Pouring a Good Looking Guinness

Since getting a Guinness kegerator, I’ve drank a lot of Guinness. In that time, I’ve dialed in the variables to where I like them:

1. My kegerator is set at 42 F (or about 6 C but I use Fahrenheit as it results in a narrower range of temperature within the fridge)
2. My gas mixture is 25% carbon dioxide
3. My PSI is set to around 32 (it’s an analog adjustment so it’s hard to get a precise measurement)
4. I’m using a restrictor disc with three 0.7mm holes

Once I got the taste to where I want it, it was time to dial in the appearance. Specifically, I want the head to be made up of smaller, denser bubbles and extend to slightly above the harp.

In my experience, there are only a few ways that you can adjust the appearance of the pint:

1. You can change the length of the lines in your kegerator. This is usually known as balancing the kegerator. But with a gas mixture of only 25% carbon dioxide, adding extra line length won’t have that big of an impact.
2. You can adjust the PSI. But this will impact the taste. And in my experience, a lower PSI means more perceived creaminess. So I try to keep my PSI as low as I can without the beer tasing flat.
3. Similarly, you can adjust the gas mixture. But it can sometimes be difficult to source other mixtures.
4. You can change the faucet. Or more importantly, the restrictor disc in the faucet. This can act like a flow meter. If the area of the holes in the disc is larger then the beer pours faster. But once again, I’ve done my testing and found the disc that suits my preferences.
5. Finally, you can change your pour technique.

I’ve tried doing triangle tests. I’ve found that, at least for me, pour technique has no impact on the taste of the pint. But it does impact the appearance.

I usually do a three stage pour. I hold the glass at about 45 degrees and pour until the beer is near the top of the glass. For this pour, I try to keep the glass very close to the faucet without allowing it to touch. Then I set the glass down and let it settle. The beer is usually near the bottom of the harp at this point. After some time, I hold the glass at a very slight angle and pour almost to the top. Again, I try to hold the glass so that the beer travels as little as possible out of the tap before hitting the side of the glass. Once again, I let it settle. Finally, I top off the glass while pushing the tap away from me. Pushing the tap away gives you slightly more control over the flow. More importantly, it allows you to stop the flow quicker than if you had to fully close the tap.

In my experience, the only pour technique variables that impact the appearance of the pour are settle time, and the final pour (or how full the pints ends up being). And in reality, both come down to the volume of beer in the glass.

Settling, as the name implies, allows the head to settle. Ultimately, this allows you to get more beer in the glass. If you pour 17 ounces of Guinness in one pour then it will have a thicker head than if you had poured the same 17 ounces using a multi stage pour and allowed it to settle. Similarly, the longer you allow the beer to settle allows you to fill the glass closer to its max capacity. The final pour is important too. Since this ultimately controls how much beer is in the glass.

There is probably some optimal amount of settle time. I’m sure that if you let the beer settle for a week then all of the head will disappear. At that point a glass with 20 ounces of capacity could probably fit 20 ounces of beer. Minus whatever head is caused by the final pour. But it would taste horrible. Conversely, if you pour the beer too quickly then you end up with a thicker head and less beer in your glass.

So what’s the conclusion? If you’re buying a beer at the pub then you probably want the beer to settle for longer. Not just because “that’s how you pour a Guinness” but also because you end up with more beer. Obviously, you also want the glass filled to capacity. If a little spills out the side of the glass then that’s a good thing! If you own a kegerator, there are variables that you can adjust to change the final appearance of your pint. But most of these will also change the taste. And for me, taste is more important than looks. But if your pints are coming out with too large a head and you don’t want to change the taste then try increasing the time you allow the beer to settle. If you normally do a two stage pour, try three. And make sure you top the glass off as much as you can. Ultimately, no matter how you pour, the Guinness should still taste amazing.