Why froth is essential for the perfect beer-drinking experience

Tipping a glass to avoid a foamy head is a rookie error.

Jun 6, 2023 - 04:30

Why froth is essential for the perfect beer-drinking experience

What makes for the ultimate beer drinking experience? Some like theirs in a frosty glass, others with a wedge of lime. But when it comes to froth – or the head as it’s commonly known – what’s the best amount and how can it be achieved?

Too much froth and you’re left with a smear of bubbles across your face and hanging from your nose as you desperately try to get at the beer beneath. But too little will cause problems in your stomach.

You see, if there’s no foam the CO2 stays dissolved in the beer. If you then eat something, the foam erupts in your stomach rather than the glass, causing beer bloat. That’s why tipping a glass to avoid a frothy head is a rookie error.

Hoping to solve this issue, a company in Japan has designed a beer can with two pulls, which control the level of foam produced by opening the can, resulting in the perfect amount of froth.

This is just the most recent development in beer technology. Humanity has been chasing the perfect pint since beer’s inception, which evidence suggests was roughly 13,000 years ago near Haifa, Israel – the oldest known record of human-made alcohol.