Giving beer a head

[Russell]

[(1VB)freels]

Never understood why JN's loved to have a beer with head.. I like it the other way but that is another story... BTW JN's is an acronym for Japanese Nationals. Just in case you didn't know, now you do... I digress.. Why do they have an infatuation with beer head? You waste so much of the glass with weak ass foam and if you are in a bar you get charged for a who glass when it's only about 70% full??? I don't know... Fuck you McTojo... That just made this comment more meaningful now!!!

[JLR]

Some foam is ok but not the majority of the glass. My stupid theory is Japanese people having a lower tolerance of alcohol can still drink a glass but get less beer? Hell if I know.

[tone]

no doubt, they literally pull off the keg tap half way so it spits foam into the remaining 1/3 to 1/2 of the tiny ass vessel.

or why they keep sand on the tennis courts and people have to religiously sweep the sand for 10 minutes of their expensive 1 hour court reservation.

in the case of food it seems like people are more aware of how certain things should look than how they should be.

had some decent looking but incredibly bland vietnamese food at a little place in my neighborhood trying to get the neo vietnamese thing thats booming a little and delicious with all the right ingredients. it was weird how it could look right, but have none of the major flavors other than chicken and rice noodles and salt.

for me whats just been hard lately, is this bizarro world version of familiar things. and back home when eating or drinking somewhere we observe, take note and sometimes complain about things among ourselves about the execution. here, when i make an observation after we eat somewhere, i just blank looks from people. its like everyone here gives everything else the benefit of the doubt of being as well done, unless its a stranger coming up to you asking directions, in that case, they are weird.

i dont know about you guys, but im going through a period where i am extremely ready to get out of this weird ass country.

[MaxPower]

Man this made me laugh. I could never understand this one at all. The best explanation I ever got was it magically holds the flavor in. Which obviously explains why japanese beer is so flavorful. Having been back stateside for about a month... it is the shit like this that made me crazy when I was still in Japan. Although here it is all the ridiculously fat, and religious people. Grass is always greener I suppose.

[IparryU]

no doubt, they literally pull off the keg tap half way so it spits foam into the remaining 1/3 to 1/2 of the tiny ass vessel.

or why they keep sand on the tennis courts and people have to religiously sweep the sand for 10 minutes of their expensive 1 hour court reservation.

in the case of food it seems like people are more aware of how certain things should look than how they should be.

had some decent looking but incredibly bland vietnamese food at a little place in my neighborhood trying to get the neo vietnamese thing thats booming a little and delicious with all the right ingredients. it was weird how it could look right, but have none of the major flavors other than chicken and rice noodles and salt.

for me whats just been hard lately, is this bizarro world version of familiar things. and back home when eating or drinking somewhere we observe, take note and sometimes complain about things among ourselves about the execution. here, when i make an observation after we eat somewhere, i just blank looks from people. its like everyone here gives everything else the benefit of the doubt of being as well done, unless its a stranger coming up to you asking directions, in that case, they are weird.

i dont know about you guys, but im going through a period where i am extremely ready to get out of this weird ass country.

lol... i told that to Greji... called it my pre-mid-life crisis... no response back about that BTW...

back on subject... I was having a coffee with a britt a few weeks ago and he had mentioned that he heard (not thinks) that the head has more potency for a specific euro beer... but he didn't believe that bullocks and gets pissed when he gets 3 fingers of head..

now the head I get I dont like any fingers at all... dont even cup the balls... just pure head...

wait.. beer... ugh... no head please.

[Coligny]

From the controversy website "Japanese people tend to have a more sensitive palette as well and can get more satisfaction from the taste of foam than we usually do."

Yeah... sure... them superior japanese tastebuds...

As for the head...

Standard scam bullshit no ?

Doutor, ask for orange juice without ice and you get a glass less than half full.

I even once went to a bar where if you order a coke, the girl bring a small glass bottle, already open, pour 2/3 in a glass, and go back with the rest of the bottle never to be seen again...

WTF...

Only Mc Donald seems to top whatever glass you order, no ice, topped anyway... But in this case, be carefull of them spillz...

[IparryU]

From the controversy website "Japanese people tend to have a more sensitive palette as well and can get more satisfaction from the taste of foam than we usually do."

Yeah... sure... them superior japanese tastebuds...

As for the head...

