Endless Beer: the Spiegelau Refresh Stein

refreshbeerstein

Man, sometimes writing here is hard. I had to test several different varieties of beer for this one. The Spiegelau “Refresh Beer Stein” is touted as anĀ everybeer glass. While many beer enthusiasts believe there is a specific glass for a specific style beer, this glass is calling: “BS. Pour anything in me.” The company that brought us the IPA glass and stout glass continues to design glass for literally any beer. The Refresh Stein has a molded turbine design at the bottom of the glass. This turbine is meant to “recharge” the beer, releasing more aromas and increasing the carbonation. The only thing you have to do, is swirl the glass in order to activate the recharging of your beer. The glass also tapers to “enhance aroma.”

The challenge here was to test the glass with the various fall flavored beers. I tried the glass with a pumpkin porter, pumpkin belgian, various pumpkin ales, a kolsh, an IPA, wheat, stout, and more pumpkin beers. I was testing the glass based on several criteria:

  • It’s a Stine – is the design convenient for drinking?
  • Does the beer “re-carbonate” when swirled?
  • Is the aroma enhanced?
  • Is the flavor enhanced?
  • Does the glass enhance ANY kind of beer?
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Endless Beers: What Difference Does a Glass Make?

stoutglassIPA Glass

Hopefully most of our readers have finally bought in to the #drinkcraftbeer movement. Really, it’s not even a movement, but common sense. Why would anyone pay to drink something that tastes like (a) nothing, (b) pee, or (c) crap? You wouldn’t. So the next step in becoming an all-out beer snob is to drink beer from a GLASS, not the bottle or can. I originally thought the whole experience of picking glassware depending on the kind of beer was a gimmick. However, after testing various Spiegelau glasses out, I’ve changed my tune.

First of all, the main reason behind drinking your suds from a glass rather than the bottle or can is to get the aroma of the beer and to allow it to properly carbonate. The aroma will indeed change the taste of the beer – typically heightening your senses as you indulge in a cold one. Typically, I’ll just pour it into a pint glass no matter what kind of beer, and enjoy. But there are different and innovative ways to drink our beer now. Here are two taste tests (I know…my work is difficult) of the latest innovative beer glass collaborations.

The Glasses:

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