Tips for Beer Tasting

TIPS FOR TASTING BEER….

Observe…pay attention to the beer’s color, clarity, and head    retention.

Agitate…swirl it to allow aromas to be amplified for a moment.

Inhale…try to identify the aromatics, is it sweet, spicy, floral or otherwise?

Taste…force the beer over your tastebuds, is it sweet, bitter, or balanced?

Aftertaste…Appreciate the aftertaste, as flavors can be quite different than the ones you tasted first. Aftertaste can be very pleasant indeed, to the point where you must taste the beer again!!!

Experts suggest, when tasting a number of beers, to let the color be your guide.  They say it is best to taste from light to dark.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ALE AND LAGER

All beer falls into two main categories:  Ale and Lager. 

Ale uses a strain of yeast that sits on top of the beer as it is fermenting.  A warmer temperature is needed for it to do it’s best work, and it finishes it’s fermentation fairly quickly.  It is difficult to describe a “typical” ale taste or aroma profile since they vary so much.  As a general rule the flavors are sweeter than lagers, and they often have a depth of flavors blending together.  Ales can present such tastes as citrus, flower, honey, spice, chocolate or roasted coffee.  

Lager uses “bottom-fermenting” yeast that sinks to the bottom of the tank and ferments there.  Lager ferments at a colder temperature, and ferments over a longer period so that the yeast continues to nibble away and round out the rough edges of the beer.  This produces a crisper, cleaner flavor than you will get from ale.  Lager is a German word, which means “to store” and refers to this longer fermenting time.

MORE INFORMATION FOR BEER TASTERS…

India Pale Ale (IPA) was developed in the 1700’s by British brewers who wanted to market their beer in India.  Most beer at the time turned sour and unpalatable by the time it reached India, but brewers found that by increasing the content of alcohol and hops in the beer, it would remain crisp and refreshing after the long trip to India.  India Pale Ale is popular in the United States where numerous breweries produce their own version of IPA.

Amber Ale is an American term describing brews ranging in color from light golden to deep red, and having flavors primarily determined by hops.  Sometimes it is described as ‘West Coast Ale’ where beers with more hops added are popular.  An amber ale goes well with meat dishes such as steak or hearty fish dishes, and it is an excellent beer to serve with pizza.

Dry Hopped Beer is essentially beer to which dried hops are added to containers of beer after they have been fermented.  Adding dry hops adds more flavor and aroma to beer without adding bitterness. 

Belgian White Beer, or witbier, is a popular summer drink that traditionally uses equal portions of barley and wheat.  It is technically an ale as it uses top fermenting yeast, but it is called white beer because yeast and wheat particles remain suspended in the final product, giving it a pale cast, especially when served cold.  It was originally brewed in monasteries, and Belgium has been known for witbier since the 14^th century.

Lambic, or spontaneously fermented beers are among the world’s rarest.  Produced more like a method champenoise champagne, than a typical beer, these products mature in oak for nearly two years prior to release. 

DID YOU KNOW? 

1. The oldest known written recipe is for beer.

2. The first Brewery in America was built in Hoboken, NJ in 1642

3. Tossing salted peanuts in a glass of beer makes the peanuts bounce.

4. If you collect beer bottles, you are a laberophilist.

5. The bubbles in a glass of Guinness go both up and down

6. “Cenosillicaphobia” is the fear of an empty glass.

7. Beer is 95% water.  Barley, hops and yeasts account for the other 5%.

8. Beer is the second most popular drink in the world, coming in behind tea.

9. Belgium has 400 brands of beer, the most of any country.

10. Beer is a source of B-complex vitamins!  So get healthy, drink up!

BEER FACTS AND TRIVIA…

The “Bayrisches Reinheitsgebot”, Bavarian Purity Law dates back to 1516 and is the oldest food law in existence.  This law decrees that only malt, hops and water can be used in the production of beer.   

Beers should be served at temperatures relating to the temperatures used for brewing.  Ales tend to release their flavors and aromas best at temperatures between 40 to 50º F. while lagers are best served cooler, such as 32 to 45º F.  A good lager is extremely refreshing on a warm day.

In the early days, before thermometers were invented, the brewers would dip a thumb or finger into the mix to find the right temperature for adding yeast.  Too cold and the yeast wouldn’t grow.  Too hot and it would die.  The thumb in the beer is where we get the phrase:

“Rule of Thumb”

Stiegl beer of Salzburg, Austria was first made the same year that Columbus discovered America.

Monks brewing beer in the Middle Ages were allowed to drink five quarts of beer a day. 

Root Beer was originally called Root Tea, but the name was changed to get more people interested in the product.  

President Theodore Roosevelt took more than 500 gallons of beer with him on an African Safari.

A bar or restaurant must brew 25% of its beer to be called a brew pub.

According to the people at Guinness, in Great Britain alone, 29,000 liters of beer are lost each year in beer drinker’s moustaches and beards.  They estimate that each pint is raised 10 times, and each time 0.56 m. is absorbed into facial hair.