Went to Deschutes in the Pearl district in Portland this week. Had one of their seasonal IPAs - they used a Belgian yeast strain on it. It was okay but I probably wouldn't order again or try and brew it. When they brought it to me in this glass, at first I thought there was some mistake. They call this a snifter? It felt wrong, wrong wrong... A snifter should be shorter, and not as angular. Call me a purist!
I've read the glass doesn't matter nearly as much as we beer snobs would like to believe. But an IPA with Belgian yeast - that just sounds nasty, phenolic and bitter.
I've made IPA/DIPA with Belgian yeast. The result is usually a fruity mid-pallet along with the hoppy aroma which can be good as long as they are balanced. The point of a wine glass (I'm both a beer and wine geek) is to concentrate the aroma of the wine since 90% of what we taste is really what we smell. Late hop additions (<5 min) and dry hopping give beers more hop aroma which a wine glass would accentuate more than a standard pint glass. The problem is a wine glass is designed to serve 6 oz of wine, not 10-16oz of beer so the stem is too long for correct balance. Dogfish recently partnered with a wine glass making company to create a "perfect" IPA glass (http://www.dogfish.com/store/glassware/ ... -glass.htm). I have a couple and there is a difference drinking an IPA in it vs a standard glass.
I need to add one of those glasses to my collection! Indeed the balance did feel off with the beer in such a tall glass. Here's to enjoying an aromatic IPA!
