Select the first letter of the word from the list above to jump to
appropriate section of the glossary. If the style you are looking for starts with a digit
or symbol, choose the '#' link.
When examining the different styles of beer, it is important to remember a little
recent history of beer. Before the Industrial Revolution, beer was brewed for a particular
family, neighborhood or town, religious event or festival. The local drinking water was
not always safe, but beer made the water safe and was often consumed. The local breweries
used local ingredients and the beer had local flavor. Accordingly, the cost of the
ingredients determine the cost of the final beer, so everyday beer was made from as little
malt and other ingredients as possible and was less expensive.
- abbey style
Fruity strong Ale made by secular brewers in Belgium, but modeled on the product of
the Trappist abbeys.
- ale
The complex fruity accent comes from relatively quick, warm fermentation, with a variety
of yeast that rises to the top of the fermentation vessel . This procedure, known as
top-fermentation, defines an ale. Color and strength vary and there are many types. Mostly
associated with Britain, Ireland and Scotland there are many varieties. Old Ale, India
Pale Ale, Mild Ale, Bitter Ale, Pale Ale, Brown Ale, Barley Wine, Scotch Ale and Belgian
Ale. Even some German specialty beers such as Alt beer from Dusseldorf and Kolsch of
Cologne may be considered ales.-
- Altbier
- German word for "old". Altbier usually means a copper-colored, clean-tasting
German Ale of the style especially associated with the German city of Dusseldorf. A smooth
all malt beer with a well rounded hop character. For sociable drinking, or with appetizers
of strong cheese of coarse sausage. The German glass used is similar to that used for a
highball. Ideal serving temperature is just under 50F (10C).
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- Americian Ales
- Enjoying a resurgence of popularity, especially in the west, these ales are generally
firm and crisp with a floral hop character. See Cream Ale.
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- Barley Wine
- English term for a very strong Ale. Heavy and malty with a fruitiness imparted by the
ale yeast. Traditionally conditioned in the cask, these are best served at room
temperature as an after dinner drink\dessert beer.
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- Beer
- Any fermented drink made primarily from malted grain and seasoned with hops. Lagers,
Ales, Stouts and other styles are all beers.
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- Berliner Weisse
- Acidic, refreshing, light-bodied style of Wheat Beer made in Berlin, Germany. Low in
alcohol. Serve in a Champagne saucer as an elegant summer quencher, laced with a dash of
raspberry syrup. Chill lightly. (45-50F; 7-10C)
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- Belgian Ale
- Similar to an English pale ale, but with more malt and yeast character. This style
includes Flemish brown ale, Belgian red, Saison, Belgian golden ale, Trappist.
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- Belgian Brown Ale
- With a very much a sweet-sour to sweet character, these can be particularly complex.
Often these will have a hint of caramelization. These are excellent "cooking"
beers. (Beers used in food recipes).
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- Belgian Golden Ale
- Golden in color, these ales are fruity, hoppy and strong.
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- Belgian Red Ale
- Aged in wooden vessels, these are tart, sharp beers Burgundy in color. Thin yet firm in
body. Extremely refreshing.
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- Bire de Garde (beers to keep)
- Style made in northern France, especially the northwest. Broadly of the Ale type. Medium
to strong in alcohol. Originally brewed in late winter/early spring and stored for summer
consumption. Traditionally top-fermented, although some brews employ hybrid lager yeasts
at warm temperatures, and occasionally bottle conditioned. Fruity with a malt accent. Good
with soft, sharp, or herb cheeses. Serve at a natural cellar temperature. (50-55F; 10-13C)
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- Bitter
- Most popular British-style dry Ale, often served on draft. A sociable drink, ideally
enjoyed in a pub from a plain pint glass. Usually low in gravity and alcohol. Should be
served at around 54-55F; 12-13C.
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- Black Beer
- An extremely dark (opaque) Lager with a drying finish and strong tastes of bitter
chocolate, coffee or toffee. Not as rounded, softly roasted or nutty as Mexican oscuras,
German Dunkels, and other "dark lagers".
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- Blended Beer
- Lagers or Ales (or a combination of the two) produced by blending various individual
beers. The pre-blend brews can be different styles or stronger/weaker, aged/fresh versions
of the same style.
