British beer (as opposed to Lager, Pils, American or Australian beer)
should be served at cellar temperature. As Will correctly says that is
somewhere around 50 to 54F I believe that this also applies to German
beers in Germany. Although I have had a number of occasions to visit
the US I have noted that the American gentlemen I know tend (where there
is a choice) to drink imported or even British beers, unless there is a
"microbrewery" around.
Dave Vodden
Plus 4 4 Seater
Ha,pshire UK
----------
From: William Zehring
To: Gary Kneisley
Cc: morgans@autox.team.net
Subject: in their defense (was: Halogen headlamps)
Date: Tuesday 15 December 1998 09:03PM
Fellow Morganist Gary K. writes:
>
>PS: And the British drink warm beer too,
>
Now, it seems that whenever discussion of the electrics in our dearly
beloved british cars flares up, and the vicissitudes of the Lucas
electrical systems are cast into question, we are reminded that the
Brits
drink warm beer, hinting that they can't wire a refrigerator correctly,
either.
Well, two things (sorry, but I just have to speak up here):
(1)Its never been my impression that they drink "warm" beer (i.e. beer
that
is warmer than room temperature (which in England is no better than 65F,
most of the time, if any of the scenes in the Alistair Simm version of
"A
Christmas Carol" are to be taken as accurate)). I'm prepared to admit
that
the Brits have a number of odd habits (like boiling their vegetables to
a
state of mush, and now-and-again going over to France to beat up on
soccer
fans), but I cannot believe that they drink WARM beer. The thought of
imbibing 'warm' beer (beer from which steam is rising) is revolting, in
the
extremus!
(2)And even if they did, who the heck are we yanks to cast the first
stone?
The American habits of drinking freezing ice cold beer has NEVER made
sense to me (even as a sodden college student). Not only do we
Americans
brew the most flavorless of beers (whose idea was "lite" beer, anyway?),
but we numb our tongues further by serving the stuff just shy of frozen,
in
glasses coated with frost. What little taste there might have been is
made
fully inaccessible by such cold temperatures. It is my 'umble opinion
that
beer is best served at a temp roughly equidistant between refrigerator
and
room temps (i.e. approx. 50F). That is, I would say, 'lightly chilled.'
Having said that, I'm more than willing to allow that those list members
who live in Texas, where it is well recognized to never drop below 90F,
may
have a hankering for an icy draught now and again. We may forgive them
for
this tendency, living as they do in the trackless Great American Desert.
thirsty (as usual), I am
yours, etc.,
Will Zehring
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