I’ve seen black and tans pictured with a clear divide half way up the glass having the upper part black and the lower part tan. How is this done?
Well the classic is Guinness and bass right? The Guinness is on nitro so I assume it has something to do with that.
Guinness is less dense and poured to prevent mixing.
It has to do with density. Guinness is a lower gravity than Bass and will float on top. The clear divide is the tough part, but that’s why you usually see it poured over the back of a spoon (or something similar). If you pour too hard, then the Guinness will start to mix with the Bass, and you see less of a sharp split between the two.
This is the same way that layered shots work, by the way.
Tough part indeed. Took a lot of practice and I never quite managed it. But it was trending at the same time as stuffing a lime in a skunky Mexican beer was, so you have to question the whole idea. A black and tan, like any beer cocktail, can be a great drink. But if the two parts aren’t actually blended, what’s the point?
Usually it tends to blend itself as you sip. Once you’ve had the first sip or two you can usually tip the glass enough that you sip from the border between the two. Personally, I do prefer this to mixed, each sip is different and you can still enjoy the two beers separately to an extent.
Seen those layered latte pics online? Now something like that would offer both visual appeal AND a blend of the two flavors. Like a black and tan this has something to do with sorting by density.
Guinness definitely has convinced people the only true black and tan is Guinness and Bass although you can do it with any dark and light beer. My personal preference for widely available beer is Left Hand Milk Stout and Deschutes Mirror Pond.
Guinness (or somebody else) sells a special spoon to help create that division. It looks like a soup spoon but it has a notch on the handle so it will fit on a shaker pint without moving. It helps slow and spread the pour so the Guinness will sit on top and not mix. While it looks great it interferes with mixing flavor which is a lot more important than the appearance IMO.
If the idea is to have a blended beer, then I would simply blend them; if not, separate glasses work much better!
Going local, I’ve always liked Great Lakes Edmund Fitzgerald porter and Dortmunder Gold lager. Blended. Fully blended.
So, the beer with the lower final gravity should be poured second?
Well, with classic Guinness version it’s the nitro that makes it less dense, not necessarily gravity. So, hmm…
I thought it was gravity? Guinness is very dry, lower FG than many beers. I’ve done other “off-brand” black and tans and the stout sank right through the lager.
And why are we even using the term “Guinness” and “Black and Tan” in the same sentence?
I’ll defer to you. You at least have "experimental data! "
Less dense, lower gravity. Pretty much the same result.
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Thought some more about this, with reference to the latte idea. Think cappuccino. Pretty sure milk is denser than coffee, but when frothed up it floats. Nitro saturation in Guinness is high enough that it’s breaking out to make an analogous froth on top of the other beer, FG notwithstanding. Hence the sinking of the off-brands?
But the nitrogen comes out of solution almost immediately, it doesn’t stay in the beer.
With coffee, you also have varying temperatures that come into play.
I guess we need to experiment. I just finished my last can of Guinness last weekend, so I’ve been needing to replenish my supply. Might pick up another stout or porter and see what happens.
I’ll report my findings.
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Science!!! Look forward to your report.
I have seen a devise that sits on top of the glass to pour the stout onto the bitter. It looks like a turtle, and I found this, https://www.uncommongoods.com/product/beer-layering-tool. Looks like a good Christmas gift. I found the turtle at morebeer,https://www.morebeer.com/products/lagerhead-black-tan-turtle.
I made a similar device out of an old spoon, a hammer, bench vise, and angle grinder. Cost to me? Free.