People are just finding out real reason pint glasses have a bulge on them

Have you ever found yourself knocking back a pint of beer in your local pub and wondered why so many of the glasses have a unique bulge near the top?

Probably not, but there is a logical reason it exists.

So let's investigate.

Called the 'nonic' (or no-nik) glass by beer boffins around the world, this particular type of pint is most likely the first glass which comes into your head when you think of drinking beer in an English pub. Alongside fruit machines, crisps and obnoxiously patterned carpets.

We're talking about the sort of glasses you'd find in this sort of establishment (Getty Stock Image)

However, manufacturers didn't just wake up one morning and decide to chuck a random ridge into their glassware, it's actually pretty handy for both punters and bar staff.

Why do pint glasses have a bulge?

Turns out there's quite a lot of history behind nonic pint glasses.

Invented by US manufacturer Hugo Pick all the way back in 1913, the nonic glass provided a practical solution when it came to collecting empty tumblers. The bulge meant that while the glasses would still stack together without becoming stuck, a problem which often occurs with standard straight pint glasses.

And as someone who used to work in a pub, there's nothing worse than trying to pry apart two glasses which have become fused together.

The design also offered a certain degree of protection for the glassware as it meant the curved portion of the glass would be first to hit the bar if the drink was knocked over and not the more fragile rim. This is presumably where the name nonic (no-nick) comes from.

Turns out the design makes stacking pints easier and prevents chips in the rim (Getty Stock Image)

Taste of Home also adds that this new style of glass was even advertised in newspapers at the time as a tumbler which 'wouldn’t chip or nick' at the rim.

It's not just bartenders who'd benefit from the specialised design either, as the bump in the glass also gives the customer something to hold onto when carrying their pint, therefore minimising the risk of dropping your drink all over the floor.

Available in both 16 and 20 fluid ounces (20 ounces being the size of a British pint, while a US one is the former) nonic glasses can pretty much be used for any type of beer, although blogger Beers with Mandy suggests they're best suited for traditional ales and bitters.

Although you're bog-standard pint glasses (nonic or not) have most likely been replaced by fancier, branded equivalents these days, it's still an interesting piece of pub trivia to whip out next time conversation in your local boozer runs stale.