Welcome to part two of Beer Styles 101.

Last week, we began by tackling the two big styles - lagers and ales - as well as some of the more popular ales that most micro-brewers produce.

This week, let’s go over some more of the other beer styles you may have heard of, probably during a conversation with a beer snob.

Hopefully after this informal lesson, no longer will you name-drop Rolling Rock when talking about your favorite pale ale.

Onward...



INDIA PALE ALE (IPA)
• Pale Ales on steroids
• This style was regularly imported to India from England in the 1800s. Over the long voyage, excess hops were added to the beer to act as a preservative.
• Most malt character or any other attributes are completely obliterated by hops.
• Enjoy it by itself – IPAs can completely ruin your palette and make all your food taste like your beer.
• If adventurous, or (like me) you have found a special place on your tongue and heart for hops, try one.
• TRY! Stone IPA, Long Hammer IPA, Full Sail IPA.



BROWN ALE
• Made with a special darker malt, giving the beer a (surprise) brown appearance.
• Brown malts give the beer a sweet, nutty taste with a low awesomeness-by-volume (ABV).
• Easier to drink than many other ales, making this another good high-qualitybeer for the uninitiated.
• TRY! Newcastle, Manns, Iron Horse Brass Ass






HEFEWEIZEN
• Wheat is the primary ingredient.
• The sweetest beer you can buy – this is the beer for (gasp) hop haters.
• Almost no hops, and sweetness is balanced by extra fizziness. A lot of non-beer fans like these for this reason.
• My favorite, Paulaner, has a cookielike character. A beer that tastes like cookies? Sign me up.
• TRY! Paulaner, Ayinger, Pyramid




PORTERS/STOUTS
• What a lot of people lovingly/hatefully call “dark beer”.
• Huge on malt flavor, not so big on hops or fizziness.
• Black malt, or smoked or roasted malt, is the predominant ingredient.
• Beer is reminiscent of motor oil, and tends to be on the thick, heavy side.
• Stouts are porters brewed with a higher alcohol content (Guinness is a popular Stout).
• Porters have a lot of flavors going on at once, which creates a huge blend of dark malty flavor that can scare off some novices.
• Great for the winter months.
• TRY! Sam Smith Taddy Porter, Anchor Porter, Guinness Extra Stout



FRUIT LAMBICS
• Distant cousin of the Hefeweizen and other wheat beers.
•Well-loved by many a female
• Brewed with wild yeasts native to Brussels (hence the whole “lambic” thing), which produces a dry, cidery, slightly sour taste.
• Fresh fruit or, more commonly, fruit syrup, is added to get rid of that yucky beer taste.
• Popular flavors include apple, raspberry, peach and cherry.
• TRY! Lindeman’s (the most popular brand)




What's YOUR favorite style?