Kitchen

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

BEER 101

I was looking through some photos and it always seems I have a beer in my hand when I'm eating. I really don't drink that much but I do enjoy a good beer! So I was thinking that I would give a short lesson in Beer.
Don't know the difference between and ale and a lager? Still wondering if a lighter color means a lighter buzz?
There are two types of beer- Ales and Lagers. Ales have top-fermenting yeast and are brewed at about 54 degrees, while lagers have bottom-fermenting yeast and are brewed at 36 degrees. So what does all this mean? Ales tend to have a softer,fuller taste and more alcohol content, while lagers are crisp and sharp and contain a little less alcoholic punch.
Porters,stouts and wheats fall under the ale category; pilsners, bocks and double bocks are lagers.
While beer connoisseurs can tell brews apart by their tastes, it's a lot tougher to decipher a a beer by its color. There are both dark and light ales and dark and light lagers the colors run the gamut. The color difference has to do with the malt, not the fermentation.
And, contrary to popular opinion, just because a beer is darker doesn't necessarily mean it has more alcohol.
Well there you have it beer in a nut shell, The Food and Wine Festival at Epcot is in full swing right now so if your in the Orlando area stop in at try all the wonderful beers we have from all over the world.
Cheers!!
allison
Allisons Kitchen

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Dear Allison!
Greetings!
Robert-Gilles from Shizuoka City, Japan!
Thank you for visiting my blog and writing a kind comment!
Interesting to know you enjoy your beer!
Here in Shizuoka Prefecture, we are luck to have 9 micro-breweries (one is even exporting to the States!) who concoct some great beers. I do make a point posting articles about them!
Cheers and all that!
My regards to your hubbie!
Robert-Gilles

allison said...

Thanks for visiting Robert I will look forward to reading your articles about the micro breweries.

Anonymous said...

Dear Allison!
Greetings again!
Just managed your message out of my spam box (wordpress)!
Thanks for your comment!
I will be able able to read you from now on!
Will have beer psotings soon (to go with the potato pizza! LOL)
Cheers and all that!
Robert-Gilles

allison said...

Hi Robert-Gilles,
Looking forward to the beer postings,
I made the potato pizza I used cream cheese and chives, smoked salmon and capers. used it for a appetizer. Yum
Have a good one
Allison