Our most recent lager tasting of the World Beer Championships brought forth a host of fine lagers from around the world. As expected, European lagers showed strongly, but what was remarkable this year was how many of the top lagers were domestic craft brews. The explosion of the craft beer market has been largely driven... View Article
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Each year at the World Beer Championships, we open our doors and prepare our palates, for what we like to categorize as “specialty beers”. This session always brings forth a discussion of what exactly specialty beers are, and more so, how this changing definition of specialty beers attributes to the overall landscape of beer.
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Wheat ales are unique for a myriad of reasons. Traditionally, wheat ales are softer and more delicate than other ales. Containing little to no hop presence and higher carbonation, these ales are certain to be refreshing and sessionable beers that pair with both the heat and cuisine of summer.
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Each year the World Beer Championships takes time to review what we describe as Continental European ale styles. This year’s tasting included a variety of Belgian brewed and inspired ales, as well as, alt, kolsch, and seasonal maibock styles.
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The two towers of the ale world, Britain and America, have legions of devoted fanatics. One camp would campaign that too many North American craft ales have become too brash, too assertively hoppy, leaving drinkers craving the subtle and traditional session ales inspired by the U.K., while the other camp lusts for even bigger “imperial”... View Article
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While some brewers feel stifled by stringent style guidelines, others have been quietly pushing against rigid style-centric enforcers for years. Empowered by their own ingenuity, many brewers have found success with products that cannot necessarily be defined by conventional nomenclature. I am not suggesting that strict style-adherence is unimportant, but rather that being “style-aware” would... View Article
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In a distant bowling alley, I remember bowling with my grandfather while he enjoyed his beer of choice, a beer some might now call a “macro lager.” So what has become of the lagers of my grandfather’s generation?
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A year ago, I mused about the proliferation of specialty beers (i.e. beers made with unusual fermentables or techniques) diluting the very concept of what it means to be a specialty beer. Based on the wide range of “extreme,” fruit flavored, smoked, herbed, spiced and “alternately grained” beers we reviewed from around the world in... View Article
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Wheat ales are different, generally lower in hoppiness and higher in frothiness. I know of many otherwise well-rounded beer aficionados, particularly hopheads, that hate them and obversely many beer novices that love them. Maybe it’s the softness of hops that fuels the passions of both groups, but whatever the cause their appeal is singular.
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