The place you work might have some beer in a bottle and others on tap. Serving beer on tap is easy and simple, but don’t make a very common and pretty gross mistake.

pouring by [cipher] on flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Primary reading material for this section was found in Pouring the Perfect Beer. (MicroMatic moved the article on their website. I contacted them and I’ll update this link when it’s fixed.) Other reading material was found in the Glastender operation manual, and Draught Beer Quality Manual.

Pouring a beer

It’s pretty easy to pour “the perfect beer.” Although it seems like a lot when it’s written out, I’m sure you’ll have it down after you do it a few times.

First, test the glassware to see if it’s “beer clean.” As you pour the beer you can also check for beer clean glass. If bubble stick to the inside of the glass, you know it’s not clean.

Second, hold the glass at a 45-degree angle, about one inch (2.5 cm) below the beer faucet. Do not touch the glass to the faucet. The faucet might have old dried beer, which would contaminate the beer clean glass.

With your hand near the base of the tap handle, open the faucet all the way, in one quick motion. If you open the faucet part way, the beer will foam too much. Positioning your hand near the base of the tap handle reduces the distance your hand much travel, so it allows you to open the faucet more quickly.

Let the beer fall down the side of the glass.

When the glass is half-full, tilt the glass upright so that the beer pours down the middle. This helps create the right amount of foam.

When the foam reaches the top of the glass, quickly close the faucet in one quick motion. Do not waste beer by letting foam or beer pour over the side. Do not let the faucet come in contact with the beer.

We learned in the previous lesson that the proper thickness for the foam head is 1 inch (2.5 cm) of foam, except Weizen or Belgian Ales, which should have 2-4 inches (5-10 cm) of foam.

Pouring a draft beer on nitro requires a slight variation in the process:

1. Hold the glass at 45-degree angle
2. Pull tap all the way open
3. When the glass is three-fourths full, set the glass down and let it settle for 1-2 minutes.
4. Pour down the middle of the glass to form the right amount of foam.

So that’s it! Nothing to pouring the perfect beer. I think the main thing is, just don’t be timid—open the tap all the way so you don’t get too much foam.

And never allow the faucet to come in contact with the beer. A common mistake I see is when the server holds the glass to close to—or touching—the faucet, then they fill the beer all the way up, with the faucet dipping into the foam. Now the faucet is wet with beer—it gets sticky, attracts flies and microorganisms. And is pretty gross.

Excellent beer service starts well before pouring. Storage temperature, clean glassware, and other details provide the customer with an outstanding experience culminating in the perfect pour. But our work doesn’t end there.

Changing a keg (same product)

When the keg is empty you might be the person to replace it with a new one. The following procedures describe how to change a keg with the same product. If you want to put a different kind of beer on the same tap, you’ll need to flush the lines.

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First, remember that the keg must be chilled prior to serving. There’s a lot of liquid in a keg, it takes a long time to cool. Put the keg into refrigeration 24 hours prior to serving.

Most kegs in the U.S. use the “Sankey” system. The Glastender operations manual has some illustrative photos describing these next steps.

First, grip the coupler handle and pull out. Next swing the handle up to disengage the coupler.

Turn the coupler counterclockwise 1/4 turn and lift it from the neck of the keg. (“Righty tighty, lefty loosy.”)

To install a new keg, just do it backwards. Put the coupler on the neck of the keg and turn it 1/4 turn clockwise to engage it. (“Righty tighty, lefty loosy.”) Grip the coupler handle and swing in down until it snaps into position.

If you’re using a long-draw system, there might also be a foam-on-beer (FOB) detector. This needs to be reset after each new keg is installed. Usually, the FOB is reset by venting it to release the foam and gas from the chamber.

So now we finally know how to serve a beer.

Next we’re going to get into Part II of the Certified Beer Server syllabus: Beer Styles.

I’m pretty excited.

I know some about the basic beer styles, but the syllabus seems a bit more extensive than my intermediate beer knowledge.

I guess it’s like what they say with wine: If you want to learn about beer, drink beer. If you want to learn more about beer, drink more beer.

Friend me on Untappd to see what I’m checking in.

Flashcards for this section

Based on the reading materials mentioned and my notes above, here are my flashcards for this section.

