Does beer taste better from a ‘dirty’ glass?

[Feldon]

Fifty-three years ago this month the Victorian Government was debating whether the law should be changed to require pubs to sell beer (and other drinks) to customers in clean glasses. A novel idea at the time. Evidently the law was subsequently changed to enforce the clean glass regime that exists to this day.

In reading the news story below I was reminded of a Kiwi foreman where I worked in Melbourne in the late ‘70s. He had just emigrated to Australia and came to work one day fuming about the laws here. He said he’d been banned from his local pub because he’d refused a clean glass and insisted in having his ‘dirty’ glass refilled with beer (like was common practice in New Zealand). He said beer tasted better after refilling the first glass. He got into a shouting match with the publican about it and was kicked out.

I was also alarmed to read that, “...a medical expert had found that diarrhoea and venereal disease could be transmitted by a dirty glass.” I must have missed that - the popular wisdom back then was that you caught the pox from pub toilet seats! At least, that's what you told the girlfriend.

It's also sobering to think that there was a time when cabinet ministers were turning their minds to helping the populace avoid getting the shits and VD compared to the weird viral stuff going around today.

The Age, Wed, 17 Dec 1969, p.3

EDIT: as someone who once dabbled in the tabloids I can imagine how much fun the sub-editor had it coming up with the headline - glasses, cabinet. A minor gem lost in time.

 

[Dave70]

Oh..I was way off.

 

[Feldon]

 

[Hangover68]

I have no problem if they refill my glass but using a dirty one will not add any flavour or make it taste better.

 

[ckirtley]

The theoretical risk is that the glass might touch the tap and contaminate it. We used to always reuse our glass in England, and the habit has never left me - even in Oz I always bring my glass back to the bar