I would think that in Germany and the UK the room temperature where you're drinking tends to be cooler than in the US, so your beer tends to stay cooler longer.

But yes, I don't like ordering pints as the beer is usually warm when Im 3/4s finished.

I wish that restaurants would serve beer in 8oz servings as a pint is too much for me.

Belgian beer is the best, here we serve it in a 33cl glass, which is smaller than a US pint.

In Ireland they give women smaller glasses because drinking a whole pint is ~unlady like~

Dont forget that actually holding the pint glass can make that last quarter a little warmer than just room temperature would.

I also think a pint can be just the right size for some beers, but others, usually heavier, darker beers, it can be a bit much and lead to a disappointing end.

Uhh heavy, darker beers are generally best closer to room temp. Neoprene pint koozies are the obvious answer to this "problem." Keeps your hand warm in the winter, beer cool in the summer.

Personally, I'm just fine with our glass size, but I do like bars that offer half pints in case there's a new beer you want to try and you're not sure if you'll like it or not -- or if you want to drink a high ABV beer in moderation.

"a pint seems like a pretty big serving of something that is best enjoyed chilled"

Without sounding like a beer snob, or going into a lecture on a topic as subjective as what tastes good to one person, I will only say that lower temperatures tend to mask underlying flavors of beer.

I haven't found a beer yet that doesn't taste good cold. But the ones I love the most don't require it.

What BEESTROFOWLER said. Plus, If you're actually going to drink an actual ale, you don't *EVER* want to drink it cold. So a pint is perfect for nursing for an hour or so (plus, it's much cheaper).

Pint glasses (i.e. the one pictured) actually aren't that great for beer - they're good for the bar or restaurant (they stack nicely), but that's about it. Just as you wouldn't drink wine out of a water glass, beer in a traditional pint glass/shaker isn't the way to go - lets out all the aromas. The belgians take this to the extreme - there's basically a glass type specific to each every brewer.
Size wise, 16oz is a good size for many ales - enough room for head, and per a previous commenter, allows the beer to warm up. If you're drinking light lagers (bud/coors/etc), then that is a downside (warm bud.. ugh), but drink it faster! that stuff goes down like water. :)

I wish more bars had the half-pint option that they have in the UK.

Whalermeg, an old bartender did that to me at a pub in Ireland. I asked for a pint and was given a glass (half pint). I could've raised a fuss, but decided that:

- it was still kinda early in the day
- it was Guinness and I was in a town outside Cork. Maybe he was protecting me? I do like Murphy's better, but I was determined to try every stout on tap at least once while I was there. :P

I personally like a pint. It's just enough beer. These days two pints becomes too much beer for my crappy alcohol tolerance. Although...there is a bar near my house that serves half pints, which I order instead because it lets me try as many beers as possible.

I'm with Kernal...beer tastes better when it's a little bit warmer (same thing with milk).

Pint glasses in the UK are regulated. They're required to be an imperial pint. They even have a stamp to insure this. Cask ales are served at warmer temperatures than oh, say, Bud. They aren't intended to be served icy cold.

This is a pretty good article about beer temp, actually.
http://www.classiclager.com/blog/2011/01/ask-the-experts-the-best-temperature-for-beer/

huh? It seems like no matter the size of the glass, the last 1/4 is ALWAYS going to be a little lukewarm. What's the problem?

I currently live in Germany and I LOVE my pint of beer...and since were on the subject I just have to say that the beer here is frickin' amazing!! No artifcial anything...I never knew beer could taste this good. All this beer talk has me wanting some now...it's Friday here and it's 5 o'clock....Happy Hour!!! Tschoose

As several previous posters have said, GOOD beer (I'm not talking Bud/Busch/Miller crap) is best enjoyed at "cellar temperatures" (55-60 degrees F). Up until recently I haven't had a basement, so I've just kept my beers in a coat closet (eventually had to move the coats elsewhere, and it became a dedicated "beer closet" with shelving units!). I get frustrated with bars that serve beers too cold, and have been known to order 2 or 3 beers ahead, while drinking the first, so they might warm up a bit! BTW, I've been a homebrewer, homebrew judge and beer enthusiast for 20 years.

Pints are the perfect size. If your beer gets warm at the end, clearly you are not drinking it fast enough. A schooner is ALMOST too much beer for one serving, but its a good way to start a night of drinking!

At home my girlfriend and I drink beer out of tiny glasses that hold about 3 fluid ounces each. We open a bottle, split half of it between two glasses, put the bottle back in the fridge, and split the rest once we've finished the first round. I do wish we could order beers that size in bars and restaurants.

I'm with kernel32; part of what I enjoy about a pint in that I get to taste the beer at a variety of temperatures, as different things stand out at different temps.

That being said, an entire pint of beer can get me drunk (I'm a lightweight), and all of you cold beer drinkers should take note that a lot of places do have 8-10 oz. servings, even if they aren't on the menu.

engineergirl, my wife and I do that too (minus the putting it back in the fridge part). It makes splitting a beer last forever, and then it feels like a real treat!

Usually, beer is served too cold in the US. So by the time you get to the end of a pint, it is at the correct temperature...when you can get more of the complex flavors in the beer, not just the sensation of cold. If the place serves beer at the right temp, you can usually order a half pint in most places, so you can try more beer.

I thought a pint was 2 cups.

Clearly the rest of the world is in an alternate universe where all your male friends have goatees and the ladies skirts are just that tiny bit shorter.

or one could just drink their beer faster...

Yeah, beer doesn't generally need to be ice cold, plus if you want it that way you can get a half pint (or a pint and a half if you prefer) at just about every pub, unless you're ordering a bottled pint. Also, if your night at the pub is lame enough that you end up fretting that the temperature of your beer is a couple degrees higher than you'd like, well, that sounds like a shitty night out that an icy beer wouldn't have fixed.

I also like that in the UK, if you are poured a pint and it isn't overflowing the sides of the glass, you are WELL within your rights to send it back with a complaint. When my British ex-boyfriend would come to the US, he was constantly baffled and irritated by the tiny pints with the pour line half an inch below the rim of the glass.

I usually order half-pours so that I can try a couple different brews, and it hasn't been a problem yet.

I am confused. So a pint glass is not two cups... which is not 16 ounces... which is not just above a standard serving of beer?

I am in Pittsburgh PA and I think that a long time ago it was a drinking town with a football problem, but for us in our 30s, this town is fantastic for the beer beginner, enthusiast, and connoisseur. We have great craft breweries, brewpubs (ie Penn Brewery, Hofbrauhaus), and beer emporiums (Sharp Edge is my personal fav!). In Penn Brewery all beers come in pints (as pictured above). In Hofbrauhaus you get sexy german mugs of beer (large or larger). In Sharp Edge and others like it you get the beers in the glasses (shape and size) they are distinctly designed for.

I never ever ran into the problem of leaving a 1/4 of a brew because it was "warm". I also do not hold my beer like a cup of coffee on a cold winter morning either :-)

I've grown accustomed to US Pints and think it's perfect.

I'm not the fastest beer drinker and I rarely end up with warm dregs unless its the very end of the night. Maybe my drinking companions are all just very fast beer drinkers? We usually drink at the local microbrewery though; they serve their beers at temperatures (and in different glasses) specific to the different styles they have on tap.

Cold British ales are totally not the same when ice cold. Actually, the only GOOD brewed beverage that should be served cold is cider (although a fridge-temp Heineken after a long, hot day isn't too bad either!).