Standard scam bullshit no ?

Doutor, ask for orange juice without ice and you get a glass less than half full.

I even once went to a bar where if you order a coke, the girl bring a small glass bottle, already open, pour 2/3 in a glass, and go back with the rest of the bottle never to be seen again...

WTF...

Only Mc Donald seems to top whatever glass you order, no ice, topped anyway... But in this case, be carefull of them spillz...

taste buds... hmm... i had a debate with my in-laws about Japanese taste buds... they said they are the best chefs cause they can taste everything.

I came back with Indian curry... and they thought that it was sweet. ya my ass... Indian curry will have you on the pot for the rest of the evening wishing you had a Toto toilet seat to wash/cool you down....

the debate ended there. don't even get me started on (non-restaurant) Mexican food... just slop on a plate but there are so many tastes...

about the drinks in Japan, more about their sales gimmic... if you drink more you don't eat as much. the cup costs more than the soda, so if you eat more food they make money.

still shitty that you get kiddy cup when you get a large... a fuckin happy meal size should you dare to get a small.

[Russell]

taste buds... hmm... i had a debate with my in-laws about Japanese taste buds... they said they are the best chefs cause they can taste everything.

I came back with Indian curry... and they thought that it was sweet. ya my ass... Indian curry will have you on the pot for the rest of the evening wishing you had a Toto toilet seat to wash/cool you down....

You mean, Japanese have no taste buds in their asses?!?

[tone]

thanks for not ripping me for being windy before

been having a rough month or so seeing why I am here, other than being a good huz and being beside my wife while she deals with some bad luck health wise for her dad.

isnt it a double whammy though that its not common practice to make fun of or nit pick things, unless its about whats weird about gaijin, so that when we bring something up, its blank-stare thirty.

back home, the news, some douchey pop idols, the quality of domestic beer, all up for making fun of because everyone in my circle all know its middle of the road shite for middle of the road idiots. here, not quite like that.

i gotta find some new friends, because with my fully JN workplace and my weekend baseball team, i am spending lke 80% of my week with ignorant JN's who have never left the country and know sweet FA about anything interesting, except the sex industry and the occasional nugget of life experience. its the curse of speaking just enough japanese to be surrounded by poor saps who are ignorant enough to tolerate weak foamy beer in 10 ounce glasses and a host of other bullshit. japanese palettes? my ass. people tolerate some ridiculous sweetened and starchy garbage at these 3000 all you can eat izakayas, and only from by buddy who grew up in englad have i heard anything about the quality.

very true about the reverse back in north america, but at least i feel like less of a freak for having an opinion about anything.

OT: why the fuck is there sand all over the fucking tennis courts?! do people love cleaning up and sweeping that much? and why when we get on the field for baseball even after weve all thrown, when i ask to get a few balls at short, no one wants to mess up the previously immaculately swept field before the ceremonial kick off by the 2 teams and captains. so everyone just fucking mindlessly throws for 15 more minutes.

i'm sick of this feeling that i know better, and really craving some decent mexican food

[Iraira]

From the article:

Since we all know that some head is necessary.....

I've never found any words to be more true.

[McTojo]

thanks for not ripping me for being windy before

been having a rough month or so seeing why I am here, other than being a good huz and being beside my wife while she deals with some bad luck health wise for her dad.

isnt it a double whammy though that its not common practice to make fun of or nit pick things, unless its about whats weird about gaijin, so that when we bring something up, its blank-stare thirty.

back home, the news, some douchey pop idols, the quality of domestic beer, all up for making fun of because everyone in my circle all know its middle of the road shite for middle of the road idiots. here, not quite like that.

i gotta find some new friends, because with my fully JN workplace and my weekend baseball team, i am spending lke 80% of my week with ignorant JN's who have never left the country and know sweet FA about anything interesting, except the sex industry and the occasional nugget of life experience. its the curse of speaking just enough japanese to be surrounded by poor saps who are ignorant enough to tolerate weak foamy beer in 10 ounce glasses and a host of other bullshit. japanese palettes? my ass. people tolerate some ridiculous sweetened and starchy garbage at these 3000 all you can eat izakayas, and only from by buddy who grew up in englad have i heard anything about the quality.

very true about the reverse back in north america, but at least i feel like less of a freak for having an opinion about anything.

