Why does stout need the widget and what’s it doing in there?
In: 3
The widget is literally just a small plastic chamber with a small hole in it that floats in your beer (or is attached to the bottom).
When the can is sealed, a drop of liquid nitrogen is added. As this evaporates, it pressurises the can more than the CO2 in the beer alone. This forces some beer into the widget and compresses any trapped gas in the widget too. It also causes some nitrogen to dissolve in the beer.
When you open the can, the pressure drops in the can. The still high pressure beer/gas combo in the widget tries to escape, however there’s only a small hole through which to do so. A bubbly jet of gas and liquid gets forced out of the hole which foams up the beer creating a head.
Without the widget, you get a pint of Guinness with no foamy head.
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