There have been volumes written on this topic…but I’m just going to try to KISS it – Keep It Simple, Stupid – and keep it relevant to America’s Craft Beers.
Let’s start with the two basic beer styles and then branch out a little from there.
Ales vs. Lagers
Both are produced basically through the same brewing process. The first distinguishing factor that separates these two beer styles is the type of yeast that is used in the fermentation process. Fermentation is the process that is used to convert the sugars in the sweet wort (liquid produced from rinsing the steeped grains) into alcohol and carbon dioxide, accomplished through the action of the yeast after it is introduced into the wort.
There are basically two types of yeast used in the brewing process, although there are many strains of each type, which is WAY beyond the scope of this article. All you really need to remember about yeast to differentiate an ale beer from a lager beer is that yeast used to produce an ale is a top-fermenting strain of yeast; the yeast rise to the top of the wort during fermentation to complete their work. Ale yeast create what are called esters, which contribute to the fruity characteristics that give ales their distinction as ales. Think German-style Hefeweizens…with their fruity banana and clove overtones…no, we don’t brew with bananas or cloves; it’s the yeast strain that creates those aromas and flavors. The second major characteristic of ale yeast is that they prefer warmer fermentation temperatures inside the vessels. If the fermenting wort temperature is too cold, the ale yeast go dormant and don’t complete the fermentation process.
Now let’s talk lagers. Americans are used to lagers. Think Budweiser, Miller and Coors, which are produced with bottom-fermenting lager yeast strains. Also, think some of the European beers, such as Heineken and Pilsner Urquell. Most Asian beers – think Tsingtao or Sapporo – and add to that most Mexican beers, such as Corona and Pacifico – all are lagers. Lager yeast sink to the bottom of the fermentation vessels, prefer a colder fermentation temperature, and require a longer period of time to complete their job of eating up all the sugars and turning the wort into alcohol. They typically contribute less to the flavor characteristics of the beer, but their slower fermentation period helps contribute to the clean crispness for which lagers are known. Because they do their work at the bottom of the fermenter vessels, the brewer can “crop” the yeast at the end of the cycle and reuse the yeast many times. It’s the expertise and knowledge of the brewer (and lab results that he or she obtains) that contribute to the success of future batches of beer using previously-used lager yeast.
Before refrigeration, lager beers were popular especially in continental European countries (think Bavarian Oktoberfest-style beers) with cold winters, and the beer was often lagered, or stored, in caves for long periods of time while the yeast were gobbling up the sugars.
The English brewers were brewing ales in those days and the colonists brought their ale yeast strains with them. Of course, still no refrigeration and there were not so many deep cold caves in the New World. The German brewers arrived and, out of necessity, used the Brits’ ale yeast, but found a way to use it as a lager yeast and the new style of beer that came out of it was the American Cream Ale, a hybrid beer that used ale yeast to create a lager-style beer; crisp like a lager/creamy like an ale. There aren’t many current examples of American Cream Ales (think Little Kings and Genoese Cream Ale)…but wait….think Prescott Brewing Company’s Lodgepole Light, which is a multiple national award-winning beer in its style category, and also a Gold Medal Winner in the international World Beer Cup – a true example of this truly American beer style.
Those are the basics of beer styles, but America’s Craft Brewers have been experimenting outside the box, using their talents to create new, innovative beers. This experimentation has exploded in popularity; newly formed and recognized “beer styles” have been legitimized within the industry. Because of the changes, our new brewers have made to standard recognized beer styles that are outside the parameters of those styles. The Brewers Association has broadened the legitimate beer style categories, now recognizing more than 80 differing style categories, such as:
American-Style Fruit Beer, Belgian-Style Fruit Beer, Pumpkin Beer, Field Beer, Herb and Spice Beer. Chocolate Beer, Coffee Beer, Wood- and Barrel-Aged Beer, American Brett Beer, Smoke Beer, Sour Beer, etc.
Some of these newer recognized beer styles once fell into a generalized category called Experimental Beers. As their popularity increased and more examples were commercially available, they eventually became recognized as their own styles of beer.
Next month: Food and Beer Pairing. QCBN
By Roxane Nielsen
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