Let ‘s talk about the type of beer or style of beer

Earlier we talked about how to brew beer.Today let ‘s talk about the type of beer or style of beer.

Although there is hardly any official division of beer styles or types, beer styles around the world are generally recognized as different. And in each different category, there are constantly new and innovative products. The reason why I like to brew beer is because there is no strict dogma that restricts your creativity. Now, brewers all over the world are trying to create new beer flavors every day.

The beer can be broadly divided according to the fermentation method.

Upper fermentation beer(Ale): The oldest beer in the world. It is made by fermentation yeast in the warm environment at top of fermentation tank . It is characterized by fruit flavor, earthy flavor and diverse colors.

Lower fermentation beer (Lager ): a refreshing golden beer. It accounts for the majority market of beer consumption today. It is made by yeast fermentation at low temperature at the bottom of fermentation tank

First of all, you should understand that the most basic classification of beer is according to the brewing process, which is divided into upper fermentation (Ale) and lower fermentation (Lager). The difference between the two technologies is only the fermentation temperature and yeast work. The position of the upper fermentation beer yeast works at the top of the fermentation tank, the temperature is 18-20 degrees, the lower fermentation beer yeast works at the bottom of the fermentation tank, the temperature is 8-12 degree

Second, you need to know that the origin of beer brewing supplies is in Europe, and the main factor that determines the beer brewing process in thousands of years when the industrial technology is not advanced is the geographical location (because the geographical location determines the temperature during fermentation), thus there are three representative local factions in the beer developing , which is British, Nordic and Belgian. The British series belongs to the upper fermentation beer, the Nordic series is bottom fermentation beer mainly, and Belgium series is famous for the upper fermentation beer and unique natural fermentation.

The British series maintains the oldest beer brewing process and concept, and gradually develops light Mild Ale, bitter Pale Ale, and black Porter from the Ale type. Because of the cold climate in the Nordic Department, apart from the old-fashioned Kolsch and the sweet Weissbier, it is difficult to have excellent upper fermentation beer, but the brewer made a low-temperature Lager, so there are refreshing Pilsner, bold Kellerbier, deep Bock, black Schwarzbier, and Pale Lager, which was promoted by the United States, is what we call industrial beer. Belgium’s geographical location at the crossroads of European culture and some special historical backgrounds have created Belgian beer that has been designed and brewed like French red wine,the sour Flanders Red Ale, the golden Belgain Pale Ale and the Belgain Strong Pale Ale, The black Belgain Dark Ale and Belgain Strong Dark Ale, the sweet Witbier, and the naturally fermented Lambic all have completely different flavors from traditional beer.

Third,The main beer styles are changed a little bit from the above basic classification, and then through the success of certain iconic products, they began to be imitated. After occupying the market, they were finally recognized by people before they were established.

The British Pale Ale taste gradually increased and turned it into a Bitter, put in a barrel and became Cask Ale, the pursuit of heavy taste turned it into Barley Wine, and exported to colonial India to turn it into an IPA. The United States turned it into Amber Ale. The black Porter became more and more delicate and became Stout, the export to Russia became the Russian Imperial Stout, and the neutralization of bitterness became the Sweet Stout. German-style Lager wants to be full-bodied to become Bock, the pursuit of heavy tastes to become Dopplebock, the pursuit of alcohol to Eisbock, Kellerbier for storage, Schwarzbier for roasted malt, and the most traditional and refreshing Pale Lager was taken by the Czech Republic to make Pilsner. Germany responded by making Munich Lager. As the war occupied Europe, it became European Lager. After being taken by the Americans, it became the current American Pale Lager.

What we need to understand is no longer an accurate beer classification, but similar to red wine, which has a new world style and an old world style. In an era when modern industry was still underdeveloped, old world brewery were mainly in areas rich in barley and hops. They brewed the beer that was handed down, and their development and expansion were very slow. The beer style also changed little between millennia. In the past 30 years, with the sudden emergence of thousands of beer brands created by American craft beer brewing brewer, almost all traditional beer styles have been newly defined, and they are refuse just to brew traditional beer. More new unbelievable beer has been created,they get through the close siege under the suppression of the old beer brands, and it is sought after by beer lovers all over the world. These redefined and created beer styles are called New World Beer Styles.

The craft beer revolution has extended to all parts of the world. Except United States and Europe, there has been extremely high quality craft beer brewery in Asia, and South America, and this trend has spread to the point that cannot be ignored by large industrial breweries. There are many classic breweries have begun to put down shelves to learn new beer brewing concepts, haven't you tried it yet?