Spiegelau Glass
At the Craft Brewer’s Conference in March, we were given a special tasting glass. The thin-walled tulip-shaped glass immediately impressed by based on appearance alone, but it wasn’t until speaking with the makers of the glasses that I truly became intrigued. Spiegelau prides itself on making the very best glasses for tasting and experiencing beer. It was with these claims in mind that I had to put the glassware to the test.
A brief summary of what we were told at the conference will set the stage for the tastings. First, a special, high quartz content, low impurity glass is used in all Spiegelau glasses. The result is a glass which is nearly flawless. We were shown photos taken with an electron microscope that showed perfect smooth surfaces of Spiegelau glasses where traditional glass appeared more “like the surface of the moon.” These imperfections can affect the impact of the beer in various ways. Nooks and crannies can provide hiding places for bacteria, cleaning solutions, or other unwanted guests while also providing a surface which would hinder head retention. The idea, if the variable of the glass is removed from the equation, one can rate, review, experience a beer in a way that allows for a baseline against past and future beers.
For the taste test, I would put the Spiegelau Connoisseur’s Collection up against my existing beer glass collection. In each case I will explain my choice of glassware and beer to be used in the tasting. At the end I will pick which glass I chose to be most appropriate for the style as well as an overall decision in the end.
Pilsner Glass
The Beer: Trumer Pils. I chose this beer because it is the reigning GABF Gold Medal winner in its style and because I was able to obtain a fresh sample from the brewery for the test. Pilsner should always be experienced as fresh as possible.
Glasses: I chose an old pilsner glass I’ve had for a while, something bought as a gift set from Cost Plus or Target. I also included the Trumer logo glass, a straight-sided cylinder.
The Experience: Not surprisingly, the Trumer glass performed the worst of the three. The aroma wasn’t particularly strong and the head and aroma suffer greatly as the beer’s level in the glass decreases. The pilsner glass performed better in terms of maintaining a decent head but also lost the aroma. The Spiegelau stood out in this case with a more vibrant aroma, head retention that was comparable to the pilsner glass and aroma that could be detected even as the glass was near empty. The thin edge of the glass brought out bitterness in the front of the tongue showing off the hoppiness of the style.
The Verdict: Spiegelau
Weizen Glass
The Beer: Ayinger Bräu-Weisse. One of the best examples of a hefeweizen. Perfect for a taste test.
Glasses: Ayinger logo wheat bear glass.
The Experience: Visually, these two glasses are near identical. The shape and height similarities hint that there isn’t much to improve upon in terms of design. In terms of aroma, a more phenolic aroma can be detected in the Spiegelau versus the Ayinger glass. This is also true when tasting the beer as the sharper flavors come through more readily in the Spiegelau glass. One area where the Ayinger shows up is in a better ability to keep the beer cold. As this style is best served cold and the Wheat Beer glass tending to be a larger pour, maintaining temperature is a factor to be considered. Additionally, the Ayinger glass really feels good in the hand, the extra weight isn’t significant, but feels study. The gold rim does nothing as far as I’ve been able to tell, but looks great. The Spiegelau’s technical strengths only lead to minor enhancements and aren’t enough to overcome the simple joy of drinking from the Ayinger.
The Verdict: Ayinger
English Pint
The Beer: Drake’s 1500 Pale Ale. One of my personal favorite pale ales, 1500 is hoppy without being overwhelming. A good glass will show off the malt as well as the hops.
Glasses: I chose a Sierra Nevada logo Imperial Pint glass with etching in the base. Spiegelau calls this glass a Lager glass but it is designed to compete with traditional pint glasses.
The Experience: Both glasses show off wonderful hoppy aromas. The malt shines through in the Spiegelau. While drinking the beer, there is no noticeable difference in the beer. The head sits nicely on top of the beer in both cases. The aroma maintains a steady quality even as little beer remains in each glass. The Spiegelau provides a more rounded aroma, but is this enough of a difference to give up your favorite pint glass?
The Verdict: Tie
Tulip Glass
The Beer: 2010 Lagunitas Brown Shugga. When fresh, Brown Shugga is a kick of danky hops. As it ages, the aroma of hops mellow and the beer leans more towards a sweet malt body. At roughly 6-months old, the hops would begin to fade, the malt would show off a bit and notes of oxidation will begin to be present. In short, there should be plenty to taste in this beer to put the glasses to the test.
The Glass: What other glass comes to mind when thinking of a tulip glass but the Duvel tulip. Broad enough to be used as a snifter but with an exaggerated flare a the top and microetched base, the Duvel tulip is a standard. In order to be the best, you have to beat the best.
The Experience: As with the other glasses, the Spiegelau displays bright hops and the sweet malt stands out versus the Duvel which misses out on most of the sweetness and lacks the high notes of the hops. The difference in flavor is minimal and the Duvel glass is able to keep a more significant head thanks to etching. When it comes down to it though, the Spiegelau’s more compact form and closed opening gives it an edge over the Duvel. Able to capture more aroma as the level of beer decreases, the Spiegelau also fits better in the hand (and this comes from a man with big hands) and finds a place on a crowded table better. The thinner glass allows for a quicker warming of usually chilled beers to appropriate temperatures closer to cellar temps.
The Verdict: Spiegelau
Many people love to collect glass simply to collect glass. I’m one of them. With a new beer station at my home (dedicated mini-fridge, dry-storage and glassware hutch away from the family’s dishes and such) I have found an ability to add to my collection. With the addition of these Spiegelau glasses though, I’ve found the collection to be more for show than anything else.
While the final tally is 2-1-1 in favor of the Spiegelau over my home collection, I think the Spiegelau glasses represent a worthy purchase for anyone who takes beer reviewing seriously. Something not shown in this taste test is the ability to reproduce the same settings when trying different beers. While a million variables can affect the flavor of the beer before it arrives in your hands, to provide a consistent canvas upon which you’re experiencing this beer can provide for more analytical and true comparisons from one beer to the next.
2 Comments to “Spiegelau Glass”
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I have three of the Spiegelau glasses and concur that they are the best tasting beer glasses I have come across. The tulip is my mainstay and ideal for beer tastings.
I haven’t tried the glasses, but I thought they didn’t look too promising. Apparently Spiegelau has always made excellent wine glasses though, and are now owned by Riedel, which is the huge wine glass company based in Austria; so, no surprises here.