How to pour a pintIn 4 easy steps

Whether you’re a bar, restaurant, lucky owner of The SUB or pint pulling enthusiast, knowing how to pour a proper pint is crucial. Incorrect pouring can alter the taste and also negatively affect the aesthetics of your pint.

Pouring the perfect pint is often considered to be a perfect equilibrium of both maths and magic. Chemistry and art. However you look at it, it is a combination of personal flair and scientific know-how.  The challenge lies in the pouring technique, pour wrongly and the glass will fill up with an unappealing layer of foam. Pour your beer without any foam and you risk jeopardising the beer. It's an art form that needs practice, as painstaking measures have been taken to craft your beer, you don’t want ruin it! 

Think you're already an expert? Then take our fun draught quiz to find out!

Take the quiz!

Either way, pull the perfect pint by following these 4 simple steps. With enough practice you are guaranteed to tap the perfect glass of beer. When it comes to draughting beer, you need to think about the temperature, the glass, the angle and the pouring.

1. The Temperature

Before doing anything, we need to ensure the beer is at optimum drinking temperature. The clever design of The SUB will make sure your beer is at correct serving conditions. The SUB cools the beer to 2ºC, so that you drink the beer at the perfect temperature of 4ºC to 6ºC.

When it is correctly chilled the light on the device will turn green. If you wish to accelerate the process, you can chill your TORPS pre-loading into the draught system.

2. The Glass

For the perfect draught pint, you need your glass to be “beer clean”. The glass needs to be devoid of any impurities that may affect how easily C02 can bind to the glass. This can compromise the quality of the drinking experience either by altering the mouthfeel or tainting the flavours. 

Take your freshly cleaned glass and rinse it with water. This makes your glass slippery, eliminating friction and creating a uniform head.

If you wish to clean your beer glass after use, do not use detergent and do not put it in the dishwasher. This affects the protective layer of the glass, just hand clean it with lukewarm water.

3. The Position

Tilt the clean glass at a 45° degree angle, keeping the glass close to the tap. 

Remain in this tilted position and pull the handle of The SUB down. You want the beer to pour onto the inside surface. Make sure the tap never actually touches the glass and do not let it become immersed in the beer. This is very important for hygiene and taste reasons.

4. The Pour

When the glass is nearly full, gradually tilt the glass to an upright position and aim to pour in the centre. This will help with getting the correct level of foam.

The perfect head is widely considered to be 2cm, or two fingers of foam. Although, this is hotly contested, especially in the UK!

 If you have a Belgian beer or Weizen you must take extra care. If you straighten the glass prematurely the foam will flow over the sides. Tilt the glass upright only when the glass is almost entirely full.

Skim the head of your beer with a wet skimmer, removing any broken foam and harsh bitterness. This will help to seal the head and keep the aromas of the beer. 

Enjoy!

Watch the "how to" video

Do you like freshly tapped draught beer? If you haven't already, why not buy The SUB and give it a go yourself! The smooth way to dispense pub quality beers from the comfort of your home. Choose from over 30 different beers, including Lagunitas IPA, Newcastle Brown ale, Heineken, Birra Moretti and Affligem The SUB keeps beer fresh for 15 days and keeps your pint perfectly chilled.