Show Some Respect...Drink From the Glass

One of the most difficult things for a normal person to do is to point out proper etiquette (or the lack thereof), especially when it comes to beer. Reason being: it makes the "pupil" feel like a total slouch, and it makes the "teacher" look and sound like a condescending "know-it-all." Maybe that's why the world-wide-web created blogs: so people can learn without suffering through awkward confrontations and mild feelings of worthlessness.

It wasn't that long ago now that I routinely drank from the bottle. I did so at restaurants (and still do if my server is ultra-unresponsive to simple requests), bars, you name it. And to be totally honest, you'd be hard pressed to find me bugging the host of a big pool party for a glass to pour my beer in, especially when I've shown up empty handed. There's a time and a place to be picky and finicky, and a big party isn't one of them.

On the other hand, a friend's house, your in-laws...go for it. Pour the frickin' beer in a glass (unless of course it's yellow, fizzy and light...chances are it probably doesn't smell very appealing).

Some folks just don't gather what all the fuss is about. Are you one of them? Well, if so, let me break it down in Lehman's terms for you. When you have some wine at your in-laws over Thanksgiving dinner, needless to say, you drink from a wine glass, not the bottle, correct? Do you sip on bourbon from the mouth of a fifth, or are you rational enough to pour a few ozs into a proper glass (Google brought up the overture glass, but I don't typically drink hard liquor so otherwise I wouldn't have a clue)?

Assuming you answered "glass" to both questions above, why is it so hard to apply the same logic when it comes to a good brew? The only answer I can come up with that makes sense is this: the general public doesn't respect beer enough, yet. Yeah, we're getting there, but we've got a long way to go. Most beer drinkers still drink the same beer on a regular basis. Most beer drinkers term any beer that's golden-yellow a pilsner. Some of that vast majority thinks Rolling Rock is a pale ale simply because it says "extra pale" on the label (as if their lager isn't pale, which may actually be news to them since their drink-from-the-bottle habit knocks seeing the beer out of the equation). Get where I'm going with this? America is home to an ignorant majority when it comes to beer. That's not me being a snob, that's just plain fact.

Show some respect...drink from the glass (at least do it for me. I'm not drinking one tonight).



Why a full glass is paired with a full bottle I'll never know...