Impress Friends With Your Sophisticated Beer Knowledge!
Craft beer has become increasingly popular over the past few years, and while it may interest you, the amount of options may also frighten you. It’s hard to know what type of beer you should try if you don’t know the difference between all the available options.
Instead of getting stuck ordering the same old boring Bud Light, use the following information to educate yourself on the different types of beers in order to make a classier decision
Ales
Ales are a popular beer choice because they tend to have noticeable flavor. Ales are fermented anywhere from two weeks to several years in order to receive their full flavor. In most cases, ales will be served at warmer room temperatures.
Brown Ale
Brown ales have a reddish tone. These beers have a long history, dating back to before hops were used to create beer. Back then, brown ales received their color and flavor from 100% brown malt. Today, brown ales still contain a very high level of malt, allowing them to possess a variety of different flavors, including hoppy, sweet and earthy.
IPAs
IPAs, otherwise known as India Pale Ales, are beers that have a bitter taste. These beers have a larger dosage of hops than most beers and often contain more alcohol by volume.
Lagers
Lagers are a type of beer that is bottom fermented in order to give it flavor. They are typically stored for a few weeks to a few months before they are served in order to ensure they have reached their full flavor and aroma. Lagers are best served cold.
Pale Ales
Pale ales have a golden color and use a variety of hops in order to provide a flavorful, yet bitter, taste. Pale ales use a combination of barley and pale malt to create the flavors and aromas. If you order a pale ale in the UK, you’ll likely receive a beer that has a malty and/or wood flavor. Because the use of hops is amplified in the US, most pale ales will have a spicy flavor.
Pilsner
Pilsners are pale beers that tend to have simple flavors. They contain a strong taste of hops and are also very fragrant. In most cases, pilsners have very bitter and also flavorful tastes.
Porter
Porters are very dark beers. Roasted barley and roasted malts are used to create this beer and provide the flavors and aromas. Slow fermenting yeast is also used to create porters. Most porters will possess a roasted, coffee or chocolate flavor.
Stout
Stouts are a dark beer that were derived from porters. Stouts are created using black unmalted barley in order to provide the color, aroma and flavor. When pouring, the head of the stout should be tan or brown in color and very thick. The flavors of stout beers are heavily roasted, and you will often notice a hint of licorice, chocolate, coffee or even molasses. With stouts, you will never taste any hops.
Wheat
Wheat beers use a mixture of wheat and barley grains in order to create the flavor. These beers tend to be cloudy in appearance, and you will not taste much, if any, hops. In fact, with a wheat beer, you are more likely to taste a yeast flavor than anything else, and it’s the yeast that provides the aroma for this type of beer as well.
So instead of ordering a boring old beer the next time you’re out with friends, use this information to learn about the different types of beers to determine which ones you would like best. Then, use this information to make smarter beer drinking decisions and impress your friends.
