Beer style
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Beer is produced in a variety of recipes or styles. These recipes have developed in different cultures throughout history. A beer's style is a label that describes the overall flavor and often the origin of a beer, according to a system that has evolved by trial and error over many centuries. A style of beer is defined by the ingredients used in its production, the method of production, and other factors.
Contents |
[edit] Elements of beer style
Beers are categorized based on a number of factors, including sensory characteristics, ingredients, historical tradition, and a set of measurements commonly referred to as vital statistics.
[edit] Sensory characteristics
[edit] Aroma
Smell characteristics that are most imporant to a beer include strength and type of aroma contributed by the malt and other fermentables, strength and type of hop aroma, alcohol, esters and various other aromatic components that can be contributed by the yeast strain, and other elements that derive from the water and the brewing process.
[edit] Flavor
The taste characteristics that are most important to a beer style are type and strength of malt flavor, sweetness, flavors imparted by the yeast, strength of bitterness (measured in IBU), and the type and strength of hop flavors.
[edit] Appearance
The visual characteristics that are most important to a beer style are color, clarity, and nature of the head. Color is usually imparted by the malts used, notably the adjunct malts added to darker beers, though other ingredients may contribute to the color of some styles such as fruit beers. Many beer styles are clear, but with some styles such as hefeweizen, some haze or cloudiness is acceptable or even expected. Thickness and retention of the head and the lace it can leave on the glass, are also factors in a beer's appearance.
[edit] Mouthfeel
The feel of a beer in the mouth, both from thickness of the liquid and from carbonation, are also important to a beer style. A more dextrinous beer feels thicker in the mouth. The level of carbonation varies from one beer style to another. For some beers it may give the beer a thick and creamy feel, while for others it contributes a prickly sensation.
[edit] Ingredients
[edit] Yeast
A variety of different yeasts are used in making beer, most of which are strains of either ale yeast or lager yeast. Different strains impart different flavor and aroma characteristics, and may vary in which complex sugars they can ferment and how high their alcohol tolerance is, both of which are factors in attenuation. Some styles use other yeast types in addition to one of these, such as Lactobacillus or Brettanomyces. For example, the distinctive flavor and aroma of Belgian Abbey ales largely result from the yeast strains used to ferment the beer. There are a few styles, notably lambics, where spontaneous fermentation is used.
[edit] Grains
Most beers use barley malt as their primary source of fermentable sugars, and some beer styles mandate it be used exclusively, such as those German styles developed under Reinheitsgebot. Pale malt is relatively uniform regardless of its source, though for some styles it is preferable to use malts from the region of the world where the beer style originated. Some adjunct malts, such as Munich and Vienna, impart specific flavor characteristics. Darker malts, including crystal malt, chocolate malt, black patent malt, and roasted barley, contribute unfermentable sugars and impart flavor, color, and aroma characteristics to a beer. Smoked malt is used in Rauchbier.
Some styles use one or more other grains as a key ingredient in the style, such as wheat beer, rye beer, or oatmeal stout. Other grains such as corn and rice make less of a flavor contribution and are used primarily as an added source of fermentable sugars.
[edit] Hops
Hops contribute bitterness, flavor and aroma to a beer in different ways depending on when they are added during the brewing process. How much hop bitterness and aroma is appropriate varies considerably between different beer styles. There are many varieties of hops, some of which are associated with beers from specific regions. For example, Saaz hops are associated with Czech Pilsners, Hallertau and Tettnanger are two of the "noble" hop varieties one expects to find in German beers, and Kent Goldings are an English variety.
[edit] Water
In most cases, water does not contribute to a beer's flavor, even though the dissolved mineral content does play a role in the chemistry of the brewing process. Some beers were traditionally brewed with hard water that contributed to the flavor, such as English ales from the Burton-on-Trent region.
[edit] Other ingredients
Fruits and spices are key ingredients in some beer styles. While fruit beers and herb beers are often listed as style categories unto themselves, fruits and spices are sometimes used to contribute to the flavor and aroma profile of other styles. Vegetables have also been used in beers. Honey, molasses, candy sugar, or other fermentable sugars may be added to impart their distinct flavors to a beer. While not an ingredient per se, some brewers have experimented with aging their beer in barrels previously used for bourbon or other distilled spirits, imparting the flavor of both the wood and the spirit to the beer.
Alcoholic beverages made from the fermentation of sugars derived from non-grain sources are generally not called "beer," despite being produced by the same yeast-based biochemical reaction. Fermented honey is called mead, fermented apple juice is called cider, fermented pear juice is called perry, and fermented grape juice is called wine. Chinese jiu and Japanese sake are made using much the same process as beer with one additional step in the fermentation as well as using rice instead of primarily barley malt.
