See also The Basics.

HOW MANY STYLES OF BEER ARE THERE?

             There are only two types of beer: ale and lager. Ale is fermented using Saccharomyces Cerevisiae and Lager is fermented using Saccharomyces Carlsbergensis, syn. of Saccharomyces Pastorianus. (See YEAST)

Both of these types are the home of a number of styles. The determination of what constitutes a "style" has been generally codified by brewers and organizations such as the Association of Brewers, The Beer Judge Certification Program, CAMRA, and organizers of the World Beer Cup (not to mention beer writers who never miss an opportunity to argue what makes a style legitimate).

            The essential difference is the content of the brew. As each chateau has a "signature" that wine connoisseurs can readily detect, certain geographical areas also provide "signature" brews that are just as distinct. The basis for different styles is usually found in the basic ingredients of the brew that are indigenous to a specific area.

It is important that you know the "real thing" when you taste it. It should be similar to the sensual experience of first tasting genuine Roquefort Bleu cheese, or a ripe tomato, fresh off the vine. The Roquefort put all other blue cheeses in context, and that just-picked tomato gave you a different perspective on all those gas-ripened hothouse supermarket tomatoes you once paid way too much for. 

THE STYLE SHEET

1) American Lager

This is the "style" of beer is the result of the growth of national breweries, and their ability to brew a beer that appeals to the most people possible, at a competitive price. It is essentially a pilsner-style lager, brewed with significant quantities of grain other than barley malt; a slightly sweet, lightly hopped, straw colored, very effervescent beer.

2) Pilsner

This style is a light-straw colored, full bodied, lagered,  bottom fermented beer named after the town of Pilsen (in what was then known as Bohemia), where it was first brewed in 1842. It quickly became a popular unique style because it was so different from the amber brews that were the norm at that time.

3) British Bitter

This top-fermented classic ale style offers a deep, rich brown or ruby color with a  malty, very lightly hopped flavor. True bitter is only lightly carbonated.

4) Pale Ale

Pale ale, another classic British top-fermented ale style, has more hop flavor than "Bitter" but not as much as "India Pale Ale." (There is a good measure of over-lap when other than mainstream examples of these three brew styles are compared.)

5) India Pale Ale

            India pale ale, so named because it had to endure long sea voyages from breweries in England to outposts on the fringes of the British empire,  had to be a high gravity, well hopped brew to enable it to last the voyage and not spoil. Although there are some fine examples still brewed in the United Kingdom, Liberty Ale (brewed in the United States by Anchor Brewing Company, San Francisco, CA) is a particularly well- balanced brew.

 More information on India Pale Ale

6) Vienna Lager

This style was once the style "a la mode" in Vienna at the turn of the 19th century. Then it fell from fashion and left Europe for the warmer climate of Mexico. Today, there are a number of "Vienna" lagers. I especially like Dos Equis, but with the growth of the specialty beer market it may not hold its special place for long.

 More information on Vienna Lager

7) Brown Ale

Brown ale is a traditional British, top fermented ale. Flavor and color are very much like a pale ale, but sweeter and darker.

 More information on Brown Ale

8) Scottish Ale

This is a strong (high alcohol) brew made with Scottish malted barley. Less hoppy than English brews, there are hints of caramel and, sometimes, a slight tang of smoke in the flavor.

More information on Scottish Ales

9) Strong Ale

Also called, Old Ale, this strong (high alcohol) brew is particular for its dark color (almost opaque) and a very sweet flavor that masks the heat of an alcohol content that can reach 6-8% by volume.

More information on Strong Ales

10) Barleywine

Barleywine is a very dark, almost opaque ale. The term "barleywine" is a fairly new term. Once called "Strong Ale",  this is the most alcoholic style of beer.  The addition of a healthy amount of hops forms a powerful flavor triad of sweet malt, bitter hops, and warm alcohol. Alcohol content can reach 10% by volume.

More information on Barleywine

11) Bock Beer

This style is similar to strong ale but it is fermented with bottom fermenting yeast and is "lagered" (aged) for at least a month. This is truly a "substantial" beer as is noted in the following profile.

More information on Bock Beer

12) Porter

            It was a sad fact; the "porter" of Charles Dickens time is gone. The day when porter "died" there were funeral processions held in the United Kingdom to mark the event. There are some alive who remember the day. Although the specific yeast is not used any more, the style lives on in the United States where there are brewers who will not give up the ghost. Although there are a number of micro-breweries now producing porter style beers, they must, through default, compare themselves to "The Celebrated Pottsville Porter." For those in the know, this is a real "sleeper". Brewed in Pottsville, PA since 1914, this is a dry, roasty brew that is darker than amber, and lighter than "stout". Yeungling has the malt for their porter specially roasted to give it a unique flavor.

More information on Porter

13) Stout

            Although there are many stouts brewed both in the United States and The Republic of Ireland, the Guinness Stout is perceived as the touchstone for all stouts. To insure quality control Guinness roasts malt specifically for their own production needs. All the grain used by Guinness is grown in Ireland.

