As another successful football season draws to a close, fans have been flocking to grounds for the final games before the summer break. But how have football stadiums been coping with the demand for thousands of pints every game, whilst ensuring each supporter receives the best experience possible?
New findings from Twitter sensation @FootyBevs, shows that 86%* of football goers have been let down by the quality of a pint served at a stadium, so they’ve teamed up with HEINEKEN UK to show supporters exactly what a perfectly poured pint should look like – and how it should be poured.
Following the success of @FootyScran, which highlights the best and worst food served at football grounds, @FootyBevs launched with a bang last November. It has since garnered over 60,000 followers as footy fans congregate to share snaps of the best (and worst) pints they’ve been served at stadiums around the country, often generating thousands of comments. To show fans the sheer scale of what goes on behind the scenes at West Ham’s London Stadium, which typically serves 45,000 pints on matchday, HEINEKEN UK invited the @FootyBevs team along for an exclusive look.
As well as seeing the journey of a pint from delivery to serve, Gary Smith, Draught Master at HEINEKEN UK hosted a ‘perfect pour’ masterclass, to show fans what to look for when ordering a pint. Over the past 30 years, Gary has trained over 65,000 bartenders and worked at 20 stadiums around the country, including Wembley, Premier League Clubs, Championship Clubs and Champions League Finals. As one of only 30 Draught Masters worldwide, he’s also worked at all the major UK festivals so knows a thing or two about serving perfect pints to huge crowds.
Gary Smith, Draught Master at HEINEKEN UK said, “As a huge football fan and beer drinker, I know first-hand how important it is to be served a top-quality pint as part of the overall matchday experience. It’s easy to empathise when fans get frustrated after queuing at the bar to then get served a badly poured drink.
It’s important for fans (and bar staff) to recognise what to look for when their pint is being poured. Start with a clean and dry glass (or cup), which should be held at the base to maintain best temperature and hygiene. Typically, we say the bottom third of the glass is for the bartender while the top two-thirds is for the customer. When pouring, the nozzle of the draught tap should never touch the beer – and the glass should be held at a 45-degree angle for as long as possible then slowly straightened. Finally, there should be 5% head on top to lock in the CO2 and as much flavour as possible. It’s important to know that the head is also just beer so you are not missing out on any of your pint – but of course it shouldn’t resemble an ice-cream! Our beer taps are specially designed to ensure a good layer of foam, which should last to the very bottom of the glass.”
Tom Sibley founder at FootyBevs said: “Since we launched FootyBevs around 6 months ago, we’ve been overwhelmed with the response from football supporters, who have been sharing pictures of their good and not-so-good pints in droves. The majority of drinks shared normally look pretty good, but there have definitely been a few shockers! It’s been fascinating to team up with HEINEKEN UK and see for myself what us supporters should be looking for when ordering a pint at the bar.”
Graham Gilmore, CEO of London Stadium, commented: “On a typical matchday, London Stadium holds up to 60,000 supporters. It takes an enormous amount of forward planning, logistics and team effort to ensure that every visitor gets the very best experience. Delaware North, the food and beverage services operator at London Stadium, employ around 360 specially trained kiosk staff on any given match day, serving over 45,000 pints from 174 draught taps around the venue, pumped through 830 metres of draught beer and cider pipes – which equates to over 8 times the length of the pitch.”
Gary’s top tips to pouring the perfect pint is as follows:
Hold the glass at the base – this helps maintain the correct temperature and best possible hygiene
Whether serving a draught pint or decanting from a bottle or can, hold the glass at a 45-degree angle then slowly straighten as the beer reaches the rim
Never dip the nozzle in the beer when pouring a draught pint – this breaks the surface tension so will affect the taste and head of your drink
While pouring, avoid raising and lowering the glass continuously (we call this ‘milking the cow’) or swirling the glass (dubbed ‘disco dancing’), as this will actually knock CO2 out of the beer which affects the taste
Aim for 5% head to trap the CO2 and lock in as much flavour as possible
