Back in the old days, drinking a beer was as simple as cracking open the bottle and thirstily drinking its contents. For most beer drinkers that is still the way to drink beer, but the times they are a-changing, and it's for the better. Beer drinkers all over are becoming more and more concsiencious and thinking about what they drink and especially how they drink it. Today's beer connoisseur wants not only the right beer, they also want the right beer glass. This new movement for beer glasses has created a more sophisticated and perhaps even more elegant image for beer drinking and beer drinkers, and at the same time it has also prompted some confusion over which vessel we should all be sipping our suds out of. What is the right glass for any individual kind of beer style? Does it matter that much if I drink a pilsner from a pint glass or a bock from a pilsner glass? Can I keep my beer mugs in the fridge still, or do I need to start putting them in the freezer? How do you wash a beer glass so it won't film up next time or have those water-marks? When you choose the glasses you'll use for beer, use them only for beer. Other beverages leave residues on glasses that will make the presentation of the glass and the taste of your next beer not nearly as appealing. Treat your beer vessels with care. Don't use soap on them or put them in your dishwasher. If you do, it is possible for soap residue to eliminate the head on your next beer and/or affect its taste. But if you clean your beer glasses by hand with a soft cloth and hot water, they will be fresh and ready for the next time. If you have to use soap, rub the glass with table salt and rinse well. This removes any soap residue left on the glass. Use a wash basin to let your glasses drip dry and then rub them with a cloth before storing them. Many will say specific beers are best suited to a particular type of beer glass. And in many cases this is true. The chalice-shaped glass used by the Trappist breweries is appropriate for a beer with a religious background, and nothing could go better with a Scotch ale than a glass shaped like a thistle, as in their native lands. But unless you plan on starting a huge collection of beer glasses, though, you may have to limit your glasses to a few choices.