Sep
30
'09Each beer has its own glass, haven’t you forgotten?
In recent days I happened to discuss with my friend Lorenzo about a rather delicate matter. Chatting about many topics we ended up discussing a habit increasingly popular with the locals, at least those of Rome: to propose a sole and only “measure” for the quantity of beer, often served in glasses quite different from the ones that should be employed. This considerations came out talking about the new Open Baladin bar where all the 40 beers on draft are served 33cl in the “Roman Pint” (miniature version of the English one) or in the now famous Teku glass. Both glasses are very good to taste some beers, but really not fit some others.
I mentioned the beautiful Open Baladin in Rome, but there are plenty of examples. Somehow, this practice has hit the spotlight at the bir&fud restaurant in Rome, which distinguished itself by the adoption of a single glassware for all the beers on tap: the already mentioned Teku. For those who do not know, this name is the short for the names of Teo Musso (Baladin) and Kuaska: a joint venture who gave birth to such glassware to propose a universal shape and measure specifically shapen to taste beer. Brave and bold idea which, despite its many successes, hides some deep shadows to me. At least under some angles.
While presenting itself as the definitive glass of beer, it is undeniable that its shape fits well only certain types of beer. There are a number of technical measures designed to justify the universality of the Teku, but its shape is so distant from a flute or an English pint that simply can’t fit all the standards. A Teku could be a viable alternative to a balloon glass or a cup, but compared to other glasswares – clearly different in shape and capacity – any technical explanation to fit it results dull.
Try yourself to drink a poor 0.40 cl of a Blanche de Namur in a Teku. Some time ago I happened to have two in a wich quickly disappeared, leaving me very unsatisfied. But when I find that beer in its 0,50 glass it’s a bliss. Surely the difference in quantity counts, but is not just about that…
One of the first things you learn about beer is that each one has its own glass. Flute for the pils, the pint for the English ales, complex beers require cups or balloons, and so on. After some time it gets easy to start thinking that what really matters is the content, and that a glass is just a detail, any will do. Couldn’t be more wrong. The ideal glass is not just a gradient or a marketing thing, but a key to appreciate – or depreciate – a beer. I can’t have a pils, a blanche, or even a Kolsch Weiss in a Teku, it takes away a significant part of the pleasure from me. Maybe even for unconscious motives.
But let’s not talk only about the Teku. Too often a beer is served in a completely different glass than the one required, perhaps smaller, just to make it look like it’s “more”. When we order a beer we expect a generous glass to drink in large sips, to get an inch of liquid to ration or finish in 30 seconds flat because of the recent trend.
My point is the widespread adoption of a standard quantity of beer, which usually does not go beyond the 33cl: for goodness sake, that is well suited only to certain types (complex or highly alcoholic beers, mostly), indeed England pubs will soon adopt a new size of 2 / 3 pint for a more flexible choice — and maybe disencourage the easy drinking. But if in England the choice widens, here in Italy gets reduced to a “this or nothing”. So I’d rather have a nice Blanche in pubs or bars serving the adequate quantity in the right glass than having to hold back the pleasure of drinking in large and rewarding sips.
Basically I understand pubs may have economical and managing reasons to do this (better to deal with a single size and glassware than keep many with different capacities and shapes) but this trend is not really pleasant for who sits across the counter.
In this way the beer is likely to become more and more a marketing product just like any other, loosing its identity, strongly associated with spare time with friends, maybe as the perfect complement to a nice conversation. Moreover it can also lead to unpleasant experiences for people on the first approach: the high prices raise concerns about that. If drinking feels not satisfying, customers will hardly be charmed.
P.S. About the bir & fud restaurant, recently the Teku were fortunately joined by flute and American pints. Could it be a start for a return to the origins?
I mentioned the beautiful Open Baladin in Rome, but there are plenty of examples. Somehow, this practice has hit the spotlight at the bir & fud restaurant in Rome, which distinguished itself by the adoption of a single glassware for all the beers on tap: the already mentioned Teku. For those who do not know, this name is the short for the names of Teo Musso (Baladin) and Kuaska: a joint venture who gave birth to such glassware to propose a universal shape and measure specifically shapen to taste beer. Brave and bold idea which, despite its many successes, hides some deep shadows to me. At least under some angles.
While presenting itself as the definitive glass of beer, it is undeniable that its shape fits well only to certain types of beer. There are a number of technical measures designed to justify the universality of the Teku, but its shape is so distant from a flute or an English pint that simply can’t fit all the standards. A Teku could be a viable alternative to a balloon glass or a cup, but compared to other glasswares – clearly different in shape and capacity – any technical explanation to fit it results dull.
Try yourself to drink a poor 0.40 cl of a Blanche de Namur in a Teku. Some time ago I happened to have two in a wich quickly disappeared, leaving me very unsatisfied. But when I find that beer in its 0,50 glass it’s a bliss. Surely the difference in quantity counts, but is not just about that…
One of the first things you learn with beer is that each one has its own glass. Flute for the pils, the pint for the English ales, complex beers require cups or balloons, and so on. After some time it gets easy to start thinking that what really matters is the content, and that a glass is just a detail, any will do. Couldn’t be more wrong. The ideal glass is not just a gradient or a marketing thing, but a key to appreciate – or depreciate – a beer.
I can’t have a pils, a blanche, or even a Kolsch Weiss in a Teku, it takes away a significant part of the pleasure from me. Maybe even for unconscious motives.
But let’s not talk only about the Teku. Too often a beer is served in a completely different glass than the one required, perhaps smaller, just to make it look like it’s “more”. When we order a beer we expect a generous glass to drink in large sips, to get an inch of liquid to ration or finish in 30 seconds flat because of the recent trend.
My point is the widespread adoption of a standard quantity of beer, which usually does not go beyond the 33cl: for goodness sake, that is well suited only to certain types (complex or highly alcoholic beers, mostly), indeed England pubs will soon adopt a new size of 2 / 3 pint for a more flexible choice — and maybe disencourage the easy drinking. But if in England the choice widens, here in Italy gets reduced to a “this or nothing”. So I’d rather have a nice Blanche in pubs or bars serving the adequate quantity in the right glass than having to hold back the pleasure of drinking in large and rewarding sips.
Basically I understand pubs may have economical and managing reasons to do this (better to deal with a single size and glassware than keep many with different capacities and shapes) but this trend is not really pleasant for who sits across the counter.
In this way the beer is likely to become more and more a marketing product just like any other, loosing its identity, strongly associated with spare time with friends, maybe as the perfect complement to a nice conversation. Moreover it can also lead to unpleasant experiences for people on the first approach: the high prices raise concerns about that. If drinking feels not satisfying, customers will hardly be charmed.
About the bir & fud restaurant, recently the Teku were fortunately joined by flute and American pints. Could it be a start for a return to the origins?
