Glassware
Stange
The small straight glass of Cologne and Düsseldorf. Its size is the point: the beer is replaced frequently so every glass is fresh.
Shape
A small, narrow, perfectly straight cylinder.
Typical capacity 200–250 ml.
Drawn to scale against the other glasses BeerHQ lists, so heights and widths can be compared between pages.
What it does
- Keeps carbonation. A tall, narrow column reduces surface area relative to volume, so the beer holds its condition for longer.
- Legal measure. A stamped glass guarantees a defined measure — in the UK, a pint, which is a legal serving quantity, not a design decision.
Kölsch and Altbier are delicate beers that lose condition quickly once poured. Serving 200 ml at a time and replacing it continuously is a service model built around that fact rather than a quirk.
In both cities the waiter keeps bringing fresh glasses until you place a beermat over the top.
Styles served in it
- German Pils
Pale, dry and firmly bitter, with a crisp finish and a spicy-floral noble hop character — Germany’s answer to the Bohemian original.
- Kölsch
Cologne’s pale hybrid beer: ale-fermented then lagered, giving lager clarity and crispness with a whisper of fruit.
- Altbier
Düsseldorf’s copper-coloured hybrid: ale-fermented and cold-conditioned, with firm bitterness over nutty, toasty malt.