Tasting Beer

Question 1

Steps in tasting

Answer 1

Look, smell, taste, swallow, wait

Question 2

What are you looking for while tasting beer?

Answer 2

Appearance, aroma, flavor, mouthfeel, aftertaste/overall experience

Question 3

Appearance

Answer 3

Includes the color of the beer, hue, viscosity, head color and retention, bubble density and size

Question 4

Aroma, flavor and mouthfeel

Answer 4

Encompass a huge vocabulary of flavors, aromas, textures and sensations.

Question 5

Aftertaste

Answer 5

Includes lingering flavors and sensations, and their duration and intensity.

Question 6

Common tasting notes

Answer 6

Esters, phenols, alcohol, diacetyl, oxidation, acetaldehyde, and sulfur.

Question 7

Esters

Answer 7

Common and often expected fruity chemical compounds found in many Belgian styles of beer, especially in strong pale or golden ales

Question 8

Phenols

Answer 8

Spicy cousin of esters, often resembling clove and ground pepper. Compounds smelling medicinal are not desirable.

Question 9

Alcohol

Answer 9

The libationary byproduct that can in high quantities cause a warming or heat sensation, or even a burn in the mouth or throat.

Question 10

Diacetyl

Answer 10

Tastes and smells like butterscotch or popcorn. Acceptable in small quantities but can also indicate an incomplete or weak fermentation due to lack of wort aeration, infection or weak yeast

Question 11

Oxidation

Answer 11

Contributes a cardboard or paper taste and is the result of poor wort handling and over exposure to air or added oxygen before or after fermentation. Indicates a poorly made beer or a beer that has been sitting out.

Question 12

Acetaldehyde

Answer 12

A green apple smells that usually indicates that a beer needs to age or mature. Sometimes this smell indicates bacterial infection.

Question 13

Sulfur

Answer 13

Resembles rotten eggs and is the result of bacterial infection or the breakdown of dying or spent years cells. A slight dryness can be desirable in some beers, ie the Allagash White