The Best Beer Glasses for Every Type of Brew
Many self-proclaimed beer aficionados aren’t getting the full craft beer experience. Finding delicious craft beers, cracking open the can or bottle and taking a sip is only half of the experience. Beer has become so sophisticated that it should be enjoyed as such. And unlocking the full experience means pouring your favorite libation into the proper beer glass.
The best beer glasses unlock all of the flavors and aromas of your favorite beer. Pouring a stout that you love into a regular old pint glass could potentially stifle the flavor while drinking it out of the bottle or can limit the true potential of your beer. Sure, that Natty Light is going to taste the same whether you drink it from the can or an ice-cold beer glass, but if you’re enjoying a nice craft beer, it deserves a glass. You wouldn’t drink fine wine from the bottle, would you?
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Below, we’ve gathered the best beer glasses for every type of beer, and we’ve also recommended the best beer to go along with each.
What Are the Most Popular Types of Beer Glasses?
Beers are not created equally or in the same way. Not only do different styles of beers look and taste different, but they also react to being poured into a glass differently as well. You don’t want the same amount of head from your pilsner as you do from a stout.
You haven’t been drinking beer the wrong way this whole time but your beer-drinking experience could be much better with the right beer glass. Here are a few styles of beer glasses and what type of beer should be poured into them.
American Pint Glass: The jack-of-all-trades beer glass. It has a narrow base and a wider mouth that V’s out from the bottom. They are cheap to make, easy to clean and easy to stack. This is the most common of beer glasses not only for being inexpensive but also because they are great for virtually any beer from stouts to IPAs.
Flute: Flutes are great for ciders and German pilsners. The narrow body keeps the carbonation from dissipating too quickly, capturing aromas and flavors that highlight the beer. It looks like a champagne glass but with a shorter stem.
Imperial Nonic Pint Glass: Similar to an American pint glass with the exception of the wider rim just below the mouth of the glass. This provides a little more volume (more room for beer) and a nice little ridge to hold on to. Generally, these come in a 20-ounce capacity.
IPA Glasses: These beer glasses have a narrow, ridged bottom that allows the IPA to breathe and release carbonation to the top of the glass, which rounds out more than an American pint but less than a wine glass. It’s the right choice for virtually any IPA.
Mug: Think of beer mugs like German beer steins, and you’ll be on the right track. These large beer glasses have a handle that keeps your body heat away from the beer. Use a mug to serve lagers as well as some ales, stouts and porters.
Pilsner: Named after the type of beer they’re designed to serve, pilsner glasses tend to be thinner than many other beer glasses. They may or may not be wider at the lip than the base, and some may have a rim around the base to keep them upright. These glasses are best used to serve pilsners, light beers and wheat beers.
Snifter: Got a strong ale like a barley wine or an imperial stout? The round body and stem allow you to swirl the beer within the glass to release the powerful aromas.
Stemmed Beer Glasses: Stemmed beer glasses are aesthetically appealing and cater to the more eccentric types of beers such as sours and lambics. Since these beers are packed with such an intense flavor palate, the wide mouth allows you to get your whole nose in there to get the olfactory senses working.
Tulip: Stemmed with a barreled-out bottom, sucked-in upper half and flared top to support lots of head to capture aromas. Another glass with a lot of applications including IPAs, lambics, bocks and sours.
Weizen: This is the match you want for wheat beers. The thin glass highlights the color of the beer while the height and soft widening at the top allows for the beer to breathe, creating more room for a good amount of head.
The Best Beer Glasses for True Beer Lovers
We’ve scoured the web for the best beer glasses out there and have set the bar high with our selections. Keep reading to find the best beer glasses for your bar cabinet — along with suggestions for what to drink out of them.
1. Libbey Pint Glass
BEST OVERALL
Nothing fancy, this is a great American pint glass for a libation lover who has a variety of craft brews in the fridge ready to drink. We selected this pint glass as our “Best Overall” pick precisely because it’s so versatile. While some of the options below pair best with a very specific type of brew, this glass can enhance the experience of drinking virtually any craft beer.
Drink This With: A great beer glass for just about anything from IPAs to a Left Hand Milk Stout Nitro.
2. 20-Ounce Imperial Pint Glasses (Set of 12)
RUNNER UP
These beer glasses are great for craft beers that have more capacity, like 16–20 ounce cans.
Drink This With: These beer glasses pair great with a 16-ounce hazy IPA or an imperial stout.
