Carbonation vs head

My last two batches (a wheat beer and an amber ale) have not produced much head when poured. The carbonation level seems fine when drinking. The batch before the last two, a Sierra Nevada-clone, had a tremendous head even when poured gently.

Is head a function of carbonation or is it dependent on the type of beer. FWIW, all 3 kits were from Austin Homebrew Supply and I followed the instructions to the letter with all of them. The beers all tasted great.

Carbonation is just CO2, which of course you need for foam. But if your glass isn't super clean, or the recipe did not have many unfermentable proteins, you might not get much head retention, even if you have adequate carbonation.

I have started adding about 1/2 lb of Carapils or Carafoam (dextrine) to my beers that have poor head retention. Works like a charm.

It also doesn't add any noticeable color or flavor to the beer.

I didn't have any Carapils when I wanted to make a cream ale so I substituted oatmeal. The beer never clears but the head on a glass was fantastic with great lacing all the way down the glass. I only made a half batch, wish I had made a double batch instead because it's all gone now and I don't have time to brew until fall.

Don't cry too much for me, that wasn't my only beer, just my favorite. I still have 10 varieties to keep me drinking this summer.

its possible you need more super high alpha hops