OT: why the fuck is there sand all over the fucking tennis courts?! do people love cleaning up and sweeping that much? and why when we get on the field for baseball even after weve all thrown, when i ask to get a few balls at short, no one wants to mess up the previously immaculately swept field before the ceremonial kick off by the 2 teams and captains. so everyone just fucking mindlessly throws for 15 more minutes.

i'm sick of this feeling that i know better, and really craving some decent mexican food

What the fuck is wrong with you? How do you afford the time to speak English with them? There is where the problem is. I never, under any circumstances hang out with nor drink with nonpaying Japs. Their energy and stupidity can drain you. You should know better. Make every opportunity to speak Japanese.

[IparryU]

What the fuck is wrong with you? How do you afford the time to speak English with them? There is where the problem is. I never, under any circumstances hang out with nor drink with nonpaying Japs. Their energy and stupidity can drain you. You should know better. Make every opportunity to speak Japanese.

hmmm.. a bit odd for this nut job to say...

[matsuki]

From the controversy website "Japanese people tend to have a more sensitive palette as well and can get more satisfaction from the taste of foam than we usually do."

Yeah... sure... them superior japanese tastebuds...

This is why I laugh everytime I hear a lemur utter the word "Umami" (and again when you ask her to explain it)

As for the head...

Standard scam bullshit no ?

Doutor, ask for orange juice without ice and you get a glass less than half full.

I even once went to a bar where if you order a coke, the girl bring a small glass bottle, already open, pour 2/3 in a glass, and go back with the rest of the bottle never to be seen again...

Yes and no...I mean, if you think about most bottled/canned soft drinks, the containers cost more than the actual drink. You also have to consider the price you pay goes more towards advertising than the the container/drink. But then TIJ, land of usuaji, and ususatisfaction for koidinero. They can't be saving much money by being stingy with the drink but since not many people complain, they take advantage of the situation and

[tone]

at Tojo

no fool, i speak good but not perfect japanese, so my workplace and baseball team is 100% japanese, not trying to be cool or saying that its cool - at this point it's actually annoying. literally, i barely use any english with these people because they cant understand a damn thing when i try.

this is why a lot of my daily interactions are with japanese blokes who havent been exposed to as many offshore ideas as the english speaking folks in japan, and especially as the expats here. i think if i kept it to english, i would have 10% less zombie bullshit to deal with and maybe 10% less head.

has anyone on here acually said something to a server or barkeep about the ludicrous head size ratio to tiny glass sizes?

the you tube video is classic on a number of levels, def sent that one around yesterday via ichat

what someone said earlier about doutour... wow, believable though

[IparryU]

at Tojo

no fool, i speak good but not perfect japanese, so my workplace and baseball team is 100% japanese, not trying to be cool or saying that its cool - at this point it's actually annoying. literally, i barely use any english with these people because they cant understand a damn thing when i try.

this is why a lot of my daily interactions are with japanese blokes who havent been exposed to as many offshore ideas as the english speaking folks in japan, and especially as the expats here. i think if i kept it to english, i would have 10% less zombie bullshit to deal with and maybe 10% less head.

has anyone on here acually said something to a server or barkeep about the ludicrous head size ratio to tiny glass sizes?

the you tube video is classic on a number of levels, def sent that one around yesterday via ichat

what someone said earlier about doutour... wow, believable though

when i go out and drink and IF if have a beer, I say no head please... prevent that BS

when I was on the opposite side of the counter, Japanese got 2 or 3 fingers and the FGs got 1. Never got any complaints, despite the Japanese guy who I thought was Japanese but was 'merican....

[matsuki]

at Tojo

no fool, i speak good but not perfect japanese, so my workplace and baseball team is 100% japanese, not trying to be cool or saying that its cool - at this point it's actually annoying. literally, i barely use any english with these people because they cant understand a damn thing when i try.

this is why a lot of my daily interactions are with japanese blokes who havent been exposed to as many offshore ideas as the english speaking folks in japan, and especially as the expats here. i think if i kept it to english, i would have 10% less zombie bullshit to deal with and maybe 10% less head.

Don't worry, you're not alone.

My latest incident was nearly being raped my the team manager a few months ago. I walked in the locker room during some sort of ball shaving or pube shaving discussion and they immediately looked to me, "Choko is definitely shaved" to which I (shocked/embarrassed) protested. "Prove it!" (realizing this is how gay porn often starts, I refused and tried to run) They tried to hold me down to check themselves.



