How many Beer Glasses is too many? I clearly have no idea...

The first 100 Beer Glasses

I get asked a lot of questions but the one that comes up most often after where I got the name Drunk Polkaroo (answered here), is about my ever growing collection of beer glasses. What started out as a way to commemorate a visit to a brewery and get something to use in my beer pics has morphed into a multiple level storage question in our house. I try to be judicious when purchasing glasses, but with this year's Polkapolooza Ontario Craft Beer tour less than a month away, I know I'm going to break down and buy more. It's not that I need them as much as I want them and who I am to refuse myself happiness. Do I need another tulip/snifter? Pint Glass? Teku? No, but that doesn't mean I won't buy them, I have poor impulse control and an appreciation for a good looking logo.

Every IPA is better in this German made beauty.

The reality is that I really only need two glasses and often that can often be scaled down to just one. My go to for any IPA is the German-made, American Craft beer influenced Spiegelau glass. Noted for its ribbed shape and thin, delicate feeling body, it keeps me coming back for more. Generating a repeat head with the cascade as you sip is a beautiful way to experience your hoppy treat. Your nose fits into the top but its tapering focuses the notes of citrus right at you. Generally sold here in Canada at The Bay (the glass page here), they have started to make appearances at some of the breweries in branded form. The Spiegelau company makes a variety of style focused glasses in consultation with brewers and to be honest, I would struggle to justify spending the suggested price of $60+ for 4 glasses. We've looked around and they can usually be found on sale in the $30 range for that same 4 pack and I am okay at that price point. $10 a glass isn't too unreasonable for a well made beer glass.

Truly, the only glass I ever need to use.

The other style that I cannot do without and the one I drink almost every other beer out of is my tulip or snifter glass. 

Again a Spiegelau or perhaps a heavier version from a brewery, I love this stemmed glass for its feel in my hand, the tapered top that focuses the scents on my nose, allowing me to get a good whiff every time I sip and the large bowl, which allows for good aeration. Something about holding this glass  makes me feel like I am slowing down and really appreciating what's inside. Perhaps it is just the perception of cupping it in my hand, but it just feels right. Stouts or porters go so well in this glass, lagers taste better and even a sour can be appreciated more in this bulbous beauty. This style makes up more than half of my 100 plus glasses(not counting macro or novelty glasses) mainly because it is so versatile and the one style that I see brewers drinking from themselves when we visit breweries.

So many things wrong with this photo, starting with that Brava Light.

For the vast majority of my time as a beer drinker, I was a straight out of the bottle or can kind of guy and that probably was a good thing as there isn't much in the way of smell or any reason to warm up your Coors or Brava Light. I wouldn't dream of going back to that now that I understand a little better the properties of aroma, flavour profiles and aeration in my beer. A good old fashioned (clean!) pint glass is all you really need to enjoy a craft beer and despite my own insistence on buying so many, it is that humble glass that often finds itself pressed into service for pictures. The fact is that most breweries go with this style is the main reason it remains a staple in my work. I must say that I am seeing more and more of them move to the appropriate and different styles as the breweries grow and mature.



Pint glasses travel well and make for great pictures.

The glassware issue is always being debated and will continue to be something beer geeks talk about ad nauseam for infinity.  The truth is a clean glass is the best glass but everyone has their favourite, be it for individual styles or just in general, myself included. And while we may never agree on the perfect glass, we can always agree that with craft beer, any glass is made better by its presence in it.
Cheers!
Raise your Glass and your standards,
One beer at a time.