Sparkler

No, you don't! The best thing you could do is throw the old one away and forget about sparklers for ever.

However, if he is in Holmfirth as his name suggests, then sparklers are de rigeur! He could ask at The Nook...

I'd recommend not bothering Bob. All they do is aerate and remove condition from the beer. Our friends in latitudes above 53 degrees may disagree with this statement.

The message from Bob Sherunkle contains these words:

Ok, I'll rephrase that - My beer is so awful that I need a sparkler to release some half-decent flavours and aroma :-)

It's personal taste. While mine is to leave the (de)sparkler off for almost everything some beers are brewed to be served through such a device. (Taste comparison of both versions using something like Tetley Bitter is an eye-opener about how much hop oil they put in)

There is also the issue that in some cases the neck of the hand pump has been modified to require a specific "sparkler" with a pin up the middle which opens the primitive valve installed in the end of the swan neck. Ex-Whitbread hand pumps are commonly like this - I believe it was to enforce their policy of serving beer with an oversize head (and consequent regular short measure)

Try cadging one from a local pub, or if the pump requires a pin fitted you may need to contact the manufacturer for a replacement neck/spout that doesn't need the pin version. At least that way you have the choice.

If the local pubs are terminally mean (unlikely) you can get the devices from your local bar supplies outlet (check the phone book)

In message , Paul Simonite wrote

Or if you are a publican - I have no idea how to keep a beer in good condition and I need a sparkler to liven it up - plus I need to serve 10 percent more beer than the cask capacity.

They do indeed

Peter

Surely a beer should be served as the brewer intended it to be served. If a brewer has brewed beer with the intention of it being served with a sparkler than surely this is the way it should be served. i know of plenty of brewers who sample beer in the brewery using sparklers and i would therefore wish their beer to be served with a sparkler to me

Hi (from above 53 degrees)

The landlord of my local prize-winning real ale microbrewery tried an experiment on us one day to settle an argument we were having. He gave us 2 identical samples of beer to try, one served with a sparkler and one without. The one WITHOUT the sparkler was tastier.

Whenever he tests his beer he always removes the sparkler first to get a more accurate taste.

Regards KGB

In message , BH wrote

How do you brew a beer to be served through a sparkler?

As the use of the sparkler leads blander tasting beer the only way the brewer can compensate is to use more of the expensive ingredients.

The ONLY reason for a sparkler is to rip-off customers with short measures.

Sparklers will destroy a lot of the volatile hop flavours in the beer (as well as thrash much of the natural CO2 out) in the process in creating a 'nice' thick head.

As a result, some of the more astringent flavours from hop oils/emulsions/resins etc are removed from the beer. Therefore a beer with a lot of hop oil etc in it can sometimes taste 'better' when served through a sparkler. And a beer brewed with real hops will lose some, indeed perhaps a lot, of the more delicate hop flavours it may posess.

So to a brew a beer specifically for a sparkler, you either cheapen it with hop oils, or if doing it properly you add extra late hop to make up for it (which of course affects the beer when served without a sparkler).

There is also the head element - use of a foaming agent or head retainer makes the most of the head forming properties of the sparkler, otherwise it's down to the brewer to make the best use of the natural foaming properties of unmalted grain (ie using a small amount of wheat or flaked barley in the mash tun). This helps give a head, but it won't last without artificial aids.

There is a lot of technical science behind all the above, but that is about it in a nutshell. And don't forget that swan necks help the sparkler in its work, and that a swan neck on its own can harm the beer as per above, as can vigorous pumping of any hand pump!

The concept of a head on beer is fairly modern, and is purely a ploy to get more beer out of a cask/keg. I think it may be an early 20th century 'invention', but I am not sure.

As for the bland beer comment, I think all major food & drink manufacturers have blanded things down to make them more appealing. It also makes them cheaper of course. And the sparkler just helps hide the cheaper ingredients.

It is personal choice at the end of the day, be you drinker, landlord or brewer. Personally I feel if it comes straight from the cask, you are getting the beer served in the best way.

Steve Banfield

Next time you find yourself in a Sam Smith's pub, try your second pint without sparkler. Or rather, try to persuade them to remove the sparkler and serve you a pint. I'm suggesting second pint on the thinking that: Good Beer>Sam Smiths without sparkler>Sam Smiths with>No Beer cos they kicked you out...

How do you tell what the brewer's intention is? My rule of thumb is that if it is brewed in Cornwall, Wales or north of Birmingham, it was intended for a sparkler; otherwise it should be dispensed without a sparkler. Do brewers actually give advice as to whether sparklers should be used or not?

In my neck of the woods (South Wales) everything is dispensed with a sparkler. I frequently ask for the sparkler to be removed for Southern English beers and I normally get a blank look and the incredulous question, "You want it FLAT????????????"

The GBG Brewery section shows such advice against each brewery. And some breweries state the advice on cask labels. But not all landlords take such advice onboard!

Steve Banfield

In message , Steve Banfield wrote

Is that the advice from the brewer or from the person reviewing the brewery/beers. It's not unknown for a brewery entry in the GBG to annoy the brewer.

BLO's ask the brewers what the preferred service style is. If the brewer says they have no preference then the branch suggest one.