Glasses. Does it Matter?

One of the sessions I most enjoyed at The European Beer Bloggers Conference was that from Spiegelau, the German glass manufacturer, illustrating to those whose palates aren't entirely made of wood, that beer tastes and smells better out of a decent glass. Now these were particularly decent glasses, being as thin a a youthful beer blogger and unlike them, worth seven quid a pop. (Does that mean a youthful beer blogger is worth seven quid a pop or not?  At least that I'd say. Maybe even a couple of quid more in most cases.) It was an instructive session, not least of all because it fitted in with my way of thinking. Life is so much better when someone who should be in the know confirms your prejudices, though on a serious note, I did feel there were definite differences, one to the other for the same beer. The big bonus was that we were allowed to keep the set.

But of course my undoubted common sense isn't shared by all. I know many who simply don't care, provided that the liquid inside meets with their approval, or who just can't tell the difference. And it is, on the face of it at least, a fair point. Many think my liking for, for instance, a delicate lager in a tall, thin walled glass, is just a pettifogging affectation, but to me  it improves the beer no end.  Does the glass you drink out make the beer taste better or worse? By that I don't mean the minor annoyances (irritating though they are) of getting your pint of bitter in a Bulmer's Cider glass and the like, but when you get a beer that you "know" should be in a better glass and you get it in, for example,  a scratched old nonic, especially if you pay a few bob for said beer.  In my view the standard of glasses in the average British pub is atrocious, though getting slightly better. Problem is of course that when you get some decent glasses in, along comes some light fingered oik and nicks them.  Perhaps if they were more common, they wouldn't?

I wrote about this before, way back when. Have a look at it again and let me know what you think about the glass you drink from.

The Spiegelau glasses (pictured)are very fine and very fragile. They would be no use in a pub situation at all.

Reflections on EBBC12

Well, it has been, gone and the recovery period is complete - more or less. The European Beer Bloggers Conference didn't change my life, but it did give me a chance to mix with some of the leading lights of UK beer blogging, as well as some of the old lags, the up and coming and wannabees, old friends (and new) and a chance to compare and contrast.

There was a lot of beer, not all of it wonderful, but none of it bad. There was a lot of thoughtfulness and some bollocks, but above all there was a sense of solidarity and mutual support which was pleasing, though if you bring a lot of like or at least similarly minded people together, that's maybe not so surprising. There were some interesting insights about such things as free beer (most can live with that, though not all). There was reticence about "naming and shaming" when beer or pubs are bad, there was geekery and exotic beer seeking, there was hero worship and self deprecation, humour and general good naturedness and above all a sense of tolerance, respect and support, which actually was a little touching. Not much to dislike at all.

In terms of the sessions, I found the "hands on" stuff best. The tasting session on how the same beers tasted different in different glasses was hardly new to me - I'm a self confessed glass snob - but really, if that didn't convince you that scratched old half pint nonics are completely wrong for most beers, then really, you are in the wrong game. The live speed blogging, where brewers had five minutes to go round each of ten tables, pouring and describing their beer, which could then be immediately tweeted or blogged about was tremendous fun. The brewers were enthusiastic, knowledgeable and great exponents of their beers, though to my mind, where a PR company or someone from the marketing department was used, that wasn't quite as good. There really is little substitute for knowing your stuff. It was breathless, got everyone talking and afterwards a chat to the brewers was a great wind down.

Other bloggers have described the dinners - both fantastic fun, though if pushed I'd say I enjoyed the chance to drink some 4% unfiltered Pilsner Urquell marginally better than drinking triple and quadruple beers, washed own by White Shield and I certainly left the latter a darn sight more sober than the first. And I felt better the next day, so that's what's shaded it for me, though I have to say the beers from Sharps were really rather good. (OK not the turbo yeast thingy, but otherwise.)

The more I look back on it all, the more I realise I had a great time and as always while the beer helped of course, it was people that made it what it was. So thanks to my blogging colleagues, the sponsors without whom we'd have been very thirsty indeed and to the organisers. No mean feat pulling it all togther.

Let's do it again sometime.

I was able to confirm another beery dislike to go along with rauchbier. Beer aged in whisky casks. Not for me at all.