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Problem:

Upon pouring your beer into a glass, you may be frustrated to find that it is unable to form or maintain a respectable head of foam.

Causes:

• Grease or detergent residue in bottles, glasses, or brewing equipment inhibits good head retention.
• Forgetting to prime the beer leaves little chance for success in carbonation.
• Not enough conditioning time results in insufficient build-up of carbon dioxide.
• Excessive breakdown of proteins in the mash leaves insufficient material to form and retain a good head on the beer.
• A low-protein grist provides insufficient material to form and retain a good head on the beer.
• A faulty seal on bottle caps, or a chipped bottle mouth, prevents desired build-up of carbon dioxide.

Cures:

• Carefully wash and rinse bottles, glasses, and brewing equipment. Avoid fat-based cleaners that can leave an undesirable residue.
• Be more attentive to your brewing tasks!
• Allow sufficient conditioning time for beer, one week for a typical ale, two weeks for a typical lager.
• Reduce the time and the raise temperature of the protein rest during mashing.
• Use wheat malt or heading compound.
• Replace damaged or poor quality capper and caps. Do not use bottles with twist-off caps, and replace damaged bottles.