****JavaScript based drop down DHTML menu generated by NavStudio. (OpenCube Inc. - http://www.opencube.com)****
Liquor license No: 32001395 ABN: 57 461 498 218
WARNING
Under the Liquor Control Reform Act 1998, it is an offence to supply alcohol to a person under the age of 18 years (Penalty exceeds $6,000), and for a person under the age of 18 years to purchase or receive liquor (Penalty exceeds $500).
Everything you ever wanted to know about beer
and how to spell it.
The Beer Store's comprehensive glossary of beer
styles, brewing terms and beer jargon to help
you answer those tricky pub quizzes.
Additive
Enzymes, preservatives and antioxidants which
may be added to beer to simplify the brewing
process or to prolong shelf life.
Aftertaste
The taste, odor and sensations that linger after
the beer has been swallowed.
Alcohol
A synonym for ethyl alcohol or ethanol. A
by-product of fermentation.
Alcohol content
Alcohol content is expressed as a percentage of
volume or weight. It is often referred to as ABV
(Alcohol by Volume)
Ale
Ales are fermented warm and made with top
fermenting yeast because these ales are
generally stronger and more assertive in taste
than lagers. The range of styles is almost
endless. The ale family includes: Amber ale,
American ale, ESB, Belgian ale, Bitter ale,
Blonde ale, Dark ale, English ale, Fruit ale,
Golden ale, India Pale ale, Pale ale, Red ale,
Scotch ale, Scottish ale, Summer ale, Wheat ale
and Winter ale.
Alt
A traditional style of beer brewed mainly in
Dusseldorf. The German word alt means "old" and
refers to the traditional method of ales. Alt
beers are dark, copper colored, brewed from dark
malts, well hopped
Amber
Any top or bottom-fermented beer having an amber
color: between pale and dark.
Aroma Hops
Hop varieties that are chosen for their aromatic
contribution to the beer. Noble hops are
classified as aroma hops.
Barley
The most common brewing grain in the world.
Barley Wine
This ale is copper-colored to dark brown with a
strong, fruity, bittersweet flavor. This thick
beer has a high alcohol content (about 10
percent) and can benefit from aging (from six
months to several years).
Beer
The generic name for alcoholic beverages
produced by fermented cereals that are flavoured
with hops. The word derives from the Latin verb
“bibere”, which means “to drink”.
Bitter
There are bitters for all seasons. Ideally a
bitter should have a strong hop character and
bitterness. There are also different grades of
bitters starting with bitter then special bitter
and extra special bitter with the later having a
higher alcohol content and more complex flavour.
In England, bitter is still stored in wooden
casks and pumped by hand. These bitters are
served at room temperature, chilled on request.
Bitterness
The hoppy flavour produced by boiling hops in
the wort, balances the sweetness of the malt.
The level of bitterness can vary by adding hops
at different stages during the brewing process.
Bitterness is used to describe mouth feel, both
when the beer first hits the taste buds and also
when the beer is felt at the back of the mouth
during swallowing.
Black and Tan
A mix of dark and pale beers, such as stout and
pilsner.
Black malt
Partially malted barley roasted at high
temperatures. Black malt gives a dark colour and
a roasted flavour to beer.
Bock
A very strong lager traditionally brewed in
winter to celebrate the coming spring.
Full-bodied, malty, well-hopped.
Body
Thickness and mouth-filling property of a beer
described as "full or thin-bodied". The body,
consistency and thickness of a beer depend on
the amount of unfermentable sugars present in
the finished beer.
Bottle Conditioning
After the beer has been through the primary
fermentation process, yeast and sugars are added
and the beer is bottled. The yeast and sugars
naturally carbonate the beer as a secondary
fermentation process takes place in the bottle
itself. This gives the beer a higher gravity
level and alcohol content. Bottle-conditioned
beer has a shelf life of several years, whereas
cask-conditioned beer should be consumed
generally within six months.
