01 March 2023

"Beer poking" explained

Beer poking basically involves heating a metal poker in a fire until it's glowing red and then plunging the tip into a glass of beer for a few seconds. The poker flash heats and instantly caramelizes the residual malt sugars abundant in certain types of beer.

The result is variously described as adding smoky, roasted, smooth, soft, creamy or toasted marshmallow notes to the flavor profile of your brew. The hot poker also creates a foam cap on the top of a glass of beer, but it isn't kept in the glass long enough to make the beer warm.

Drinking a poked beer is a little like drinking a hot chocolate with whipped cream on top, but in reverse. Instead of tasting warm milk coming through cool whipped cream, you get cool beer coming through a warm, sweet foam. Food & Wine magazine called it "The Beer Equivalent of S'mores."

Beer historians say the practice has been around for more than 400 years. In the winter, when beer might be too cold to comfortably drink, colonial Americans were said to use hot pokers to warm their ale a bit.

Weihenstephan, a Bavarian brewery that has been making beer for close to 1,000 years, says the practice is called bierstacheln in Germany, or beer spiking. It credits blacksmiths who always had hot pokers handy to warm up their drinks.
More information at the StarTribune.

6 comments:

  1. This reminds me of 'steinbier', which I found delicious, with its slight burnt stone flavor.

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  2. “The poker flash heats and instantly caramelizes the residual malt sugars abundant in certain types of beer.”
    “The hot poker also creates a foam cap on the top of a glass of beer, but it isn't kept in the glass long enough to make the beer warm.”
    How does it caramelize without making it warm? Sounds like there must be a lot of malt sugar floating around but that would make the beer real sweet.
    Do not want, at least on a regular basis, maybe family holidays when the drinking is being monitored by the distaff side anyway.
    xoxoxoBruce

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    1. Traditionally, bock beer is used for poking. Bocks are higher in malt than other beers and they can have a slightly sweet taste in comparison to lagers or pilsners, dopplebocks especially. Carmelizing the malt would certainly enhance the sweetness of the beer.

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  3. I read a fascinating book few years back-
    And a Bottle of Rum: A History of the New World in 10 cocktails.
    while the book lost narrative steam as it entered the 1900s, the early chapters were truly fascinating,
    the Flip was well covered. has its own chapter. discussing the red hot poker plunged into tavern served drinks. from which this modern variant takes its concept.

    I think it well worth a read. if only to learn that or recently neo-puritan country was considerably less so in its dawn and youthful years.

    https://www.amazon.com/Bottle-Rum-History-World-Cocktails/dp/0307338622

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    1. Also a good read about alcohol and the evolution of human civilization:

      Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization

      https://www.sandmanbooks.com/book/9780316453356

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  4. Beer poking. Likely much safer than bear poking...

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