Buy: 20 Ounce Imperial Pint Glasses $42.92
Buy: Night Shift Hazy IPA $4.95
3. 14-Ounce Tall Pilsner Glass
BEST FOR PILSNER
This 14-Ounce tall glass is probably a lot thinner than the best beer glasses you have in your own cupboard, but for a particular type of beer drinker, they’re a must-have.
Drink This With: If you’re going to enjoy a pilsner, especially one of the world’s finest like a Pilsner Urquell, enjoy one in a proper glass like this 14-ounce pilsner glass.
Buy: 14-Ounce Tall Pilsner Glass $42.06
4. Classic Beer Mug
BEST MUG
Enjoy a crisp ale in one of these mugs. Pro tip: Keep your mug in the freezer and your beer, like a Kona Wave, will remain ice cold, even if you baby it a little.
Drink This With: Cold ales and lighter beers.
5. Toasting Beer Flutes
BEST FLUTE
Why is there a flute in our guide to the best beer glasses? While you can drink beer out of these toasting beer flutes, we’d recommend saving your brews for one of the other options on this list. However, if you are more of a cider than a beer person, then a flute is the way to go. By keeping the carbonation from dissipating too quickly, you can truly enjoy the flavor of a cider-like Angry Orchard.
Drink This With: Your favorite hard cider.
Buy: Toasting Beer Flutes $31.00 (orig. $35.00) 11% OFF
6. Libbey Craft Brews Wheat Beer Glasses (Set of 6)
BEST FOR WHEAT BEERS
Let those wheat beers breathe in one of these Libbey craft brew beer glasses. These glasses with the thin body let a great wheat beer.
Drink This With: A delicious wheat beer such as Allagash White or Samuel Adams Summer Ale. Our top recommendation? Lost Coast Great White.
Buy: Libbey Craft Brews Wheat Beer Glasses $44.56
Buy: Lost Coast Great White $10.99
7. LAV Snifter
BEST SNIFTER
Snifters are great for big-bodied beers like stouts so you can get your nose in there and smell the aromas.
Drink This With: This LAV snifter pairs well with a stout like the Epic Brewing Big Bad Baptist.
Buy: Epic Brewing Big Bad Baptist $13.99
8. Spiegelau Craft Beer IPA Glass
BEST FOR IPAS
The bottom of these beer glasses helps your beer release the carbonation and the aromas captured in your IPA. Doesn’t matter if you like single, double, triple or Hazy IPAs, these unusual beer glasses are perfect for them all.
Drink This With: A strong IPA such as the Elysian Space Dust IPA.
Buy: Spiegelau Craft Beer IPA Glass $14.99
Buy: Elysian Space Dust $13.99
9. Craft Beer Glasses Stemmed Classics
BEST STEMMED BEER GLASSES
For those who like their beers funky, then you need beer glasses designed for your favorite skunky beer. The best beer glasses are durable, long-lasting and hold a chill, which is exactly what we like about these stemmed glasses.
Drink This With: a nice sour like the Victory Brewing Sour Monkey in this stemmed glass is the way to go.
Buy: Craft Beer Glasses Stemmed Classics $32.45
Buy: Victory Brewing Sour Monkey $14.50
10. Bavel Belgian Tulip Glass
BEST TULIP GLASS
Another great and stylish glass to add to your burgeoning beer glasses collection, especially for those who like a wide variety of craft beers.
Drink This With: Anything from IPAs to a Rogue Dead Guy Ale work masterfully in a tulip beer glass.
Buy: Bavel Belgian Tulip Glass $19.99 (orig. $21.90) 9% OFF
Why Drink From a Beer Glass?
Whether quaffing a few summertime brews with the crew on a weekend or sipping a cold one while golfing is your thing, not every single beer-drinking moment requires a beer glass. That being said, if you’re trying to enjoy your craft beer and give it the justice that both you and the beer deserve, invest in a beer glass or two.
What does a beer glass do that’s so magical? If you’ve ever watched more than 30 seconds of any cooking show (or had a stuffed-up nose while eating), you understand the undeniably important link between smell and taste.
The correct beer glass allows the beer to essentially “breathe.” Beer glasses help create the right amount of foam or “head,” which traps all of those deliciously smelling aromas and particles from specific ingredients like hops, spices and oils. Those particles and aromas (tastes and smells) become part of the tasting experience instead of vanishing into the air or being trapped in the bottle or can without ever being released.
On a lesser note, a beer glass allows your beer to be visually enjoyed as well. You don’t get either of the olfactory or visual payoffs when you leave your beer trapped in a can or bottle.
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