Ken, How about this foam!
Yes, this is very nice and exciting because it's relatively new for me.
In the past my foam would not be quite so soft, dense, thick and long-lasting. It would consist of larger bubbles and it would dissipate quickly. I wish I knew what it was that was doing this and I keep mentioning the things I consider to be the answer: Better pH control, BTB, water composition. My water hasn't changed but I have a better feel for what to do with it. I feel like the BTB made some nice changes but that I had the better head formation & stability before the BTB. That leaves pH control which is definitely better. Neutralizing the bicarb with lactic acid seems like the clearest indicator to me but I have no idea. Also, you can tap a beer with a decent head and then let it sit on the drip tray for a minute while the foam collapses a bit. Then tap a bit more beer into the glass and get that kind of "vanilla ice cream cone" effect. Awesome!
EDIT: pkrone did mention that a shorter boil time could help and that makes sense. I feel like I was getting that nice foam before I went to 30m boils but maybe the 30m boils just improved on what I was already getting.
