Have you ever noticed that you drink a little faster (or get drunk a little quicker) when you drink out of a certain shaped glass?
Researchers in the United Kingdom recently conducted a study and discovered that drinking from a glass with curved sides may make you drink faster. Study participants actually drank twice as fast when they drank out of a curved beer flute rather than a normal glass. What’s also interesting is the fact that when the different glasses were filled with non-alcoholic beverages, there was no difference in drinking speed between straight glasses and curved glasses.
Is the glass half empty or half full? Participants in a partner study had no earthly clue. They had to evaluate two images of glasses and then decide whether they were more or less than halfway full. Evaluating the curved glasses really threw them for a loop because that was where the most mistakes were found.
Study researcher Angela Attwood said that “People often talk of ‘pacing themselves’ when drinking alcohol as a means of controlling levels of drunkenness, and I think the important point to take from our research is that the ability to pace effectively may be compromised when drinking from certain types of glasses.”
Always good to know things like this, especially if you’re trying to avoid getting fall-down drunk out in public. Or if you are trying to get fall-down drunk… that’s cool, too.
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If I am trying to pace myself it is more about the size of the glass than it is the shape. I’ve found that when I use a smaller 8-10oz glass I tend to drink my beer at a slower pace than when I use a 12-20oz glass.
Due to my love for Guinness I tend to use the “Irish Imperial Pint” glass the most. They go down all too easily.