What’s in a Pint Glass: A Brief History of Pint Glasses

Conique Pint Glass

There’s much more to your pint of beer than you might think. While beer has long been served in the UK in various measures, the ‘pint’ wasn’t derived until 1824 under the British Weights & Measures Act and was defined as ten pounds of distilled water at 62°C. This measurement has since been required by law for measures in public houses.

For more than 300 years pint glasses have been marked with an etched crown stamp and PINT label as a guarantee of its capacity. Since 2007 pint glasses have been produced with a CE mark, which shows the glass conforms to European law. A popular alternative to the CE to brim pint glass is the LCE pint glass, which is an oversized glass which is lined and CE marked at a pint, allowing extra room for a head.

LCE at a Pint

In the UK if you ask for a pint at the bar, you’ll get 568ml or 20oz, however ask for a pint in another country and you might be surprised at what you get. The UK and Ireland are the only countries where the 568ml pint is governed by law. Go elsewhere in the world and with the exception of some British Commonwealth countries, you’ll find the pint is much smaller or doesn’t exist at all. For example in different regions in Australia a pint can mean 570ml or 425ml.

If you asked for a pint in America you might believe you’ve been short-changed, but a US pint is 473ml or 16 fl. oz (American fluid ounces are also smaller than an imperial ounce), which is approximately 20% smaller than a British pint.

Pint glasses come in many shapes and sizes; some are chosen for their practical and robust design, whereas others optimise the flavours of the beer. Popular pint glass styles are the Nonic Pint Glass, Conical Pint Glass and the Traditional Glass Pint Tankard, while pilsner pint glasses and stemmed pint glasses often offer a better tasting beer.

Pint Glasses

The classic pint in popular throughout the UK and the traditional designs of the dimpled mug, conical pint glass and pewter tankard has been complimented by even more choice in the form of contemporary designs such as the tulip pint glass, stemmed pint glass and pilsner pint glass.

If you fancy enjoying a pub style pint in the comfort of your own home, we have a great selection of pint tankards, pint mugs and Nonic pint glasses. For a contemporary designed beer glass look no further than our range of branded pint glasses and designer pint glasses.

Our wide range of cheap pint glasses includes CE mark glasses and LCE mark glasses which are suitable for use in licence establishments. This ensures an accurate legal measure of beer when pouring straight into the glass. Our range of pint glasses also includes toughened pint glasses, nucleated pint glasses, disposable plastic pint glasses and reusable plastic pint glasses.