What to look for... There are five categories to evaluating a beer:
APPEARANCE Note the beer's color, carbonation, head, and its retention. Is it clear or cloudy ? Does it look lackluster and dull OR alive and inviting ? SMELL Bring the beer to your nose, note the beer's aromatic qualities.
Yeast will also create aromas. You might get fruity or flowery aromas from ales and very clean aromas from lagers, which will allow the malt and hop subtleties to pull through.
TASTE Take a deep sip of the beer. Note any flavors or interpretations of flavors that you might discover. The descriptions will be similar to what you smell. Is the beer built well ? Is there a balance between the ingredients ? Was the beer brewed with a specific dominance of character in mind ? How does it fit the style ?
MOUTHFEEL Take another sip and let it wander. Note how the beer feels on the palate and its body. Light, heavy, chewy, thin / watery, smooth, or coarse ? Was the beer flat or over-carbonated ?
DRINKABILITY The beer's overall ease of consumption and your overall impression of the beer. Would you have another ?
What's a beer style ? Simply put, a beer style is a label given to a beer that describes its overall character and often times is origin. It's a name badge that has been achieved over many centuries of brewing, trial and error, marketing, and consumer acceptance. Our styles reflect our spin on the constantly evolving world of beer, with non-geek descriptions broken down for all to understand.
What's an ALE ? This category of beer uses yeast that ferments at the top of the fermentation vessel, and typically at higher temperatures than lager yeast, which as a result makes for a quicker fermentation period. Ale yeast are known to produce by-products called esters which are "flowery" and "fruity" aromas ranging (but not limited to) apple, pear, pineapple, grass, hay, plum, and prune.
What's a LAGER ? The word lager comes from the German word "lagern" which means "to store". A perfect description as lagers are brewed with bottom fermenting yeast that work slowly and are often further stored at cool temperatures to mature. Lager yeast produce fewer by-product characters than ale yeast which allows for other flavors to pull through, such as hops.
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American Ales
American Amber / Red Ale
American Barleywine
American Blonde Ale
American Brown Ale
American Dark Wheat Ale
American Double / Imperial IPA
American Double / Imperial Stout
American IPA
American Pale Ale (APA)
American Pale Wheat Ale
American Porter
American Stout
American Strong Ale
American Wild Ale
Black & Tan
Chile Beer
Cream Ale
Pumpkin Ale
Rye Beer
Wheatwine
Belgian / French Ales
Belgian Dark Ale
Belgian IPA
Belgian Pale Ale
Belgian Strong Dark Ale
Belgian Strong Pale Ale
Biere de Champagne / Biere Brut
Biere de Garde
Dubbel
Faro
Flanders Oud Bruin
Flanders Red Ale
Gueuze
Lambic - Fruit
Lambic - Unblended
Quadrupel (Quad)
Saison / Farmhouse Ale
Tripel
Witbier
English Ales Baltic Porter Braggot English Barleywine English Bitter English Brown Ale English Dark Mild Ale English India Pale Ale (IPA) English Pale Ale English Pale Mild Ale English Porter English Stout English Strong Ale Extra Special / Strong Bitter (ESB) Foreign / Export Stout Milk / Sweet Stout Oatmeal Stout Old Ale Russian Imperial Stout Winter Warmer
Finnish Ales Sahti
German Ales Altbier Berliner Weissbier Dunkelweizen Gose Hefeqeizen Kristalweizen Kolsch Roggenbier Weizenbock
Irish Ales Irish Dry Stout Irish Red Ale
Russian Ales Kvass
Scottish Ales Scotch Ale / Wee Heavy Scottish Ale Scottish Gruit / Ancient Herbed Ale
American Lagers American Adjunct Lager American Amber / Red Lager American Double / Imperial Pilsner American Malt Liquor American Pale Lager California Common / Steam Beer Light Lager Low Alcohol Beer
Czech Lagers Czech Pilsener
European Lagers Euro Dark Lager Euro Pale Lager Euro Strong Lager
