Glass Half Full...and all that schnitt

Let me set the scene for you: you’re at Copper State for a night out with friends (because, let’s be honest—where else would you be since you are hip and with it, not to mention extremely good-looking?) and you look down into your glass, which, unfortunately, is empty. Your friends have not shown the same fortitude as you have in the beer-drinking arena, and thus they still have more than a half glass of their brews remaining. What do you do? A full glass might seem a bit excessive to you (or to that lady friend or coworker you’re trying to impress), but you don’t want to sit there and be left with nothing to imbibe while your friends carry on with their merriment. Enter: ein schnitt. No, I did not just call down curses in German; a true high brau frau would never do that. Ein schnitt literally means “a cut” in German, and it truly is that—a cut of beer, where the bartender just opens the tap and gives you a little schnitt of your brew of choice, just enough to be a nice finale to your evening, a glass half full in both the proverbial and literal senses of the word. Consider it a beer encore, if you will, giving your favorite brew a well-deserved standing ovation.

We at Copper State are all about bringing you authentic German experiences. From our Oktoberfest celebration to our Kölsch-style beer and our Rugged North Lager, we try to honor our Germanic heritage to the best of our ability. The schnitt pour is just another way to bring a bit of Bavarian culture to Green Bay.

“But wait a minute, High Brau Frau!” you say. “The Germans aren’t known for their little schnitts! What about those giant steins of beer they hoist and wave around drunkenly, while singing traditional drinking songs? ” (see the Lyrical Beerical blog post here)

Dear Reader, you would not be wrong—Germans are well-known for their larger than life beers. For example, at festivals and in biergartens, patrons usually get a Maß (or Mass), which is a one liter pour of beer—ordering any smaller quantity will make you the laughingstock of barmaids and guests alike. But at many establishments, ein schnitt is a truly acceptable way to close out your night, since usually you have already had your share of pints or quarts for the evening. And you know what? Our bartenders won’t give ein schnitt why or when you are ordering your half-pour; Copper State is a judgment-free zone (unless you rate our beers a 1.5 on Untappd while giving Coors Lite five stars—then all bets are off and we will indeed judge you and all of your friends).

We might not pour our schnitts exactly like the Germans do—theirs is a quick opening of the tap which results in about 75% foam, which is looked askance upon by the modern American beer drinker. Similarly, it is hard to convince Average Joe American of the value of some other Bavarian beer-pouring traditions. For example, in Germany, local lore has it that a good pilsner takes seven minutes to pour: a little is poured, and the foam is allowed to settle…then a little more is poured…more settling…still more poured, etc…until presumably the patron is so thirsty he doesn’t care what the brew tastes like and he’s ready for his second or third beverage. Can you imagine the typical American waiting seven minutes to receive a beer? We don't even wait that long to receive a new kidney. Today, even most Germans understand that the seven-minute rule is archaic and will now accept a three-minute pilsner to obtain the ideal level of foam and carbonation (which is still two minutes and thirty-seven seconds longer than most of us are willing to wait for our beer).

But I digress--back to the schnitt at hand. In the United States, a “half-pint” is often a term of derision or a school-yard taunt, but with your help Copper State can change that image, one cute little cut of Doogie Howser-sized beer at a time. Because at the heart of the half-pint, this schnitty German tradition encourages your experimentation of the various beer styles and allows you to expand your beer-izons. It is also fully in line with our mission statement:

Connecting people. Creating experiences. Crafting great schnitt.

(Okay, it’s really “crafting great beer” but you should try all our crafted schnitt, and I really wanted to write the word schnitt as many times as I could in this blog post and hit all the schnitty clichés I possibly could. Because at Copper State, schnitt happens every day, and this schnitt is real.)

All bullschnitt aside, the schnitt pour begs you to stay-ay-ay-ay... just a little bit longer (I do hope you sang that line in your head, or out loud, if that's how you roll); it promotes community and harmony as you linger with friends and quaff together, and it gives you a reason to hang out and create more experiences with your favorite people...over great beer. That sounds like a glass half full kind of pour to me.