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- Bock
- Strong Lager served as a warming beer in late winter, early spring, or autumn, depending
upon the part of the world. Color varies. Classically served at not less than 48F; 9C,
from a stoneware mug. In Germany, sometimes served with the seasoned veal sausage
Weisswurst.
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- Brown Ale
- In Britain there are styles of varying degrees of sweetness. Initially brewed to compete
with the pale ales. These go well with desserts or nuts. Belgium has a sweet-sour type
made around the town of Oudenaarde. This type is more often served as an aperitif. Both
are served at 55F ;13C.
- Cream Ale
- A very mild, sweetish, pale-golden to golden beer with a hint of fruitiness, fermented
at warm temperatures with either "true" ale yeast or hybrid/lager yeast. Made in
the North America as a response to the public's increasing desire for lager. A sociable
brew. Serve at 45-50F; 7-10C.
- Dampfbier
- German for "steam beer". These beers are generally fruity and soft in bodyand
a dark straw color. Not the same brewing procedure as the unique Anchor Steam beers of
California. These beers had some sort of connection with steam engines (shipping, power
for the brewery, etc.) and some even employed lager and ale yeasts in the primary and
secondary fermentations of each product, although none have survived.
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- Dark Beer
- This term usually refers to the Munich Dark type. Beyond that, it is to general to have
any meaning.
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- Diat Pils
- Usually made for diabetics, not dieters. An unusually thorough fermentation eats up the
carbohydrates, but in the process creates alcohol. This procedure makes for a strongish,
very dry beer. It could be applied to any style of beer, but the best known examples are
adaptations of the Pilsner type.
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- Dopplebock
- "Double" Bock. Extra strong style of Lager, especially associated with
Bavaria, Germany. Very rich. Offered in late winter as a warming beer. Serve at 50F; 10C.
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- Dort
- Abbreviation indicating a beer affecting the Dortmunder Export style. Used in the
Netherlands and Belgium.
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- Dortmunder
- Any beer brewed in Dortmund, Germany. However, the city is especially associated with
the Export style. Less astringent than a good pilsner, yet sharper on the tongue than a
good helles.
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- Dry Stout
- Black and creamy, roasty with hop bitterness and fruity acidity. These are complex
beers.
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- Dunkel
- "Dark" in German.
- Export
- In Germany, pale lager that is dryer than the Munich type but less hoppy than a pilsner
and slightly stronger than either. Good with salads, fish, or chicken. Serve at 48F; 8-9C.
Elsewhere, the term means simply, "premium".
- Faro
- Sweet version of a Belgian Lambic. A mid-afternoon or early-evening restorative. Serve
at natural cellar temperature.
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- Framboise/Frambozen
- Raspberry Lambic. An elegant drink with which to welcome guests. Serve lightly chilled
in Champagne flutes.
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- Fruit\Vegetable Beers
- Beers, generally ales, that are brewed, re-fermented or flavored with fruits or
vegetables (cherries, chili peppers, pumpkins, etc.). Concentrated extracts are frequently
used. (Mexicali)
- Gueuze
- Blended Lambic. Sparkling, winey and sharp, sometimes with rhubarb notes. In its
nativeBelgium, served at natural cellar temperature in a fluted tumbler. Favored with
Sunday lunch, or with an appetizer of blood sausage.
- Hefe-
- German prefix meaning "yeast". Indicates a sedimented beer.
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- Hell/Helles
- "Pale" (ie golden), in German.
- Imperial ("Russian") Stout
- Strong, rich Stout, with fruity, "burnt currant' character. A festive drink for
winter holidays or as a nightcap. Serve at room temperature.
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- India Pale Ale
- Fruity, hoppy, super-premium Pale Ale. serve at 55F; 13C. Good with red meat, Cheddar
cheese.
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- Irish Ale
- Malty with an apparent fruitiness. Sometimes with a buttery note, these beers are soft
and rounded, reddish in color.
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- Kolsch
- Delicate, dry, lightly fruity golden Ale made in the Cologne area of Germany. A good
aperitif or digestive. In Cologne, often served with an appetizer of Mettwurst made from
raw minced beef.
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- Kriek
- Cherry Lambic with some almond dryness. Elegant welcoming drink or aperitif. Serve
lightly chilled in Champagne flutes.
- Lager
- In some countries, the term "Lager" is applies to the most basic beers. In
general, any bottom fermenting beer is a Lager.
