Miasmatic Review

Sam Adams Perfect Pint

I may not be able to do the beer reviews right now, but they will return, probably sometime mid to late October. No date guaranteed! Until then to keep up with my beer street cred I’m going to keep up with beer related posts on Wednesday. Starting with this one which was actually sent to me originally by frequent commenter Mark back in July. I sent him a response at that time, but now I’m doing a post for all to see.

His question to me was: What is your take on (the Sam Adams specialty glass).

I actually own one of these glasses. I’ve had it since June 11th those of you that know me, know how I got it, but I’m not saying. I’ve used this glass on multiple occasions and after seeing all the brewha (lol sorry, pun intended) that the Boston Beer Company was making over these glasses, I really feel the need to pipe in on it.

First off, I take glassware for beer very seriously. Anyone that has been to one of my parties, a bar or to my home will vouch for that. I have an extensive collection of glass ware. I have everything from different styles of glasses to pint glasses with different logos on it. At my New Years Eve party I always give out complimentary glassware every year for the visitors to keep. Each year it’s a different style. At the beer tasting, I give out a packet of information I’ve put together regarding beer, one of the sections is glassware. Which I took from Beer Advocate’s Beer 101 section Glassware for Beer (Best glassware reference section I’ve found)

I’m not going to double up and repeat a lot of their work. Go read what they have to say about glassware. I will, however, throw in my opinion. Glassware is important to your beer experience. Beer is much more than just drinking it for the alcohol effect. If that is what you are doing, go get a case of Natural Light in cans and enjoy. If you want to truly enjoy a new beer, you need to drink it from a glass. A glass will let you see the color, pouring it forms a head which opens up the flavor and scents enhancing the taste. The proper glass for the style of beer you are drinking can have an effect. If you are drinking a beer from a bottle, you are not getting the full experience.

With all that being said, let us get back to the subject on hand, The Samuel Adams’ “Perfect Pint Glass”. The glass holds 16 fl oz. This is fine if you are pouring your beer from a 12 oz bottle. It gives you a good four ounces for a proper head. However, if you are drinking from a tap or a pint bottle, you need an empirical pint glass of 20 fl oz. Since Sam Adams obviously wants you to drink their beer, and they only bottle in 12 oz, they made the glass the appropriate size for them and the majority of other beers on the market.

The shape of the glass is like a combination of a standard pub glass (like the Miasmatic Review Enabler glass, it’s a type of pint glass) and a tulip glass. According to the informational website they have all kinds of information as to why the glass is shaped the way it is. I’ll be honest; I’m not sure how much accuracy is in what they say. It’s almost like two execs for the company were talking up their favorite glassware and decided to come up with their own based on non-scientific opinion. I know they claim to use Sensory Experts to help design the glass, I’m just not sure how accurate what they claim is true. It’s not my area of expertise.

With that being said, I did what all good beer drinkers do, I ran some experiments…. By drinking beer (back in July).

I drank three different types of beer out of this glass to see if there was a noticeable difference. I compared these three to the same out of a regular pint. I did one beer a night with a pallet cleanser between the Sam Adams’ glass and the standard pint. The beers used for the experiment were Miller Lite (shut it!), Sam Adams’ Blackberry Wheat and St. Peter’s Cream Stout.

I came to the following conclusion. There was no noticeable difference between the Sam Adams’ glass and my Miasmatic Review Enabler Glass. The scents, flavor and overall drinking experience was not enhanced or diminished by drinking from the special glass.

Overall, in my opinion, if you just wanted the glass to add to your collection like I did, go for it. It is a unique looking glass and is a conversation piece. If you were planning to buy one, or already did because you thought it would enhance your beer drinking experience, I think you will be sadly disappointed.

Mark, I hope that answers your question… and then some.

If you have an beer related questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

Here’s to a perfectly chilled beer in your future.