Knowing Your Beer
How do beers from different breweries differ?
Think of a brewery as a restaurant or as a kitchen, with a different chef in charge. Each of the different chefs are coming up with their own recipes. They may produce the same dish, but each dish will taste slightly different because they're using slightly different ingredients, using slightly different recipes and they have their own special know how and processes that they go through. An additional fact, that's important when gauging the flavor of one brewery's beer over another is the use of yeast. Many breweries cherish their yeasts. They bring individual characteristics of flavor to their beers. And they look after them for generations because they are the thumbprint, the taste pattern, if you like, for beers from that brewery.
How do beers from different countries differ?
All countries have their own indigenous beer culture, with beer styles that they've made their own over centuries. In this international brewing world, we're finding these days that beer styles are being copied all over the world. In America, they'll brew Belgian Ales. In Britain, we'll brew German style lagers. The picture's become rather confused in the last 20, 30 years or so.
Why does the taste of beer vary so much?
The taste of beer is dependent on the ingredients that are used, and the recipes that are used to combine the ingredients; basically the processes. This can include the amount of time the beer is boiled at the brewery, how long fermentation takes place, the affect of the yeast, and particularly the know how of the brewer and the art that he brings to his job.
What should I look out for when trying a beer?
When tasting a beer, you really don't want to find something that's bland and boring. You want to find things that are of interest in the beer. So look for interesting characteristics: hoppy flavours, malty flavours. The effect of the yeast on fermentation can bring some lovely, fruity, floral flavours to a beer as well. So look for something that's a little bit different. Don't accept middle of the road blandness.
Where can I get interesting beer these days?
The choice of beer drinkers has improved considerably in recent years. Not just traditional real ales, there are now several hundred breweries in Britain producing thousands of interesting real ales. If you seek out pubs that specialise in real ales, you will invariably find interesting beer; but you'll also find, in other bars too, continental beers coming in that are rather interesting and worth looking at as well.
Which beers will give me less of a hangover?
Hangovers are invariably the result of overindulgence, drinking too many beers, perhaps drinking strong beers, or mixing your drinks. So if you want to drink beer and not have hangover moderation is the key. Try to find beers that are lower in strength, that doesn't mean to say they need to be lower in flavor, but a mild or a bitter of around three and a half percent, a few of those and you shouldn't be suffering too much from a hangover. Stronger beers invariably will give you more of a headache.
Are there any good non-alcoholic beers?
The problem with non-alcoholic beer is that by definition they don't have any alcohol in them, and alcohol you need to provide fullness of body and roundness of flavor. So many brewers do a fine job in recreating other beer flavors, other aspects of the beer drink, the happiness perhaps, or the malty flavors, but they all lack that roundness that comes from having alcohol in them. So, to find a really good non-alcoholic beer is rather difficult. That doesn't mean to say there aren't some good beers that are worth trying if you are being sensible, don't want to drink, and particularly of course, if you want to drive home afterwards.
Are there any good beers out of a can?
The problem with canned beer is that it's had a reputation over the years of being a container for inferior beer. Some of the worst beers from the breweries have actually gone into cans as opposed to being served draft and fresh in a pub. The other problem with cans is that some people think that they actually taint the flavor of the beer because they're metallic and they bring a metallic note to the beer. And also, any beer in a can is, by definition, pasteurized and filtered, and isn't as fresh as draft beer in a pub. But that doesn't mean to say cans can't sometimes work. In America, for example, now some of the microbreweries are experimenting with putting beer back into can again, so they're worth looking out for.
Are there any good bottled beers?
There are thousands of good bottled beers. Some are versions of draught beers put into a bottle, but some are specifically brewed to be packaged, stored, and served from a bottle. Some beers are very strong, contain yeast, and are allowed to mature for many years. There's a beer called Thomas Hardy's Ale from O'Hanlon's Brewery in Devon, which is 11.7% and is a beer that if allowed to mature for years in a bottle, will change its flavors as the various yeast, malt, hop characteristics change in character as the beer gets older.
Where can I get advice on beers?
For good advice on beers, it's worth seeking out an independent beer shop; independent off license shops that specialize in beers. There are dozens of these all over the country. You go into one of the shops and it's like a child going back into a sweet shop. There is just so much choice there that you don't know where to start. The owners invariably tend to be very knowledgeable about beer. They can guide you in the right direction if you are looking for a good quality German lager, perhaps, or a hoppy American micro beer, or just a good old British ale.
What's the difference between ales and lager?
The world of brewing divides basically into two halves, ale brewing and lager brewing. It's all to do with fermentation and how the yeast reacts and how it works at the brewery. For ale fermentation, a yeast is used which tends to sit on top of the beer as it's fermenting. It also works at a warmer temperature, so you get more rounded, fuller, fruitier flavors, floral flavors perhaps coming off an ale fermentation. Lager fermentation uses a yeast which tends to sink to the bottom of the beer as it's fermenting it and works at much lower temperatures. With the other aspect of lager production, which is storing the beer for weeks, if not months, at very low temperatures so that the yeast continues to nibble away and round out the rough edges of the beer, that produces a crisper, cleaner flavor than you will get from an ale.
Are there really fish by products in beer?
Beer is an interesting drink for vegetarians in that most of the ingredients of course are vegetarian. Malt, hops, water, and yeast are all fine for vegetarians to consume. One aspect of the beer drinking process and beer making process which is of some concern, is where they find the beer. Which is to try to make the bigger clear. They add a substance in which is made from part of a fish, which actually attracts all the bits of the yeast, like a magnet, and draws it to the bottom of the cask. That makes the beer clear and all the residue sits at the bottom of the cask. But inevitably it is a concern for some vegetarians of having this fish substance, in their beer.