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- Lagales
- a hybrid. Ales that experience a lengthy lager-like period of cold maturation and, as a
result, a softening of their ale characteristics. Examples: German Kolsch and Altbiers; a
few French Bieres de Garde.
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- Lambic
- In palate, sometimes reminiscent of a Chardonnay, a Manzanilla, or even a dry vermouth.
Spontaneously-fermenting beer from Belgium. Serve at natural cellar temperature with
sharp-tasting cheese, radishes, coarse bread.
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- Light Ale
- In England, an alternative term for a bottled Bitter. In Scotland, a dark Ale of low
gravity. Not intended to imply a low-calorie brew. For sociable drinking.
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- Light Beer
- American low calorie beer. A somewhat "lighter' version of the Pilsner style. Serve
at 45F; 7C.
- Maibock
- Bock beer made to celebrate Spring. Usually pale and of super-premium quality.
Classically served at not less than 48F; 9C.
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- Malt Liquor
- American term for a strong Lager.
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- Marzen
- Medium-strong, full-colored, malt-accented Lager. Especially associated with late
September and the Oktoberfest. Serve at 48F; 9C. Good with chicken, pork or spicy foods.
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- Mild
- English term for a lightly-hopped Ale, usually of low strength, and sometimes dark.
Generally sweet and not bitter. Generally around 3.8% alcohol by volume, this beer is
designed to be consumed in quantity. Normally served on draft in the pub, at natural
cellar temperature. A sociable beer.
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- Milk Stout
- Also known as cream stouts. With lactose, milk, added, these beers are lower in alcohol
and lower in carbonation and have a soft sweetness.
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- Munich Dark/Pale
- The Munich brewers traditionally produce dark Lagers, with a spicy malt-coffeeish
palate. The term "Munchener" is generally taken to mean this type of beer, which
can go well chicken or pasta dishes. Today, the city also extensively produces pale
Lagers, but with a distinctively malty accent. Sociable beers. Serve at 48F; 9C.
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- Oktoberfest
- See Marzen.
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- Old Ale
- In Britain, this term is sometimes used to indicate a medium-strong dark Ale that ages
in the bottle. The beer develops considerably as it conditions in the bottle, some for
twenty or so years. The slow work of the yeast in the bottle may increase the alcohol
content by ten percent or more. These beers are most often consumed in winter. In
Australia, any dark Ale may be identified as "Old".
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- Oatmeal Stout
- Once vanished now revived, this beer has a firm body that is smooth and silky. It has a
chocolate-coffee flavor with a hint of nuttiness. Most are slightly sweeter than dry, but
all fall in-between.
- Pale Ale
- Fruity, copper-colored style of Ale originating in England. This beer emphasizes the
malt as opposed to the bitter ale which emphasizes the hop. Serve at 55F; 13C. Good with
red meat, Cheddar cheese.
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- Peat Smoked Beer
- Inspired by Scotlands whisky producers, several breweries now include peat-smoked malt
in the grist of special ales and lagers.
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- Pilsner/Pilsner/Pils
- Classically, a super-premium pale Lager with a fragrant, flowery bouquet, a soft palate
and an elegantly dry, hoppy finish. Modeled on the original from Pilsen. Serve at 48F; 9C.
Good as an aperitif or with fish dishes. The term is more broadly applied to any
ostensibly dry pale Lager of conventional gravity.
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- Porter
- A roasty dark, almost black, fruity-dry, top-fermenting style, originally from London.
The lighter counterpart to stout, Once called "entire", it was meant to combine
the characteristics of several contemporary beers. (around 1772) Good with oysters, other
shellfish and crustaceans or salt-cured fish.
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- Rauchbier(Smoked beer)
- A malty, slightly oily Lager produced, using beechwood smoked malt, especially around
the German city of Bamberg and elsewhere in the Bavarian region of Franconia. This style
has recently been adopted by new brewers outside of Germany. Good with smoked meats and
sausages. Rauchbiers are also beginning to denote ales made with wood smoked malt.
Oak-smoked ales are a minor tradition in rural Poland, and several craft-brewers produce
ales whose malt has been smoked over a variety of woods (alder, cherry, maple, apple,
etc.) There are three broad categories of beers with smoky aromas and flavors:
- Rauchbier, Peat-smoked beer and stone beer. These beers go well with smoked meats and
sharp cheeses.
