects the logo into the head of the beer and I thought that was pretty cool. And of course, that got me thinking… Are there any other glasses with quirks like this, whether they are planned or not? I know Dogfish Head have some glasses (I can't find a picture, dammit) which focus the bubbles to leaves the outline of their logo in the head but are there any others?

I got the beer from Beermerchants and loved it. It's taken me a while to 'get' sour beers but now I'm craving them all the time, especially on hot days. This one was a 2004-2005 and it's bright and fizzy, fresh and quenching, lemony and peppery, oakey and creamy, dry and delicious.