Thursday, April 17, 2008
Review: Bass Brolly
Oh, I hang my head in shame for I am not worthy. The black and tan is a marvelous drink but tricky to pour, as you making a layered drink, with a base of ale supporting a cap of stout (traditionally Bass and Guiness, respectively). People try doing this with a pint glass and a bar spoon, pouring the stout over the back of the spoon, but generally the result looks like a glass of caramel-colored liquid.
Bass came out with something they call a brolly - English slang for an umbrella - that supposedly helps make the drink. They sent one over, along with a glass and bottle of ale, but the devices are still available for free through the end of the month, unless you live in California, in which case you have to pay a buck. Don't ask me why; I can't figure out anything about that state.
First clue I should have had that something was going to go wrong was what appeared to be two conflicting sets of instructions. In one, you tip the pint glass (the three-cornered Bass one is nice) on a 45 degree angle and pour the ale down the side. In the other, you pour down the center of the glass, creating a good foam, whatever amount that indicates. The two different instructions agreed that you get the glass two-thirds full, and then set the brolly atop the glass and slowly pour the stout through it so the dark liquid floats atop the amber.
But I let down the English and Irish parts of my muddled ethnic background when I couldn't get the damned stout to float. (I suppose that the Scottish part of me sat back, amused.) So much for the device making this easy, though in the press release, the Bass Pale Ale brand manager said that the device makes the black and tan "less challenging." Oh, good. Otherwise, I might have ended up with a monochromatic glass of liquid even faster than I actually did. Ah, well. When at first you don't succeed, have the barkeep pour another. I'll clearly have to continue practicing.
Bass came out with something they call a brolly - English slang for an umbrella - that supposedly helps make the drink. They sent one over, along with a glass and bottle of ale, but the devices are still available for free through the end of the month, unless you live in California, in which case you have to pay a buck. Don't ask me why; I can't figure out anything about that state.
First clue I should have had that something was going to go wrong was what appeared to be two conflicting sets of instructions. In one, you tip the pint glass (the three-cornered Bass one is nice) on a 45 degree angle and pour the ale down the side. In the other, you pour down the center of the glass, creating a good foam, whatever amount that indicates. The two different instructions agreed that you get the glass two-thirds full, and then set the brolly atop the glass and slowly pour the stout through it so the dark liquid floats atop the amber.
But I let down the English and Irish parts of my muddled ethnic background when I couldn't get the damned stout to float. (I suppose that the Scottish part of me sat back, amused.) So much for the device making this easy, though in the press release, the Bass Pale Ale brand manager said that the device makes the black and tan "less challenging." Oh, good. Otherwise, I might have ended up with a monochromatic glass of liquid even faster than I actually did. Ah, well. When at first you don't succeed, have the barkeep pour another. I'll clearly have to continue practicing.