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- Rye Beer
- This is a beer brewed with a significant proportion of rye (malted or unmalted) in
addition to barley. Rye is assertively flavored, yeilding spicy notes. It is a staple
ingredient in eastern European brewes like Finnish Sahti and Russian Kvass. Although
several craft brewers occasionally produce rye beers. the only widely available example is
Germany's Sclierlinger Roggen. Serve with salt-dried meats, deli-style meals.
- Saison
- Sharply refreshing, faintly sour summer Ale from the French-speaking southern part of
Belgium. Sometimes seasoned with spices or Herb's. Medium strong.
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- Scotch Ale
- Scotland's Ales are generally malty with a full body. In the rest of the world, Scottish
brewers are especially known for strong examples. Serve at 55F; 13C after a meal or as a
nightcap.
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- Smoked Beers
- There are three broad categories of beers with smoky aromas and flavors:
- Rauchbier, Peat-smoked beer and stone beer. These beers go well with smoked meats and
sharp cheeses.
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- Spiced Beer
- Beers (generally ales) that are seasoned with herbs and/or spices in addition to hops. A
practice developed in the early days of brewing, this method had two purposes: to
aromatize the malty brew (frequently to obscure spoilage odors); and, as with hops, to
balance its sweetness. Modern brewers add spices for flavor and complexity.
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- Steam Beer
- Name "Steam Beer" trademarked in the United States and some other countries by
the Anchor brewery of San Francisco for its unique hybrid fermentation of Ale and Lager.
Amber in color with a malt accent named after a "technical/historical anecdote: 19th
century California brewers, lacking the ice or refrigeration equipment for proper lager
brewing, employed lager yeasts at warm "ale" temperatures. The resulting lively
fermentation - in wide, shallow vessels ("clarifiers") which cooled the brew -
and subsequent krausening created a highly-carbonated beer which, when tapped, gave a
steam-like hiss. Serve at not less than 45F; 7C. A sociable beer or aperitif. In countries
where the name has not been protected, other brewers have launched "California common
beers". Examples: Anchor Steam Beer, New England Atlantic Amber.
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- Steinbier (Stone beer)
- Hot stones (700 - 1200 degrees C ) were placed in the brew kettle as a way to pre-heat
pre-industrial wooden brew kettles, and was reintroduced commercially in the early 1980's
by German producer Rauchenfels.
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- Stout
- Almost black, roasty brew made from by top fermentation. English Stout is often sweet,
and is a good mid-afternoon restorative. Good with oysters. Best not chilled.
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- Sweet Stout
- These are stouts which are fortified with sugar to make them sweeter.
- Trappist
- Strong, fruity, sedimented ales made only by Trappist monks in Belgium and the
Netherlands. Some have a Port like character. Top fermented and bottle conditioned, some
can be dry and some can be sweet. Serve at room temperature in a goblet. Do not store
chilled. Good with blue cheeses.
- Ur/Urquell
- "Original source of" in Czecheslovakian.
- Vienna
- Reddish-amber, sweetish, malt accented Lager, originally brewed in Vienna but the
inspiration of the German Marzenbier. Good with pork, chicken, spicy dishes such as
Mexican food.
- Wiesse/Weissbier/Weizenbier
- German words for "white" or Wheat beers. For the northern German style, see
Berliner Weisse. Southern examples are served in a tall, vase shaped glass, have notes of
apple, plum, and perhaps clove. Sharply fruity, refreshing summer beers. Sometimes offered
with elderberry fritters. Serve lightly chilled. A slice of lemon as a garnish is
optional.
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- Wheat Bok
- Recently developed Dutch interpretation of a German bock beer. Brewed with a significant
proportion of wheat (tarwe in Dutch).
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- White Beer (Wit)
- General term for Wheat Beers. Apart from the German styles, Belgium has Muscat-like
white beers originating from the Brabant region of Belgium. Often spiced with coriander
and curaco', these are excellent refreshing beers that have a natural "white"
haze. Serve chilled. Often a dessert beer. A summertime favorite.
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- Wood-Aged Beers
- These are beers aged for long periods in untreated wooden vessels. These brewes are
generally very complex as a result of the "woodiness" the beer recieves from
contact with the wood and also from the exposure to micro-organisms in the wood. Often
described as leathery and sour.
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