The Character of Bottled Beer Around the World
Beer is a favorite beverage around the world. What exactly is beer and how is beer brewed? What are the different kinds of bottled beer? A beer is an alcoholic beverage that is produced by the fermentation of starchy material that can be derived from grains or other plants. The production of beer beverages is called brewing.
Fermentation Beers
Beer is usually made of water, malt, hops, and yeast. Other flavorings or sources of sugar are also commonly added. Since beer is made mostly of water, the source of the water and it's characteristics are very important to the character of the finished beer. Many beer styles are determined by the characteristics of the water in the region where they were brewed.
Lager Beers
Lager beers are probably the most common type of beer consumed. They are aged beers of German origin and their name means lagern or "to store." Some styles of lager beer include Pilsner, Dortmund, and Munich. Lager beers are bottom-fermented, meaning they are stored at a low temperature for weeks or months, clearing, acquiring mellowness, and becoming charged with carbon dioxide. There are many styles of lager beer, but most of the lager beer is light in color, high in carbonation, has a mild hop flavor, and an alcohol content of 3-5 percent by volume.
Beer Collections
Top-fermented beer collections are especially popular in Great Britain and Ireland. They are labeled mild, bitter, pale ale, porter, and stout beers. Top-fermented beers are more flavorful and have a variety of grain flavors and fermentation flavors. The differences in style between top-fermented beers are more varied than bottom-fermented beers like lager beers.
The Illusive Beer Style
Many beer styles are difficult to categorize. For example, the California common beer, which is brewed using a lager yeast at ale temperatures, and wheat beers which are often bottled after using an ale yeast and then lagered, sometimes with a lager yeast or with lambics. Lambics use wild yeasts that are naturally occurring in the Payottenland region of Belgium.
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