More information on Stouts

14) Wheat Beer

            A true benchmark is Paulaner Hefe-Weizen which starts with a two-mash process using dark and light colored brewing malt from two-row Bavarian summer barley; dark and light colored malted wheat and caramelized malt. This top-fermented beer contains more than half wheat. Hallertau hops are used for both bittering and aroma. Lager yeast is used and the beer is allowed to lager for approximately 2-3 weeks at minus 1 degree Celsius.

More information on Wheat Beers

15) Belgian Styles

a) Flanders Red Ales - Rodenbach

            Among the "red beers" Rodenbach is considered the quintessential example of the style. Visitors to the brewery in Roeselaere can see the 300 oak casks (the brewery has four coopers to maintain tuns), all more than 20 feet high, where the beer is aged. Rodenbach is brewed from four malts, one pale from summer barley, two- and six-row varieties of winter malted barley, and crystal (Vienna) roasted malt. The hops are mainly Brewers Gold, with some Kent Goldings. Five different strains of yeast are used in the fermentation process.

b) Lambic - Lindeman's Kriek

            Lindeman's Kriek is a top fermented cherry flavored Lambic (70% malted barley and 30% unmalted wheat), with a rose color. It has an aroma of cherries and is very sparkling, refreshing with a dry finish. The acidic flavor of the Lambic blends well with the cherry flavor. This beer is best served in a champagne flute at 45F. It is sold in 750 ml bottles.

c) Belgian Strong - Duvel

Duvel is brewed by the Moorgat brewery in Breendonk, in Belgium. It is regarded as the quintessential pale Strong Ale, with a flavor that is complex and deep. It is made with Danish summer barley malt, whole flower Styrian and Saaz hops. Duvel undergoes three fermentations. The first is warm, the second cold, and the final one takes place in the bottle, lasting five weeks.

d) Trappist - Chimay

Chimay (pronounced "she-may") produces three types of trappist beers, identified by the color of the metal cap that tops their distinctive cork-finished bottles: Premier Chimay (red), Cinq Cents (white), and Grand Reserve (blue).

            The red, as well as the blue, has a very particular "house character" that is fruity and sweetish, with a soft, full, deep body. The beer is dark brown with a ruby hue. The white Chimay is much hoppier and drier, with a quenching hint of acidity. It also has a paler color, more amber than ruby red.

16. Specialty Beers

These unique beers do not easily fit into any particular style. Each is considered to stand alone as a special beer.

a) Steam Beer

            Today, "Steam Beer" is a trademark of the Anchor Brewing Company of San Francisco, CA. In the 19th century "steam beer" was a nickname for a local beers that were fermented with lager yeast, at ale yeast temperature, producing beers with ale-like character.  It may also have been common practice to "top off" kegs of beer with beer that had not finished its first fermentation. The result was a  in-keg fermentation that produced high levels of natural carbonation. With no refrigeration to control this fermentation a freshly tapped keg would produce copious amounts of foam or "steam."

Anchor Steam Beer

            Anchor Steam Beer is the standard of a style of hoppy, malty beer. It has the crisp flavor features of a lager, and the esters ("fruitiness"), complex aromas and flavor base of an ale. Dark amber in color, the grist is American grown malt (pale and roasted) and hops from the American Northwest.

b) Herbed/Spiced

Anchor Our Special Ale

            Every year, since 1975, Anchor has brewed a Christmas Ale. It is produced in small quantities and is available only from late November until early January. Each year the recipe is changed and there is a special label designed around the tree, a traditional symbol of renewal. Properly refrigerated, this beer remains drinkable for years.

c) Smoked

Kaiserdom Rauchbier

Kaiserdom is brewed in Bamberg, Germany. It is brewed from malt that has been smoked in a way similar to the process of smoking malted barley in the making of Scotch Whiskey. The technique of smoking malted barley to dry it and add color was used before the more modern method of indirect kilning was introduced. Kaiserdom Rauchbier is brewed from Bavarian barley that has been roasted over a fire of moist beech wood logs. Whole Hallertau hops are used to provide flavor and aroma. The fermentation is a bottom fermentation, and the beer is lagered for 3 months. The finished product is a beer of conventional alcohol content, with a dark color and complex smoky flavor characteristics.

d) Strong Lager

Samichlaus Bier

            Brewed just one day a year, on December 6th (St. Nicholas Day in Switzerland), Samichlaus is aged for ten months before bottling for the American market. The beer is bottled for a full year in Switzerland. Although it is a lager, this beer should be stored and served at cellar temperature (50F) in order to fully appreciate its flavor and aroma. Samichlaus has been called "the world's strongest lager" by many beer experts. Alcohol content. 14.9% by volume (As of 2001 this brew may no longer be available.)

e) Oktoberfest

Paulaner Oktoberfest Marzen

Traditionally, when the last of the winter season's beer was brewed each year, in March, it was a made to be a little stronger than usual, so that the alcohol content would preserve it through the summer. By then the beer was very well-attenuated and sporting a relatively high alcohol content. Today that tradition continues with the brewing of Marzen, or "March Beer". Paulaner Marzen starts with a two-mash process using dark and light colored brewing malt from two-row Bavarian summer barley. Hallertau hops are used for both bittering and aroma. Lager yeast is used and the beer is allowed to lager for approximately 4 weeks at minus 1 degree Celsius.

(c) Peter LaFrance

Updated: 25 October 2007