Good or bad pint! Please answer!

Question

My parents the other day where having a debate over what a good pint is

1. When the froth doesnt stick to the glass like this http://k43.pbase.com/o5/33/659633/1/69672812.1eLzsDhy.DSC_2226resized.jpg my dad says if it doesnt stick its bad cos it means that all the soap aint been washed off

2. My dad says its good when the froth sticks ( i cnt find a pic) Its a good pint cos his dad said so and my mum said its a bad pint cos it means thier is limescale on the side of the glass,

Who do you think is right?

Should the froth stick to be a good pint or should it not to be a good pint??

Answer 1

Soap/limescale have nothing to do with the head and lacing. Technically they are both wrong. I doubt you will find many glasses that are improperly cleaned, Triple Sinks work quite well.

You could test this at home too.  Buy some glassware and bottled beer (preferably a heavy one that will produce good head while being poured from a bottle...or better yet, get a keg).  Using the same type of beer pour three glasses.  One glass straight off the shelf...uncleaned by you.  One pint washed and dried properly. And the last pint glass don't wash off all the soap when you clean it.  See what happens to the head and lacing of each one. They all should be the same except for the soapy one...which will taste bad and have extra froth that will look soapy. You should do know harm by drinking any of these beers either...although I'd pass on the soapy one...depending on how much soapscum you left it could taste really bad.

Answer 2

The properties being described here are called the head and lacing.  When first poured, a beer should have a head of some kind.  The size of the head depends on which beer, but also who's pouring it.  When first poured, a 1-2 "finger" tall head is the goal.

After a few minutes, the head should get smaller, to about where that picture you have shows.  

Now, as the beer is drank some of the head will stick to the glass.  This is called lacing.  It has to do with which beer is being consumed, as well as the glass.  Generally, you may find that a stout has more lacing than, say, a pilsner.  I would say, though, that it just a property of the beer, rather than the glass, soap, or limescale.  Some beers just lace better than others.  And the lacing doesn't mean the beer is good or bad or was poured correctly or incorrectly.  Sites like www.beeradvocate.com have user input on virtually every beer.  You're bound to find out if the beer usually has lacing, how much, and what size head people get from pouring it.  You can definetly tell a good pour from the head, the lacing though isn't much to do with the pour as the beer itself.