What do you serve your beer in? This is applicable whether you are exclusively draft beer or open and pour from different containers.

The vessels you use, Facet #19, are important to women. First they should be important to the beer. Then you educate your consumers – the most powerful of them being women.

The bonus here? Women are excellent students. Offering Beer Glassware Class to women only wherein you have a litany of different glasses available to explore and taste from is an outstanding educational investment.

And it can be economical. You can have a full set of class glasses to utilize for this specific purpose. You can ask that each woman bring their favorite beer glass from home. That can be a great icebreaker and stepping off point. Heck, it could even guide the entire class. Going around the classroom with each women, finding out why she brought that glass, suspending judgement, using each for questions, learning and conversation would be fun and very effective.

And please – let’s bust the tapered pint in the you-know-what! It’s a bad glass for most beer. (Sidebar: I’ve always wondered why brewers, who are so intensely passionate about their beer, tolerate sub par glassware…and bad pub food as well…)

Ultimately it’s up to you as the host and instructor to have a full range of glassware to discuss and feature. There are several fine beer glassware makers and much of it is readily available through a variety of channels.

Know that the educated female is interested in knowing what glassware will be best for her beer. It isn’t about ridiculous off-based incorrect stereotyping women: thinking that they only want or like ‘pretty’ glasses. Seriously, don’t insult them that way.

Teach them what glassware means to a quality beer, tell them what to look for and some appropriate matches for glasses + beer styles.

Smart design developed in harmony with the beer experience is what it’s all about. Teach her that and you’ll greatly elevate beer while respecting the intelligent market share of women.

31 Facets of Women & Beer Series starts here

Vinnie & Natalie, Julia, Charlie and Joni are all spot on. Watch this video about choosing the right glass.

Ask for a better opportunity for your beer to best shine and for you to best savor it. Ask about your glass.

Here’s an article that’s headed in the right direction.

Makes me cringe when I see ice cold glasses used for ANY beer, whether it’s supposed to be served chilly or not. Beer is not supposed to be served frozen.

When giving any kind of event or education piece, this is a critical light bulb turn on. Here’s my analogy.

Say you have a garden ripened tomato. Do you store it in the fridge? If you do, what happens to the taste and flavors? What happens to the tomato? What then is your experience going to be like?

Beer, like garden tomatoes, needs to be served (preferably when possible – and it’s not being snobby) at its best temperature. We’re not talking about getting candy thermometer out. We’re talking about good uncommon sense. What temperature should it be served at, approximately? Lager? Crisp out of the fridge. Stout – let it warm up just a bit to really be able to enjoy all the flavors.

Do you see pourers of Guinness grabbing a frozen glass? Cold glass, fine. Frozen – the beer doesn’t really appreciate it , me thinks.

Plus who wants a bunch of frozen crystallized froth in their beer glass?

So pick your glassware, pick the right temp of the glassware. Double whammy for double the pleasure and authentic experience.

This isn’t being a snob. It’s knowing what you like and asking for it.

Found on the table after the event...

The different beers served with the recent men’s beer pairing and tasting:

1. Stout – small straight cylindrical taster
2. Lager – half pint glass
3. IPA – half pint glass
4. Barleywine – flute
5. Double IPA – wine glass
6. Cider – flute

Glassware matters. Focus groups have told me time and again that what they drink out of is can be integral part of the experience to them.

• Size
• Capacity
• Style
• And for those who know sensory science, Design

Beer deserves to have its own and proper glasses for serving. Just like the wine industry has identified glasses that optimize the wine, brandy makers have snifters and so forth.

The glassware we had on hand and used was partially to get them to rethink their drink. Looking at it for color and head, smelling it for aromas, swirling it about for aeration, ideas for presentation.

Rethinking requires a new approach be taken. Different glassware can do that.

Here’s a picture of one beer I find to be a favorite for me. It’s a framboise and delicious in very way.

No, I don’t drink it only because I’m female and gravitate towards fruity beers (sometimes no, sometimes yes as with any beer).  After all, the issue here at WEB is not gender. It’s opportunity.

I drink it because it’s beautiful, has a luxurious flavor and mouth feel, has a zing of effervescence, and pairs nicely with a great many foods. It’s also very drinkable all by its gorgeous self.

This glass in particular was served to me at a very recent stop, Willimantic Brewing, in Connecticut at David’s place. What a refreshing surprise to get it served in an appropriately well designed glass.

Refreshing because too many places still use the standard (and cheapest) and expected beer vessel around – the tapered pint. At 16 or 20 ounces, it’s not the right glass for some beers. It allows the carbonation to escape too quickly therefore not fully allowing the flavor of the beer to shine and it’s too big a portion for many, women and men. Especially when you want to try a few beers.

If you make beer, be proud of it and do it justice by serving it in a more appropriate glass.