What is BEER?

Beer is an alcoholic drink made from water, malted barley, hops and yeast.

Water: This is the main component. The water source affects flavour because of different levels of natural salts.

Barley: This cereal grain is “malted” by allowing it to start germinating, which turns

starch to sugar. As heat halts germination, varying the temperature gives different flavours.

Yeast: This is a single-celled organism that turns the sugar to ethanol and carbon dioxide. This fermentation is the only source of gas in real ale.

Hops: These are the flowers of a climbing plant, used in almost all beers for bitterness and flavour.

In the past, “ale” was brewed without hops and “beer” with them.

Today’s ales are produced by “top fermentation” - using a yeast that floats on top of the liquid at up to 22C. The ales then undergo a slow secondary fermentation, developing flavour and natural carbonation.

Lager is produced at lower temperatures using bottom fermentation and stored for several weeks at close to freezing.

“Real ale” is brewed from the traditional ingredients, matured by secondary

fermentation in the container from which it is dispensed, and served at cellar temperature (11–14C) without adding gas. In pubs real ale is pulled using a handpump.

Real ale is also called live beer, conditioned beer, real

cask ale, and naturally conditioned beer.

Craft beers are those made in smaller breweries with the emphasis on flavour. For a guide to different styles such as mild, bitter, porter and IPA,

see camra.org.uk/ learn-discover/ the-basics/ beer-styles