some beers you are supposed to drink the yeast?

I've spent the last year making sure not to pour the yeast from my bottles into my glass, after reading about how to properly pour a home brew.

Then today at a restaurant I ordered an Allagash white ale. The bottle had instructions on how to pour the beer:
1) pour half the beer
2) swirl the bottle around
3) pour the rest of the bottle and yeast into the glass...


I was surprised. What's the difference between what they do and what I do? Should I expect to get really gassy tonight?

A lof of hefe's and wit's have a majority of their flavor profile from the yeast. Since they (especially hefe's) are supposed to be cloudy to begin with you're not ruining the pour and gaining all of the intended flavor.

It's a wheat beer thing, for the most part. The term "hefeweizen", "hefe" + "weizen", means "yeast" + "wheat" in German. The yeast adds important flavor to the beer. I find it extremely delicious and my next brew will probably be a hefe.

edit: And on the gassy thing, I've never noticed drinking the yeast to make a difference. Your stomach's pH is so low that you're probably going to totally destroy any living yeast cells before they make their way past your stomach.

technically you are supposed to do it for a heffewiezen.. the same with a Belgian Wit.

I also do it with any kind of Belgian Ale. I like the sweeter taste it gives.