It seems that a pint no longer means 16 ounces to some bartenders... from the Wall Street Journal:
A Pint-Size Problem
Beer lovers nurse a grudge as some bars switch to smaller glasses
Four-dollar-a-gallon gasoline may be a cause for outrage. But it pales next to the righteous fury provoked by five-dollar-a-pint beer.
Beer prices at bars and restaurants have risen over the past few months, as prices of hops and barley have skyrocketed and retail business has slowed alongside the economy.
Some restaurants have replaced 16-ounce pint glasses with 14 ouncers -- a type of glassware one bartender called a "falsie."
And customers are complaining that bartenders are increasingly putting less than 16 ounces of beer in a pint glass, filling up the extra space with foam.
Two of the world's biggest glassware makers, Libbey and Cardinal International, say orders of smaller beer glasses have risen over the past year. Restaurateurs "want more of a perceived value," says Mike Schuster, Libbey's marketing manager for glassware in the U.S. Glasses with a thicker bottom or a thicker shaft help create the perception. "You can increase the thickness of the bottom part but still retain the overall profile," he says.
Fortunately, there is hope. Many smaller craft beer bars are using Imperial pints so you get the full 16 ounces plus room for a nice head. Some are serving the full 20 ounces with no head. The BeerAdvocate website has a lively forum on this topic.
