The Importance of Beer Clean Glassware...Now and Forever

SESSION SUMMARY: If you've been a loyal listener of the first 29 sessions of the Breaking Brews Podcast, you've stumbled upon rants and discussions about the importance of clean glassware and the utter grossness of dirty beer glassware on more than one occasion. This epidemic rears its ugly head at pubs, taverns, and tasting rooms far too often - with servers and bartenders presenting beer to customers in glasses with bubbles all over the glass (known as nucleation points), lipstick on the rim, greasiness, even old food particles.

Furthermore, some brands have posted photos featuring dirty glassware when showcasing beers in their portfolio. This is no good. No good at all. It's gotten to the point that a hashtag category has been created for the purpose of sharing snaps of dirty glasses: #dgm (or Dirty Glass Mafia if you're not into the whole brevity thing).

In the season finale of the Breaking Brews Podcast (Session 30), Jason Cercone is joined by Advanced Cicerone Dev Adams to discuss the dirty glassware epidemic and how all of us, as craft beer professionals and enthusiasts, can do our part to put said epidemic to rest.

The conversation starts with Dev's journey through the first three levels of the Cicerone Certification Program ©. She shares the different components of the testing, why each level is important, and various aspects you should be cognizant of if you're preparing to take any level of the certification.

Dev and Jason also discuss low service standards plaguing the beer industry today. From servers rolling their eyes at customers to a complete disregard for beer knowledge, many people do not realize how poorly this reflects on a brand's reputation and, subsequently, how much less money they're making because they're not engaging their customers and providing baseline information that will enhance a consumer's experience. Dev drops some tips to help servers and bartenders improve in this area as well.

From there, it's all about dirty glassware. Why is it important to utilize beer clean glassware? How does dirty glassware impact the overall beer experience? Why is this epidemic so overlooked? Why are some brands going the extra mile in regards to distribution to ensure their beer will be enjoyed the same way at a bar that it is in their taproom? Why do so many people feel it's "no big deal" to drink from a dirty glass? You wouldn't want to eat your dinner off of an unwashed plate, so why would you want to consume your beer that isn't cleaned properly, right?

Dev produced a great video that walks you through the proper steps of cleaning glassware from A to Z. Her method ensures the glassware will be as clean as possible, producing proper head retention, appealing lacing on the side of the glass as the beer is consumed, and a complete lack of nucleation points throughout the body of the glass. This creates a photogenic beer and, most importantly, a beer you can thoroughly enjoy from first sip to last.

As brands, your mindset has to be that every beer you pass across your bar is going to end up photographed and on the Internet. Be sure your brand is always represented accordingly with the cleanest glassware around.

You can check out Dev's video on her Facebook Page, Miss Lupulin. Also, you can find the video embedded on the show notes on Breaking Brews - breakingbrews.com/podsession30

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How to Know Your Glassware is Beer Clean on Breaking Brews

MUSIC CREDIT: All music heard on this session of the Breaking Brews Podcast is courtesy of purple-planet.com.