Glassware
Snifter
Borrowed from spirits, and suited to strong beer for the same reason: it concentrates aroma and encourages small measures.
Shape
A short-stemmed glass with a wide bowl narrowing sharply to a small rim.
Typical capacity 200–350 ml.
Drawn to scale against the other glasses BeerHQ lists, so heights and widths can be compared between pages.
What it does
- Concentrates aroma. An inward-curving rim traps volatile aromatics above the beer, so more of them reach the nose.
- Keeps temperature. A stem or handle keeps the hand off the bowl, so the beer warms more slowly than it would in a tumbler.
Styles served in it
- Eisbock
A doppelbock concentrated by partially freezing it and removing the ice, intensifying malt, body and alcohol together.
- Double IPA
IPA scaled up: more strength, more hops and more bitterness, while staying dry enough to remain drinkable.
- Wee heavy
A strong, intensely malty Scottish ale with deep caramel and dried fruit and almost no hop presence.
- Old ale
A matured English strong ale with dried fruit, treacle and often a trace of oxidative or wild character from age.
- English barley wine
The strongest traditional English ale: dense malt, dried fruit and marmalade, built to be kept for years.
- American barley wine
A strong malt-dense ale with assertive American hop bitterness and citrus-pine aroma alongside the caramel depth.
- Baltic porter
A strong dark lager descended from exported English porter: deep roast and dark fruit, remarkably smooth for its strength.
- Imperial stout
The strongest stout: dense, viscous and intensely roasted, with dark fruit, chocolate and substantial alcohol warmth.
- Pastry stout
A heavily adjuncted sweet stout built to taste like dessert, using lactose, vanilla, cocoa and similar additions.
- Belgian dark strong ale
The strongest of the Belgian dark ales: raisin, fig and dark caramel over substantial warmth, with a surprisingly dry finish.