Beer, branding and the secret to success in the bar industry

By Kyle A. Richardson

Raise Your Glasses

Pint glasses are passé. There’s a world of beer glassware out there, and almost every obscure variety will have a unique chalice crafted to maximize your imbibing experience. “Brewers have chosen their glassware because they believe it’s the best way to enjoy their beer,” explained Patrick O’Neill, general manager of the The Belgian Cafe, Philadelphia. Below, O’Neill goes over a few of the popular glass styles and explains the reasoning behind their designs.

Pilsner

Similar to the better known pale lagers such as Budweiser and Miller Lite, pilsner is a very light and clear beer, and its glass is designed to “showcase the color, the quality and to create a foamy head,” according to O’Neill. The Fairway Tall Beer glass from Sterling Cut Glass features a golf-ball impression in the base of the glass. (800) 543-1317

Royal Pint

Larger than a standard pint, the royal pint is used with stouts and porters and has a curved area near the top, “to create a good half-inch head underneath the rim and just a little bit of overflow without it pouring over the sides,” said O’Neill. RCC Koozie/Norwood’s Pub Glass has a 20 oz. volume to accommodate the extra foam. (800) 937-0320

Poco Grande

Also referred to as a tulip glass, the poco grande is well-suited for fragrant, complex European beers such as Chimay. “You really get a lot of the aromas of the beer as you drink it,” according to O’Neill, due to the pinched shape of the glass. “[It] doesn’t release the aromas into the air, but they’re released as you’re drinking.” Benner China & Glassware offers Embassy Royale poco grandes in both standard and Z-stem varieties. (904) 733-4620

Pilsner. Lager. Porter. Imperial stout. Irish stout. English pale ale. India pale ale. Scotch ale. Brown ale. Golden ale. Wheat beer. Barleywine. Maibock. Doppelbock. Dubbel. Tripel. Quadrupel.

And you thought your options were limited to regular and light.

According to the Brewers Association's Web site, over 210 million barrels of beer were sold in America in 2008, generating $101 billion. To put this into perspective, that is approximately one barrel per adult citizen, equivalent to two kegs, 31 gallons or 330 bottles per person. Not that you drank that much, of course.

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Kyle A. Richardson Author's page

Kyle A. Richardson is the editorial director of Promo Marketing. He joined the company in 2006 brings more than a decade of publishing, marketing and media experience to the magazine. If you see him, buy him a drink.

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