At what angle should you hold the glass under the tap faucet?

Hold the glass at a 45-degree angle until half-full, then hold it upright.

How do you pour a beer on nitro?

Hold the glass at a 45-degree angle until three-fourths full, then let it sit for 1-2 minutes.

Pour down the middle of the glass to form the right amount of foam.

How far from the tap faucet should you hold the glass?

Hold the glass about one inch (2.5 cm) below the faucet.

How far should you open the tap?

Open the tap all the way.

When should you let the faucet touch the glass?

Never let the faucet touch the glass.

When should you let the faucet become submerged in beer?

Never let the faucet become submerged in beer.

At what point should you shut off the tap?

Shut off the tap when the foam gets to the top of the glass.

Don’t let foam or beer pour over the side, it wastes beer.

Which direction does the coupler handle move to disengage from the keg?

The coupler handle moves out and up to disengage.

Which direction does the coupler turn to remove it from the keg?

Turn the coupler 1/4-turn counterclockwise to disengage it from the keg.

How is a keg coupler engaged?

Place the coupler on the neck of the keg.

Turn it 1/4-turn clockwise.

Swing the handle down until it snaps into place.

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The post 009. Serving draft beer appeared first on Beer Exam School.

A large part of providing beer service is dealing with draft beer systems. This section is an introduction to draft beer systems. We talk about the main parts of a draft system, basic operations, simple troubleshooting, and a little bit about system maintenance.

Stained Bar, Minus 1 Faucet by Callie Reed on flickr (CC BY 2.0)

Some parts about draft systems are covered in more detail later in the syllabus. Other things are not important to us because, remember, compressed gas can be dangerous. So some things are best handled by a trained professional.

The reading material for this section was found in Draught Beer Quality Manual and Are You Draft Savvy? A little of the material came from Glastender operations manual.

Key elements

The draft system allows beer to flow from keg to glass.

There are 4 main elements to the draft beer system:

1. Keg
2. Coupler
3. Foam on beer detector (FOB)
4. Faucet

There are other elements, such as refrigeration, tubing, and inert gas. Each element consists of smaller parts. However, this section is concerned mostly with these 4 elements.

Keg – Kegs allow for storage and transport of beer. They protect the product from light and air, and also allow for rapid dispensing of the product. Kegs are usually made of stainless steel, but some kegs are rubber-coated, aluminum, steel, or plastic.

Sizes vary from approximately 5 gallons (1/6 barrel) to 15.5 gallons (1/2 barrel). The most common size of keg in the US is 1/2 barrel.

The keg has a valve onto which the coupler attaches. Never remove the valve. Kegs are pressurized and can be dangerous if handled improperly. Only trained technicians should service a keg.

Coupler – The coupler attaches to the keg valve and allows inert gas, usually CO2, to enter the keg and beer to come out of the keg. Basically, it lets CO2 in and beer out.

The beer line attaches to the coupler by a threaded “beer nut.” In the U.S., beer nuts are all the same, but beer nuts from other countries may be different. So be careful when attaching the beer line to a keg from another country.

Always check for leaks after you install the beer nut.

Foam on beer detector (FOB) – No, this isn’t the thing on your keychain. In a draft system, when the keg gets low on beer, the FOB automatically stops the flow. This prevents foam from filling the line. So when you change the keg, you don’t need to purge the line and fill it with beer again. This article explains it pretty well.

FOBs are especially common in long-draw beer lines, where purging the entire line could waste a lot of beer—and money!

However, some keg couplers have an FOB as a built-in feature. The coupler FOB has smaller parts that must be removed and cleaned separately from the beer line system.

Faucet – The faucet is the “tap” that dispenses the beer to the glass. Most faucets are suitable for both ales and lagers. In the U.S., most faucets screw onto a shank with a standard thread size, but faucets from other countries may be different. So be careful when attaching a faucet from another country.

The tap marker, commonly called a “tap handle,” screws onto the tap lever and identifies the type of beer being dispensed. Many states require a tap marker.

Align the tap marker so that the type of beer is clearly visible by both customers and employees. Many tap levers have a collar that screws up and tightens against the tap marker, keeping it in place.