[edit] History
Many styles of beer have a long history. Aspects of a beer style's history such as where it originated and what ingredients were available in that region, what time of year it was produced, where and when it was consumed and on what occasions, can aid a brewer in producing a beer that is true to a style and the traditions associated with it, and can greatly enhance the appreciation of that style for the consumer.
[edit] Vital statistics
There are several quantifiable characteristics of a beer, often referred to as vital statistics. These include:
- bitterness (IBU), the amount of bitterness imparted to a beer from the hops, as calculated by a moderately complex formula;
- color, as measured in (SRM);
- original specific gravity (OG) is a measure of the amount of sugars in a beer before fermentation;
- final specific gravity (FG) is a measure of the amount of unfermented sugars remaminig in a beer after fermentation;
- alcohol content by volume (ABV), which may be calculated from the OG and FG or measured directly.
[edit] Beer styles
[edit] Ale
- Main article: Ale
Ale is beer that is brewed using only top-fermenting yeasts, and is typically fermented at higher temperatures than lager beer (15–23°C, 60–75°F). Ale yeasts at these temperatures produce significant amounts of esters and other secondary flavor and aroma products, and the result is a flavourful beer with a slightly "flowery" or "fruity" aroma resembling but not limited to apple, pear, pineapple, grass, hay, banana, plum or prune.
Principal styles of ale include Barley Wine, Belgian Trippel, Belgian Dubbel, Bitter, Brown Ale, Pale Ale, Porter, Stout, and Wheat beer.
[edit] Lager
- Main article: Lager
Lagers are the most commonly consumed category of beer in the world. They are of Central European origin, taking their name from the German lagern ("to store"). Lager yeast is a bottom-fermenting yeast, and typically begins fermentation at 7-12°C (45-55°F) (the "fermentation phase"), and then stored at 0-4°C (30-40°F) (the "lagering phase"). During the secondary stage, the lager clears and mellows. The cooler conditions also inhibit the natural production of esters and other byproducts, resulting in a "crisper" tasting beer.
Modern methods of producing lager were pioneered by Gabriel Sedlmayr the Younger, who perfected dark brown lagers at the Spaten Brewery in Bavaria, and Anton Dreher, who began brewing a lager, probably of amber-red color, in Vienna, Austria, in 1840–1841. With modern improved fermentation control, most lager breweries use only short periods of cold storage, typically 1–3 weeks.
Most of today's lager is based on the Pilsner style, pioneered in 1842 in the town of Pilsen (Plzeň), in an area of the Austrian monarchy now located in the Czech Republic. The modern Pilsner lager is light in colour and high in carbonation, with a strong hop flavour and an alcohol content of 3–6% by volume. The Pilsner Urquell or Heineken brands of beer are typical examples of pilsner beer.
Principle styles of lager include American Lager, Bock, Märzen, Oktoberfest, Pilsner, Schwarzbier and Vienna Lager.
[edit] Spontaneous fermentation
- Main article: Lambic
These are beers which use wild yeasts, rather than cultivated ones. All beer was once brewed this way, but by the Middle Ages brewers had learned to crop the yeast from one brew and use it in the next. Only in a few isolated regions were wild yeasts still used.
[edit] Hybrid beers
Hybrid or mixed style beers use modern techniques and materials instead of, or in addition to, traditional aspects of brewing. Although there is some variation among sources, mixed beers generally fall into the following categories:
- Steam beers were invented by German immigrants living in California and are made with bottom-fermeting (lager) yeasts, but fermented at warmer (ale) temperatures. The name "steam beer" is a trademark of the Anchor Brewing Company, though other brewers brew this beer under the designation "California common".
- Fruit beers and vegetable beers are mixed with some kind of fermentable fruit or vegetable adjunct during the fermentation process, providing obvious yet harmonious qualities.
- Herb and spiced beers add herbs or spices derived from roots, seeds, fruits, vegetables or flowers instead of, or in addition to hops.
- Wood-aged beers are any traditional or experimental beer that has been aged in a wooden barrel or have been in contact with wood (in the form of chips, cubes or "beans") for a period of time (Oak is the most common). Oftentimes, the barrel or wood will be treated first with some variety of spirit or other alcoholic beverage--usage of bourbon, scotch and sherry are common.
- Smoked beers are any beer whose malt has been smoked. A smoky aroma and flavour is usually present. The most traditional examples of this style are the Rauchbiers of Bamberg, Germany. However, many brewers outside of Germany--most notably American craft brewers--have been adding smoked malt to porters, Scotch ale and a variety of other styles.
- Barrel-aged beer can impart oak and/or flavors such as whiskey, brandy, or rum, depending on whether, and what type of, liquor that the barrel previously contained. Less commonly, beers can be blended with a distilled alcohol such as whiskey or rum.
