Whether you're a lady or a lad, if you're out with a group of beer lovin' pals, there are just a few things you need to know to fit into a beer-centric conversation. The following are my top five snippets of knowledge for such a situation:
1. Ale vs. Lager
When you're breaking down your beers, the first fork in the road is whether you're drinking an ale or a lager. Lagers are brewed using bottom fermenting yeasts, which ferment at cooler temperatures. Meanwhile, ales are brewed using top fermenting yeasts, which require warmer temperatures for proper fermentation. The cooler temperature at which lagers ferment inhibits the formation of fermentation byproducts that make a beer smell and taste stronger. Therefore, lagers tend to be cleaner and lighter, with a lower alcohol content. Most of the well known beer brands we see in the supermarket (Budweiser, Coors, etc.) are lagers. If you want to discover the true variety of flavors beer has to offer, you need to find a bar or store with more ales available.
2. Is it Hoppy?
If you're anything like I was before I ventured into the world of beer, you've probably heard people describe a beer as "hoppy" and wondered what on earth they were talking about. A hoppy beer refers to the perceived intensity of hops, one of beer's main ingredients, Hops are the female flowers of the hop plant, and they bring both bitterness and distinct flavors to beer. Each hop variety has its own flavor, aroma, and level of bitterness, but in general, hops will smell and taste intensely earthy, resinous, grassy, citrusy, and/or floral, and will also bring a good amount of bitterness to the beer. A bitter beer might sound distasteful to some, but hop bitterness can actually be a delightful quality if balanced well with other flavors. India Pale Ales (IPAs) are the hoppiest of beers, with American Pale Ales arguably coming in second.
3. Complexity
Just like wine, beer has a variety of flavors and aromas layered on top of one another. Some beers, like Lite Lagers, taste fairly simple and clean, but a diverse flavor profile is a desirable trait for most beer styles. When you smell and taste your beer, you are sensing compounds produced by malt, hops, and yeast. A beer's flavor and aroma can remind a person of an infinite number of edibles, the most common being coffee, citrus or dark fruit, caramel, chocolate, and spices such as cloves and coriander. Remarking on a beer's complexity should never be intimidating--each of us senses things differently, so there is never a right or wrong answer as to what you are tasting and smelling. And the more beer you drink thoughtfully, the more your palate will be able to pick up. Very complex beers often have higher alcohol contents, and are sometimes referred to as "big beers." For me personally, the bigger the beer, the better!
4. Dark vs. Light
Even though there are over eighty different specified beer styles, the color of your beer can give you a clue as to what you're getting yourself into, and many people do find that they prefer either light, or dark beers. Light colored beers include lagers and pilsners, which are simple and malty; pale ales, which are crisp and hoppy, and wheat beers, which are sweet and fruity. Meanwhile, dark beers include brown ales, which can be toasty and nutty, porters and stouts, which can be roasty and chocolaty; and dark Belgian ales, which have flavors reminiscent of dark fruit, such as cherries or plums. "Big beer" lovers like me tend to favor dark beers, but are also often "hop heads" (beer geek slang for folks who love very hoppy beers), and will therefore cross over to the light side to indulge in IPAs.
5. Can a Beer be Just Plain Bad?
Tastes in beer are extremely subjective--a style one person loathes can easily be a style someone else loves. Therefore, the only time a beer can really be indisputably "bad," is when it has become infected during the brewing process or has developed "off flavors" due to being oxidized, old, or exposed to too much light (the reason why most beer comes in brown bottles is because clear and green bottles let in more light). There are some beer connoisseurs, however (myself included), who argue that big name beers, such as Bud Light and Michelob Ultra, are simply no good. These beers are brewed with quantity over quality in mind, and mass production requires cutting out the time and money required to create and produce a really good recipe. So, if you think you hate beer, seek out a style you've never heard of before. You will likely be surprised to find that it tastes nothing like those big brands you're used to.
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