When five o’clock rolls around after a long, hard day of work, nothing sounds quite as good as heading home and cracking open a cold one. After all, you’ve earned it. But when you get to your fridge, which do you reach for: a pale ale or a stout? Do you even know what those … Read more
There are hundreds of craft beer styles you can find at breweries and in the local liquor store. You can tell the difference between a stout and a sour, but there are craft beer styles that taste and look very similar. If you’re not a beer enthusiast, chances are you don’t know the difference between … Read more
Renowned for being some of the strongest beers, stouts are complex brews, often appreciated by only the most daring beer enthusiasts. However, there are many sides to this mysterious lord of beers. And surprisingly, it isn’t always as dark and alcohol-heavy as people make it out to be. Stouts come in many varieties, ranging from … Read more
I got this out of a Cooks Illustrated Cookbook a while back. It’s the best Beer Batter I’ve tried. I like a flavorful lager, like Brooklyn Brewing Company’s Brooklyn Lager, or a good Mexican lager, like Pacifico in this batter. Here is the recipe: 1.5 cups all purpose flour .5 cup cornstarch .5 tsp paprika … Read more
NOTE: In the 2015 BJCP Style Guidelines, Northern German Altbier no longer exists as a separate style. Both Altbiers, Northern German and Dusseldorf have been combined into one Style 7B in Category 7 Amber Bitter European Beer which groups amber-colored, evenly balanced to bitter balanced beers of German or Austrian origin. Use the information below as reference only and … Read more
NOTE: In the 2015 BJCP Style Guidelines, Imperial IPA is now designated as Style 22A Double IPA in Category 22 Strong American Ale which includes modern American strong ales with a varying balance of malt and hops. The category is defined mostly by alcohol strength and a lack of roast. The information below is still valid, but if you are … Read more
NOTE: In the 2015 BJCP Style Guidelines, Northern English Brown is replaced by Style 13B British Brown Ale in Category 13 Brown British Beer, which describe the modern versions. They are grouped together for judging purposes only since they often have similar flavors and balance, not because of any implied common ancestry. The similar characteristics are low to moderate strength, dark color, … Read more
NOTE: In the 2015 BJCP Style Guidelines, Schwarzbier is reclassified as Style 8B in Category 8 Dark European Lager which contains German vollbier lagers darker than amber-brown color. Schwarzbier Description and Brewing Tips Schwarzbier is one of my favorite styles to drink. Its name means “black beer” in German. This beer has wonderfully mild, almost bittersweet notes of chocolate, coffee, and … Read more
NOTE: In the 2015 BJCP Style Guidelines, Weizenbier weissbier has been reclassified as Category 10 German Wheat Beer which contains vollbier- and starkbier-strength German wheat beers without sourness, in light and dark colors. Weizenbier-Weissbier are German wheat beers and by law must be made with at least 50% malted wheat. You will find, however, that most Bavarian Wheat beers … Read more
Tasting and Judging For Style of Beer Evaluating beer is an art as much as a science. We are judging beer every time we drink, whether we realize it or not. Evaluation is something that can be learned, with practice and a little knowledge of the descriptors and terminology. I want to present you with … Read more