Skimming spoons

Look at the edge first, because that is what does the work. A thin, smooth edge glides through the foam without needlessly degassing the beer underneath; a thick or ridged edge pushes and leaves an untidy head behind. Clear plastic is light and cheap, handy if you want several lying behind the tap, and you can see through it what you are doing. Stainless steel weighs more, stays perfectly straight for longer and is the logical choice for a tap that runs all evening; plastic can warp slightly after months of intensive use. Count on two or three skimmers per tap: one in use, one in the wash and one in reserve. At festivals that number climbs quickly.

Pour the glass slightly too full, so the head rises above the rim. Hold the skimmer at a shallow angle and draw it across the rim in one smooth movement; do not saw and do not go deeper than the foam, or you will take beer with it. Rinse the skimmer straight away in the rinsing sink and top the glass up to the fill line. That leaves you a stable head of two to three centimetres. With weizen and other strongly foaming beers, skim in two passes with a short pause in between, so the foam can settle first. If you also work beer into mixed drinks, the kopstoot is the best-known combination.

A skimmer touches beer and therefore has to be cleaned often. Rinse it between rounds and put it through the glasswasher at the end of service, provided the material is suitable. Stainless steel always is; with plastic, watch the maximum temperature, because water that is too hot deforms the skimmer and then the edge is no longer straight. Keep the skimmer on a hook or in a clean container of water, never loose on a wet bar where it picks up dirt. If you work with several taps, keep a dedicated skimmer at each one.

A skimmer is only one link behind the tap; the rest of the chain sits right beside it. The glasses you use this tool for are among the beer glasses, within which the straight models sit under lager glasses and the heavy versions under beer steins. To keep everything clean there are the glass rinsers and the glass brushes. The rest of the bar kit is at bar tools.