All about beer tasting: from preparation to evaluation
Quality beer is always a noble beverage that reveals a multitude of flavor and aromatic nuances. But it is practically impossible to feel each of them during ordinary consumption. But a competent tasting can reveal all the shades of flavor. But how to prepare for it, and most importantly, how to conduct it correctly? If you want to feel like a beer sommelier, this article is for you.
How to prepare for beer tasting
The first rule is to take a break between the last meal and the beginning of the tasting. It should be at least an hour — during this time the taste buds are fully activated. The process itself should take place in a quiet and comfortable place — without bright lights, loud music and extraneous odors.
Drinks should be served in the right glasses. For example, for ale usually use flutes, and for lager — narrow glass glasses. In this way, the drinks reveal their flavor as brightly as possible. It is also important to choose in advance the dishes that will accompany the tasting. They should not distract attention from the taste of the beer itself. Often hard cheeses are used for this purpose.
And the last thing is to choose the varieties that will participate in the tasting. Experts do not recommend evaluating light and dark beer at the same time. It is also not worth tasting too many varieties at a time — five is quite enough.
How to do a tasting
The optimal temperature of the beverage for tasting is 10-12%, regardless of the variety. For each sample, 0.1 liter of beer is enough. You should start with lighter beers, gradually moving to stronger ones.
Then — to the tasting itself. It is necessary to start with visual assessment of the drink: to study its color, transparency, presence of sediment, color and thickness of the foam cap. Each variety has different characteristics, so there are no universal tips.
After that it is necessary to assess the flavor of beer. It is necessary to unwind the glass in your hand so that a slight whirlpool is formed inside. Then immediately bring it to your nose and inhale with a full chest.
The last stage is to evaluate the taste. Take a big sip of the drink so that the beer fills your mouth, spreads across the palate and tongue. Unlike wines and some types of spirits, which are usually sipped at a tasting, beer is sipped to taste all the flavor nuances.
Evaluation parameters
When evaluating a fragrance, it is important to focus on the first impression, as the sense of smell is dulled with each inhalation. Professionals usually use a special table for making a verdict, where about a hundred shades are collected. Amateurs are hardly able to immediately catch anything but the dominant notes. It can be flowers, fruits, caramel, chocolate, burnt sugar, spices, citrus.
The flavor is easier, as there can be only four variants — sweet, sour, salty and bitter. In many varieties, bitterness and sweetness are the most pronounced: the former is from hops, the latter from malt. It is also worth paying attention to the other notes — they can be different depending on the drink.
And remember that tasting is a subjective process, as your own emotions and experience are of great importance. And if you want to taste beer in a good company, come to any beer restaurant of Lambic chain — we have a lot of interesting varieties, proper serving and cozy atmosphere. We are waiting for you!
Taste without degrees: how non-alcoholic beer is made
Non-alcoholic beer is a great alternative to the usual foam beer when drinks with degrees are prohibited. And if earlier the taste and quality of such beer left much to be desired, now it has become a self-sufficient product that can bring no less pleasure than alcoholic varieties. We tell you how non-alcoholic beer is produced and at what point it loses degrees. A bit of history The first batch of non-alcoholic beer was made in 1976 in the Czech Republic. At first it was so unpopular that manufacturers had to engage in its mass promotion. In the 1980s, beer without degrees began to be actively promoted, including talking about the harm of drunk driving. But it didn’t help much — until the end of the nineties its market share was less than 1%. Non-alcoholic beer has gained real popularity only recently — in the early 2020s. The reason is the trend towards a healthy lifestyle. People all over the world are giving up meat, practicing sports and now — preferring beer without degrees to drinks with alcohol. Secrets of production Non-alcoholic beer contains the same ingredients as regular beer. Only the production technologies differ. They are based either on reducing the degrees by eliminating the fermentation stage or on removing alcohol from the finished beer. Here are the three most popular methods: — The interrupted fermentation method - when the fermentation of the wort is stopped and then the resulting liquid is carbonated, pasteurized and filtered. This is the most common method that most producers use;— evaporation - the degrees leave the beverage under the influence of high temperature;— membrane filtration method - the finished beer is filtered, separating the alcohol from the drink. Non-alcoholic beer is the right product if you are health-conscious. In addition to the fact that it does not contain alcohol, which in large quantities negatively affects the body, it is also low in calories. In beer without degrees only 30 calories per 100 grams — against 45 or more in the usual. But be vigilant: to improve the flavor of the drink, manufacturers often add extra sugar and various chemicals. You can try tasty and high-quality non-alcoholic beer in any beer restaurant of the Lambic chain. Our menu includes hundreds of beer varieties from all corners of the world. Non-alcoholic beer section also pleases with the choice: there are varieties from Germany, Austria, Italy, Russia and even South Korea. Come and let us find a drink for your lunch or dinner that will surely give you pleasure!
19 September 2024
Gluten-free beer: what kind it is and how it differs from gluten-containing beer
Gluten intolerance affects about 1% of the world’s population. Once in the GI tract, gluten, which is found in cereal plants, causes inflammation and leads to stomach upset. Sometimes intolerance becomes a disease when the villi of the small intestine begin to break down. This disease is called celiac disease. Until a couple of decades ago, people with celiac disease had to simply exclude gluten-containing foods from their diet, making it much more sparse than for normal people. Today, the problem is almost solved: manufacturers produce gluten-free pasta, breads and pastries, and many restaurants have gluten free items. Gluten-free beer: what kind of beer is it? Since beer is brewed on the basis of malt, which is sprouted grains, it contains a significant amount of gluten. But this does not mean that those who suffer from intolerance will have to give up their favorite drink — gluten-free beer has also been invented long ago. It is divided into two groups: low gluten and gluten free. Beverages from the first group can be consumed in moderate quantities by people with gluten intolerance, and those who suffer from celiac disease are recommended only gluten free beer. A completely gluten-free beer is one that contains less than 20 milligrams of gluten per kilogram (or 20 parts per million). Secrets of production Two technologies are used to make gluten-free beer: — beer is brewed on the basis of malt from gluten-free cereals: rice, corn, buckwheat, and gluten-containing grains are removed from it completely;— gluten is removed from the finished beer with the help of a special enzyme that breaks down the protein. If only part of the protein is removed, the beer is labeled as low gluten. In the first case, the drink may have a slightly different taste than the usual foam, while in the second case, all the characteristics of beer are preserved, including taste, color and foaming. Therefore, gluten-free beer made in this way is no different from regular beer. To try delicious gluten-free beer, come to the beer restaurants of the Lambic chain. For example, we have Baladin Nazionale Gluten Free — 100% gluten-free beer originating from Italy, which has an exquisite taste and aroma. We look forward to your tasting!
19 September 2024