Bottom-fermenting yeast
One of the two types of yeast used in brewing.
Bottom-fermenting yeast works well at low
temperatures and ferments more sugars leaving a
crisp, clean taste and then settles to the
bottom of the tank. Also called "lager yeast".
Brew Kettle
The vessel in which wort from the mash is boiled
with hops. Also called a copper.
Brown Ale
Brown ale is a traditional British, top
fermented ale. Flavor and color are very much
like pale ale, but sweeter and darker. It is a
good starting point for beginners as they are
less bitter and generally more carbonated than
bitters.
Carbonation
Sparkle caused by carbon dioxide, either created
during fermentation or injected later.
Caramel
Sugar used to add color and alcohol content to
beer. It is often used in place of more
expensive malted barley.
Conditioning
Period of maturation intended to impart
"condition"(natural carbonation). Warm
conditioning further develops the complex of
flavors. Cold conditioning imparts a clean,
round taste.
Ethanol
A form of alcohol produced by yeast during
fermentation.
Export
Confusing term – often meaning the beers from
the “Dortmund” area. Historically, the term was
applied to any beer of superior quality suitable
for export to a foreign country.
Fermentation
The process by which yeasts converts (or
metabolises) sugars mostly into alcohol and
carbon dioxide
Filter
Beer is still slightly cloudy after lagering,
and requires filtering to remove any remaining
yeast and other insoluble materials to achieve a
brilliant clarity.
Grainy
Tastes like cereal or raw grain.
Gueuze
A Belgian beer style that blends a fresh lambic
with an old lambic, creating a second
fermentation.
Head
The foamy, while layer on top of the brew after
it is pored into a glass. The head is made up of
mostly proteins, dextrins (sugars) and carbon
dioxide.
Hefe
German word for yeast and the first part of the
term Hefeweizen, the name given to German wheat
beer.
Hops
Herb added to boiling wort or fermenting beer to
impart a bitter aroma and flavor.
India Pale Ale (IPA)
Derived from the pale ale from the days of the
British empire. Made with a stronger alcohol
content and generally more hops so that the
flavour of the beer would withstand the long
journey to the troops in India. These are
generally strong, clean beers leaving a dry
aftertaste.
Kriek
A Belgian beer style produced by steeping
cherries in young lambic or gueuze to produce a
second fermentation
Lager
Beers produced with bottom-fermenting yeast
strains at colder fermentation temperatures than
ales.
Lambic
Wheat beer originally produced in the
Bruxelloise region of Belgium with a strong
acidic character from the spontaneous
fermentation from wild yeast. They do not use
cultured yeast at all.
Malt
One of the four ingredients of beer. Malt is
barley which has been moistened, allowed to
germinate, and then dried. The variety of
barley, the extent to which it is allowed to
germinate, and the temperature at which it is
dried all influence the character, the color,
and the flavor of beer.
Malt Extract
The condensed wort from a mash, consisting of
maltose, dextrins and other dissolved solids.
Either as a syrup or powdered sugar, it is used
by brewers, in solutions of water and extract to
reconstitute wort for fermentation.
Mash
Ground malt blended with water.
Mash Tun
The first vessel used in the brewing process,
the mash tun is used to combine the ground malt
with water and to heat the mash to the desired
temperature.
Mead
Meads are produced by the fermentation of honey,
water, yeast and optional ingredients such as
fruit, herbs, and/or spices.
Milling
The first step in the brewing process. Barley
malt is crushed, not ground, between pairs of
rollers in a mill. This separates the husk from
the meal body and also fractures the meal body,
preparing the malt for mashing.
Non-Alcoholic Beer
Defined by law as any beer with an ABV at or
below 0.5%.
Nose
The aromas from the beer
Oktoberfest
The annual festival in Munich which attracts
almost 7 million visitors annually.
