Know your beers! A guide to what’s what down your local

These days, good pubs and bars have an extensive selection of beer on offer, so much so in fact, that you may find yourself bewildered by the choice. So if you’ve ever wanted to know the difference between an IPA and a Stout or a Barley Wine and a Bitter, read on to find out.

Firstly, beer is a catch-all term for ale and lager, and the difference is in how each is brewed. Basically, yeast used to make ale ferments at the top of the fermentation tank (top fermented), whereas lager yeast ferments at the base of the tank (bottom fermented). Also, beer ferments at a higher temperature than lager, and lager takes longer to ready as it requires a period of cold storage after fermentation.

Ales

Pale Ale: Commonly known as Bitter, Pale Ales get their name and colour from being brewed using pale malts. There are three main classes of Bitter, grouped by abv (alcohol by volume). Ordinary or Session (below 4.2% abv), Regular or Best (4.2%-4.7%), and Strong or Special (over 4.7%). Additionally, India Pale Ale (IPA) is another type of popular Bitter.

Porter: This beer is dark in colour as a result of being brewed using dark malts. Porter also tastes less hoppy in comparison to Pale Ale.

Stout: Originally just another name for Porter, Stout is now considered a strong type of Porter. Stout varieties include Dry or Irish Stout (such as Guinness) and Imperial Stout.

Mild Ale: Mild ale tastes malty with a mild hint of hops (hence its name). Though usually dark in colour (Milds are often called ‘Dark’) and relatively low in alcohol (3 to 3.6%), you can buy some lighter and stronger Milds.

Brown Ale: Brown in colour, well known makes of this popular British beer include Manns Original Brown Ale and Newcastle Brown Ale.

Old Ale: Dark of colour, malty flavoured, and generally above 5% abv, Old Ales often continue to ferment even after bottling. This means that they can still be fresh even if left unopened for years.

Barley Wine: So named because this grain-based drink can be as strong as its grape-based cousin, with typical alcohol strengths in the 8% to 12% region.

Wheat Bear: Also called Witbier (Dutch) or Weissbier (German), this popular continental beer’s distinctive taste comes from being brewed using wheat as well as barley.

Lagers

This German invention comes in two main categories – pale lager and dark lager. Pale lagers are the golden beers served everywhere (varieties include Pilsner, Helles and Dortmunder), whereas Dark lagers are more common in mainland Europe. You can also find brown and amber coloured lagers, often in the Bock and Mrzen variety.

Foreign lagers – such as Stella, Carling and Fosters – rule in the UK, and are either imported or licensed to be brewed domestically. Brains – well known in Wales for its ales – launched a lager in 2006 but it failed to catch on. However, domestic craft brewers are active in lager production, with BrewDog, St Austell’s and Cotswold Breweries all getting in on the act.

Finally, don’t forget that beer isn’t just about choice, it’s also about flavour. For a truly great-tasting pint, licensees need to maintain clean beer lines. One tried and tested way of doing this is to fit a line cleaning system. CellarBright systems are found in bars, pubs, clubs, restaurants and hotels all over the UK, and they help ensure that cask ales, lagers and ciders keep tasting fresh.

CellarBright is a unique automated beer line cleaning system which may save thousands of pounds a year for businesses selling keg and cask beer and lager. It reduces waste by letting the beer that’s in the lines be drawn off and sold before cleaning commences, letting you sell 100% of the beer that you’ve paid for. A beer profit calculator on the page shows how much you can save.