Draft system operation

Serving draft beer will be covered in more detail in part I., section G (lesson 009).

For now just know that the draft system should have a standard temperature of 38° F (3° C). Warmer than that and the beer will foam. If it’s cooler than 28° F (-2° C) the beer can freeze, which causes cloudiness and an off taste.

Make sure to refrigerate kegs for 24 hours prior to dispensing, to prevent foaming. It takes a long time to cool a keg of beer. Glastender manual says: A beer keg that is allowed to heat up to 44° F (6° C) will take approximately 18 hours to cool down in a 36° F (2° C) cooler.

Remember from lesson 5, kegs must always be kept cold. So refrigerate kegs immediately after they’re delivered.

Do not try to adjust the gas pressure. Only draft-trained technicians should adjust the gas pressure to kegs.

Basic troubleshooting

More details will be covered in part I., section G (lesson 009), when we learn how to change a keg. And remember, never adjust the gas pressure, leave that for a draft-trained professional.

In the meantime, there are some simple things we can check when beer is pouring badly.

First, be sure that the beer has already been in refrigeration for at least 24 hours. It takes 24 hours to properly cool the beer throughout the entire keg. Improper temperature is the most common cause of problems. Warm beer foams.

Check that the coupler is properly engaged, correctly screwed onto the threads, and there are no leaks.

Look for kinks in the beer line between the coupler and the faucet. Undo any kinks or pinches.

Check that the FOB is properly set for service. Not every draft system has an FOB. A long draw system has a wall-mounted FOB, while some couplers have an FOB.

Draft system maintenance

Organic compounds and minerals from the beer attach to draft lines and affect beer flavor. Plus, it just gets nasty with fruit flies and grossness… yuck!

Many states require regular cleaning of draft lines.

Retailers may or may not clean their own lines. Sometimes the distributor does it or has another specialist do it. Nonetheless, it’s in your best interest to make sure the draft system is cleaned properly.

Every 2 weeks

The draft system should be cleaned every 2 weeks. A maintenance log should be kept to ensure that the draft system is cleaned at regular intervals.

Beer lines and associated parts should be flushed with cold water and cleaned thoroughly with an alkaline solution at the proper temperature and concentration. The cleaning solution should make contact with the lines for more than 15 minutes. Then the lines should be rinsed with cold water.

Take apart and hand-clean the faucets and couplers.

Every 3 months

Some parts need more thorough cleaning on a quarterly basis.

The FOB and couplers should be completely taken apart and manually cleaned.

Draft lines should be cleaned with acid to remove mineral buildup.

Whether we’re going to be serving beer from draft or from a bottle, we have to learn about glassware, how to get it clean enough for our favorite beverage, and which glassware to use for different kinds of beer. We’ll go over all of that and more in the next lesson.

Flashcards for this section

Based on the reading materials mentioned and my notes above, here are my flashcards for this section.

4 main elements of a draft system

1. Keg
2. Coupler
3. Foam on beer detector (FOB)
4. Faucet

Keg

Allows for storage and transport of beer.

Usually made of stainless steel.

Sizes vary from 5 gal (1/6 barrel) to 15.5 gal (1/2 barrel).

Has a valve to attach the coupler.

Coupler

Attaches to the keg valve.

Allows CO2 in and beer out.

Beer line attaches to the coupler.

FOB

Foam on beer detector.

Automatically stops the flow when the keg is low on beer.

Saves beer—and money—by preventing foam from entering the lines, so you don’t have to purge the lines when switching kegs.

Can be wall-mounted, or part of the coupler.

Faucet

The “tap” that dispenses beer.

Screws onto the shank.

Tap marker (“tap handle”) identifies the beer.

Standard temperature of a draft system

38° F (3° C)

How long must a keg be refrigerated before dispensing?

24 hours or else it will foam.

Who may adjust gas pressure to kegs?

Only a draft-trained technician may adjust gas pressure to kegs.

4 basic ways to troubleshoot a draft system

1. Refrigerate the keg for 24 hours.
2. Check that the coupler is engaged.
3. Check for kinks or pinches in the beer line.
4. Check that the FOB is set for service.

How often should a draft system be cleaned?

Every 2 weeks.

Every 3 months for a complete FOB and coupler cleaning.

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