Belgian beer glasses

First of all, pick the glass that belongs to the beer you are pouring. A stemmed tulip, as used by Duvel and La Chouffe, is made for strong blond beer: the bowl gives the foam room and the narrow rim keeps the aromas in. A stemmed chalice, as used by Leffe, Westmalle and Orval, belongs to abbey and Trappist beer and is wider, so the heavy malt aromas have space. The six-sided, thick-walled Hoegaarden glass is the exception: straight and hefty, made for wheat beer that you pour yeast and all.

Then look at the capacity. Most glasses are 25 or 33 cl, and that is the content of the bottle, not the maximum fill. There is always extra room above the line for the head of foam. If you would rather have one shape that suits everything than ten different brewery glasses, the wider selection of craft beer glasses is more practical.

A Belgian beer is meant to be poured with foam, not in spite of the head but because of it. Rinse the glass with cold water first, hold it at an angle, pour gently along the wall and straighten the glass halfway. With bottle-conditioned beers such as Orval and Westmalle, leave the last centimetre with the yeast sediment in the bottle, unless you actually want that cloudy, bready flavour.

Temperature decides between fizz and flavour. Pilsner and wheat beer are drunk at five to seven degrees, but tripel, dubbel and Trappist only come alive at eight to twelve degrees. Take the bottle out of the fridge a quarter of an hour before pouring and use a glass at room temperature, because an ice-cold glass works against the head. If you want something stronger alongside, the kopstoot is the best-known combination: a young jenever next to the beer, each drunk separately and never mixed.

Foam and grease do not get along. A trace of rinse aid, or a tea towel that has been over a greasy pan, makes the head collapse within ten seconds. So wash beer glasses separately from greasy crockery, with a detergent that contains no rinse aid, and rinse afterwards with clean water. Let them drain upside down on a rack rather than drying them.

Almost all brewery glasses are sturdy machine-made glass that can take a knock, but the stemmed chalices stay vulnerable where the stem meets the bowl. Place them upright in the dishwasher, with space between them, on a short programme. Do not store them upside down in the cupboard, because then the full weight rests on the rim and that is where the first chips appear.

If you are not after a branded glass but a neutral shape that suits anything, see the beer glasses for the full overview, or the pilsner glasses for straight glasses without a logo. For a larger size on the table the beer steins are the logical step, and if you want to give something complete as a gift, the glassware sets are listed separately. If you are actually after small tasting measures so you can try several beers side by side, the tasting glasses in the menu alongside are handier. The tools that go with it all can be found under bar tools.