The Perfect Pour

A consistently high quality serve is the final part of delivery of a great product for publicans and the first experience for customers.

First impressions always count so here’s some guidance on how to achieve the perfect pour for cask fresh beer.

Perfect cask beer pour with a long spout and a sparkler:

Make sure glasses are cool, clean, dry and undamaged. This is hugely important as substandard glassware quality is often the biggest cause of a less than perfect pint. If you have them, use the correctly branded glass.

Hold the glass vertically under the spout with the sparkler touching the bottom of the glass.

Pull the pump, keeping the sparkler on the bottom of the glass until the glass is full.

Allow the beer to settle. Top up the glass as needed, keeping the sparkler below the head. Aim for a 10mm deep head.

Simply place the glass on the bar, with the brand facing the customer

Common mistakes:

Don’t raise the sparkler above the head of the beer when pouring. The beer will froth up and he head will be far too big.

Don’t pull the handpull too vigorously. This will agitate the beer through the sparkler too quickly and smash the natural CO2 content out of the beer. The beer will fob but will taste flat.

Don’t pull the handpull too slowly. This will result in the head not forming on the beer so it will look flat.

Perfect cask beer pour with a short spout (no sparkler):

1. Make sure glasses are cool, clean, dry and undamaged. This is hugely important as substandard glassware quality is often the biggest cause of a less than perfect pint. If you have them, use the correctly branded glass.
2. Hold the base of the glass at a 45 degree angle, just below the base of the tap.
3. Make sure the tap doesn’t touch the glass. Pull the handle smoothly and steadily for each complete stroke, gradually straightening the glass as it fills, until the foam reaches the brim.
4. Don’t pull the handle in short quick steps. The beer won’t be dispensed any quicker but it will overspill as a result. Aim for a 10mm deep head.
5. Simply place the glass on the bar, with the brand facing the customer

Common mistakes:

Don’t hold the glass too straight. This will cause the beer to fob but taste flat.

Don’t pull the handpull too vigorously. This will cause the beer to fob and overflow.

Don’t drop the glass away from the spout as the beer is being poured. This creates a foamier head, but it flattens the beer.