Bitter is an English specialty, and very much an English term, generally denoting the standard ale—the “session” beer—in an English brewer’s range. They are characterized by a fruitiness, light-to-medium body and an accent on hop aromas more than hop bitters. Colors range from golden to copper. Despite the name, they are not particularly bitter. Indeed, British brewed bitters will often be less bitter than U.S. craft-brewed amber ales. A fuller-bodied bitter is labeled as “Extra Special Bitter” (ESB). These weightier versions of bitter often stand up better to the rigors of travel overseas than the lower gravity standard versions. An important element of faithful bitters is the use of English yeast cultures in fermentation. These impart a fruity, mildly estery character that should be noted in examples of the style. Bitters are now widely emulated in North America, sometimes with domestically grown hops imparting a rather more assertive character than seen in traditional English bitters.
Cream ale is a North American specialty that is somewhat of a hybrid in style. Despite the name, many brewers use both ale and lager yeasts for fermentation, or more often, just lager yeasts. This style of beer is fermented like an ale at warm temperatures, but then stored at cold temperatures for a period of time, much as a lager would be. The resultant brew has the unchallenging crisp characteristics of a light pale lager, but is endowed with a hint of the aromatic complexities that ales provide. Pale in color, they are generally more heavily carbonated and more heavily hopped than light lagers.
These brews are golden to light copper in color with a more subtle overall character and lighter body than typical pale ales. English ale fruitiness will probably not be observed. However, the most important qualification is that they are brewed domestically and will have less body and hop and malt character than a pale ale from the same brewery.
Not long ago we spent a long, lazy weekend in Portland, OR. It soon became clear that it would take
With this issue All About Beer launches a new column called Your Next Beer. The goal of this column is
Anyone who can appreciate things nostalgic need not yearn wistfully when it comes to beer, as today’s brewers are as
Here is the paradox of water as it relates to brewing beer: it is, by volume, the dominant ingredient, yet
For most brewers, our notions of beer are strongly shaped by classic beer styles. Beers like pale ales, stouts and
Imperial stout is an extra strong version of stout, which was originally brewed by the British to withstand the rigors of export to Russia and the Baltic states. This style is dense, opaque black and strong in alcohol (6-7 percent), with a note of sweetness. Burnt cocoa and dried fruit flavors are typical. Russian Imperial stouts originate from recipes that British brewers tailored to the tastes of the Imperial Russian court. Imperial stout was almost extinct until recreated by the British brewer Samuel Smith in the early 1980s. The style has now been embraced by U.S. craft brewers as a winter specialty.
Porter was originally an English, specifically London, dark beer style that was the drink of the masses long before lagers were conceived or modern ales were fashionable. In the heyday of porter in London, during the eighteenth century, the term “stout” was used to denote the strongest and weightiest beers in a brewer’s portfolio. The same relationship still holds true to this day, with porters generally being lighter in body and color than stouts. Porters are red-brown to black in color, medium to medium-full bodied, and characterized by a flavor profile that can vary from very subtle dark malts to fully roasted, smoky flavors. Being a centuries-old style, there are differences of opinion with regard to what a “true” porter was actually like and there can be wide variations from one brewer’s interpretation to the next. Roasted malt should provide the flavoring character, rather than roasted barley as is used with stouts. Stronger, darker versions and lighter more delicate versions are equally valid manifestations of the style. The influence of hops can often be notable in the richer craft brewed examples of the style. Although porter was the drink of the masses in 1700s London, it is not a significant factor in the British market today, despite the production of a few outstanding English examples. In the United States, it is enjoying new-found popularity among U.S. craft brewers and many fine U.S. examples are produced.