Pale Ale
Normally a dry hopped ale, but the term pale ale
is used very loosely now. It used to mean ales
in bottles, but as brewing techniques become
more advanced, this style has now been
perfected. Its colour is a rich amber which is
well hopped and a little stronger than most UK
beers.
Pils (Pilsener)
A general name for pale, golden-hued, highly
hopped, bottom-fermented beers. The original was
first brewed in the Bohemian town of Pilsen in
1842, and still for sale under it’s now German
name of Pislner Urquell.
Porter
A very dark, top-fermented beer first brewed in
London in 1722 by a man named Harwood as a
substitute for a then popular mix of ale, beer,
and two penny beer. It is one of the oldest
syles of beers made and making a comeback. These
beers range from dark brown to black and are a
little sweeter than stouts, and a little lighter
in body.
Rauchbier
A dark, bottom-fermented beer produced by a few
breweries in Bavaria. Unique smoked flavor from
the use of malts dried over an open fire. .
Reinheitsgebot
Often referred to as the Bavarian purity law,
originating in Bavaria in 1520 and now applied
to all German brewers making beer for
consumption in Germany. It allows only malted
grains, hops, yeast and water to be used in
brewing. The Reinheitsgebot is no longer part of
German law: it has been replaced by the
Provisional German Beer Law (Vorläufiges
deutsches Biergesetz), which allows constituent
components prohibited in the Reinheitsgebot,
such as wheat malt and cane sugar, but which no
longer allows unmalted barley.
Rice Beer (Sake)
A traditional Japanese fermented drink made from
rice
Roasted Malt
Some malts are roasted to varying degrees to
produce a range of specialty malts called
caramel, chocolate, and black malts. These malts
affect the color and the flavor of beer.
Seasonal
Refers to beers brewed at only certain times of
the year (i.e. Christmas beers)
Scottish Ale
This is a strong (high alcohol) brew made with
Scottish malted barley. Less hoppy than English
brews, there are hints of caramel and,
sometimes, a slight tang of smoke in the flavor.
Sediment
The yeast material at the bottom of a bottle of
conditioned beer.
Session Beer
Relaxing over a couple of beers as opposed to
just having one.
Shelf life
The number of days a beer will retain its peak
drinkability. Packaged beer is best drunk fresh.
Stout
Dry, black ale made with dark roasted barley and
a lot of hops. The most famous stout is, of
course, Guinness.
Top-fermenting yeast
One of the two types of yeast used in brewing.
Top-fermenting yeast works better at warmer
temperatures and is able to tolerate higher
alcohol concentrations than bottom-fermenting
yeast. It is unable to ferment some sugars, and
results in a fruitier, sweeter beer.
Trappist Beers
Any beer brewed in one of the six remaining
brewing abbeys, five of which are in Belgium,
and one in the Netherlands. Top-fermented, dark
amber, and fairly strong, they are
bottle-conditioned. Origin dates back to the
Middle Ages.
Tun
Any large vessels used in brewing.
Vienna Lager
A reddish-amber, sweetish, malt-accented lager,
originally brewed in Vienna.
Weissbier
In Germany, a generic name for wheat beers.
Weisse means white, and such beers are usually
very pale and cloudy, with a white foam.
Weizen
German word for wheat, often used to describe
wheat beer or Weissbier
Witbier (White)
A traditional wheat beer originally brewed in
the Belgian towns of Hoegaarden and Louvain.
These beers often appear cloudy because of the
raw grains used and the amount of yeast present.
Wort
Pronounced “wert” this is the sugary liquid
produced by mashing an infusion of malt which
yields beer on fermentation.
Yeast
One of the four ingredients of beer. Yeast is a
single cell organism whose metabolism converts
the sugars contained in the malt into alcohol
and carbon dioxide. One species, Saccharomyces
cerevisiae is used to make ale, and another,
Saccharomyces carlsbergensis, is used to make
lager.
Yeasty
Yeast like flavor; a result of yeast in
suspension or beer sitting too long on sediment.