They didn't get a peek until we went to regionals in Gunma, the talk of the onsen was "Holy shit Choko is white!...and big!" I refrained from the obligatory "holy shit, they weren't kidding when they said how small you guys are!"

when i go out and drink and IF if have a beer, I say no head please... prevent that BS

when I was on the opposite side of the counter, Japanese got 2 or 3 fingers and the FGs got 1. Never got any complaints, despite the Japanese guy who I thought was Japanese but was 'merican....

I actually prefer 2~3 fingers of head but wouldn't be so much of an issue if the mugs/glasses here were adult sized. I feel like I'm drinking beer shots in most bars here...

[Samurai_Jerk]

this is why a lot of my daily interactions are with japanese blokes who havent been exposed to as many offshore ideas as the english speaking folks in japan

In my experience, the English speaking supposedly internationally minded Japanese are the worst ones to deal with.

has anyone on here acually said something to a server or barkeep about the ludicrous head size ratio

Most places will pour you a beer with little or no head if you ask. One time we bitched at one of those chain beer restaurants owned by one of the major J-brewers. The waiter told us that they served their beer "German style" so it had to have a head. He then pointed out a line on the glasses that showed where the head was supposed to start. It was literally halfway from the top of glasses which were about the size and shape of a brandy snifter. Needless to say I never went back to that place.

By the way, I'm sure Greji will agree that you guys need to hang out in the shitamachi more. The beers there tend to be big and relatively cheap. I just avoid the bad pours by ordering bottles anyway.

[matsuki]

In my experience, the English speaking supposedly internationally minded Japanese are the worst ones to deal with.

Mostly men, right? Most of the bilingual womens don't venture back to J-land for a underpaid/overworked "career."

[cstaylor]

In my experience, the English speaking supposedly internationally minded Japanese are the worst ones to deal with.

You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to Samurai_Jerk again.

[Yokohammer]

In my experience, the English speaking supposedly internationally minded Japanese are the worst ones to deal with.

Especially if they've "lived" abroad for a few months or even years.

Sort of the reverse of certain journalists who come to Japan for a few weeks or months and suddenly know everything there is to know.

[matsuki]

[tone]

In my experience, the English speaking supposedly internationally minded Japanese are the worst ones to deal with.

+1, i keep hearing how much "we get away with" compared with japanese people experience in the states, mostly with language. but yeah this babel/galapagos stuff is real. a lot of this is key to being a FG - that even with a JN living abroad, theres still this gap to deal with. i mean, look at what passes for comedy here. i'll leave it at that

@ greji, lets hang again man. i definitely need to expand my horizons, kind of in a bit of a social rut.

cant believe i forgot to mention bottled beer. totally the better value when i remember to go that route. the idea that "nama" beer is always better is funny because depending on volume/store hours, like wine being uncorked too long, keg beer has a life span. i guess thats what bothers me here, "nama beer is nama beer is good" is such an unsophisticated way of thinking about beer... i keep going back to how we make fun of the news vs. the seriousness they take the news here - we know its commercial bullshit and call out newscasters with dorky faces or hair. its the same with beer, its like beer = beer here, no further mention during the drink or dinner, just loud slurping while people violently suck or gobble their food.

[Mike Oxlong]

JICA alumni give me the heebie jeebies.

[IparryU]

@ greji, lets hang again man. i definitely need to expand my horizons, kind of in a bit of a social rut.

you need a picture of the goat you will give him to get him to come out... Hell, I wanna see him too...



so I guess we are gonna have to make some kind of FG Out of Biz meet up?

[tone]

definitely intrigued by mixing expat drinking and shitamachi realness

[Screwed-down Hairdo]

@ greji, lets hang again man. i definitely need to expand my horizons, kind of in a bit of a social rut.

Tone, I wouldn't mention rutting to Greji, if I were you...he'll take you up on it (whether you like it or not...)

[matsuki]

Tone, I wouldn't mention rutting to Greji, if I were you...he'll take you up on it (whether you like it or not...)

And we'll have to change the thread title to giving beer head...

[Samurai_Jerk]

Mostly men, right?

No, the women are just as bad if not worse.

[tone]

head when you dont need it, none when you do...