How to correctly draw beer (on tap)

“And you will discover that your publican actually loves you through that beautifully drawn and skilfully served glass of Pilsner…” So said Bohumil Hrabal, the founding father of 20th-century Czech literature and a great connoisseur of Pilsner beer, in 1995. Prague’s renowned beer houses, which Hrabal visited so often, are characterised by a special way of drawing beer – ‘level drawing’.

Pouring “Flat Head” Beer

1st phase A special rotating tap is used to pour a “flat head” beer. First, you pour a small amount of foam into the glass by turning the tap slowly and holding the glass at a 45° angle to the tap.

2nd phase In the second phase, you open the tap for a maximum flow and let the beer flow onto the glass wall. The stream of beer is without turbulence, completely transparent.

3rd phase Finish the drawing by shutting the tap quickly. The glass is full of thick, wet foam rolling back and forth and slowly rising to the top. A little foam may occasionally flow over the glass’ brim.

4th phase The beer settles slowly. The glass displays a gentle veil of dissolved carbon dioxide rising from the bottom. The beer comes up very slowly, approaching the glass’ mark. This is specific to this drawing method.

Drawing the beer using the standard lever tap

If your taproom does not have a rotating tap installed, you can achieve a similar effect using the lever tap as well. However, this is more difficult and time-consuming, and also entails the loss of a certain amount of the initial foam, which needs to be pushed out with the desired ‘wet’ foam drawn at the end.

1st phase Hold the glass under the tap at approx. 45°. Push back on the valve (away from yourself) to let a small amount of foam into the glass. Then fill the glass with beer by pulling on the lever towards your body. The beer flows slowly down the glass wall.

2nd phase The foam on top protects the beer from oxidation, but this is the ‘dry’ foam and it is a good idea to push it away with the tastier ‘wet’ foam. So when the glass is full, push back on the valve to push a sufficient amount of the thick foam underneath the dry foam you already have in the glass, and the excess foam will flow over the glass’ brim.

Properly drawn beer should have a thick head without any large bubbles in it.

Beer temperature during drawing

The proper temperature during drawing influences both the taste and frothiness of the beer. The temperature of beer in the tap should be chosen so that the customer receives the beer in his glass at approx. 6°C to 8°C. This means that the temperature of the beer during drawing should be about one degree lower. If the beer temperature is under 5°C there may be problems with lower frothing ability or even cold-induced haze.

  Printable version   |    E-mail this to a friend   |    Subscribe to RSS feeds