So you've noticed how beer is taking off in popularity lately, and it's not the big commercial brands that are getting all the good attention - it's the microbreweries that specialize in finely crafted beers with flavor and body. Now you want to know what's going on and what you might want to try.
Beer is made of Barley Malt, Yeast, Hops and Water. Of course there are variations of type and ratio as well as fermentation temperature that will result in different styles of beer. A starch (barley, wheat) source is steeped in the water and this creates what is called wort. Now you can have fermentation of sugars and some time during this process hops are added for flavoring and because they are a natural preservative.
Beer is made of Barley Malt, Yeast, Hops and Water. Of course there are variations of type and ratio as well as fermentation temperature that will result in different styles of beer. A starch (barley, wheat) source is steeped in the water and this creates what is called wort. Now you can have fermentation of sugars and some time during this process hops are added for flavoring and because they are a natural preservative.
Beer Basics
Lager is a beer of German and Central European origin and it's name is derived from the German word lagern, which means 'to store' - it was stored in caves to ferment. Some other forms of lager are pilsener, vienna and marzen. Lagers differ from ales in many ways including fermentation process. Lagers are produced using bottom-fermenting yeasts that ferment at colder temperatures - 45 - 55 degrees fahrenheit.
An American Lager is less malty and less hoppy than some others. The color is lightest of the beers. Pilsener is similar but a little more bitter than lager. Darker in color, more malty and less hoppy is the marzen or Oktoberfest beer. Amber lagers are darker than lagers and have a sweet, malt flavor.
An American Lager is less malty and less hoppy than some others. The color is lightest of the beers. Pilsener is similar but a little more bitter than lager. Darker in color, more malty and less hoppy is the marzen or Oktoberfest beer. Amber lagers are darker than lagers and have a sweet, malt flavor.
The Ale is a darker, fuller-bodied beer with notes of fruit flavors or even coffee. Some Ales are Stout, Brown, Porter, Pale and Amber. For dark ales the malt is toasted. The Stout will typically have notes of coffee and chocolate while the Porter takes on roasted notes with hints of toffee and nuts. Brown ales typically have a good nutty character with high malt flavors. Amber ales are usually smooth and well balanced.
Ales are typically brewed using a top-fermenting yeast that ferments at warmer temperatures than the lager yeasts. At these higher temperatures - 70 degrees fahrenheit - esters are produced in the fermentation process and this results in some notes of citrus and fruit.
India Pale Ale or IPA was a type of ale produced by the British to be lighter in body and flavor and to survive the ocean voyage to India in the days of the British Raj.
Hefeweizen is a German wheat beer that is brewed like an ale but with wheat (in place of or in addition to barley) and some added flavoring elements thrown in during the process - apricot and orange are common. Also the yeasts are not filtered out after fermentation resulting in a cloudy beer.
Ales are typically brewed using a top-fermenting yeast that ferments at warmer temperatures than the lager yeasts. At these higher temperatures - 70 degrees fahrenheit - esters are produced in the fermentation process and this results in some notes of citrus and fruit.
India Pale Ale or IPA was a type of ale produced by the British to be lighter in body and flavor and to survive the ocean voyage to India in the days of the British Raj.
Hefeweizen is a German wheat beer that is brewed like an ale but with wheat (in place of or in addition to barley) and some added flavoring elements thrown in during the process - apricot and orange are common. Also the yeasts are not filtered out after fermentation resulting in a cloudy beer.
Beer is one of the world's oldest drinks and it comes in many styles. If you've ever wondered about the different types of beer available this is a good place to start.
Beer
Lager
Ale
Lambic
This is a Belgian style of beer that utilized 'spontaneous fermentation'. All this means is that instead of the brewer inserting a cultivated or specific, commonly used yeast the beer is allowed to ferment with the yeasts that are naturally present in the environment.
Food pairing? Great idea! Go to the Wine page and think of lagers as white wine and ales as red wine. This is a good basic guide. It's quite possible we'll add a beer and food pairing table here in the near future.
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