I was wondering if there really is a difference in taste when you drink the same beer out of a glass, a bottle and a can.
Can anybody please tell me if there is a difference or if this is just a prejudice in your mind that makes you think it's better in one way?
Glass vs bottle or can will be a pretty noticeable difference with most styles of beer simply due to the size of the opening. When you pour from the storage vessel to the glass you disturb the beer a lot which drives CO2 gas out, and that takes a lot of aromatics with it so the aroma you get from the beer in a glass is WAY stronger and more complex than what you'd sniff from the bottle or can.
Also smell is a pretty huge part of tasting something and when you drink from a glass you're putting your nose right into the thick of all that, so the flavor will be more intense as well. Bottles and cans sort of keep that toned down since you don't smell the beer as much.
There used to be a prejudice against cans because the liquid and the aluminum would react and oxidize, but they started coating the insides with a food safe epoxy resin decades ago and it's completely sealed now. As far as taste goes there's no difference between the two, but cans actually store a bit better because they let in no light and no air while bottles will eventually let through enough to affect the beer. Brewers like cans as well since they're more portable, don't shatter, chill faster, and are often cheaper to fill.
I would add that beer that tends to last longer in a can because of way it's sealed. No bottle cap for leaking oxygen and light can't penetrate so it's not going to be ruined as fast when it's sitting in the store fridge under the fluorescent lights
