Category: Beer

Looking for an excuse to throw a beer party?

Look no further. Beer tasting parties are trendy and hugely popular on the international party scene. What better way to please your guests than to plan a beer tasting event? Invite your beer-loving friends and any party lovers who would enjoy exploring the contemporary beer scene.

Most adults, at some time, have been to wine tasting events—and the formula is well known. Wine tasting parties tend to be rather restrained affairs that require much effort on the part of the host to “get the party going.” However, beer-tasting events are quite the opposite.

Perhaps the popularity of beer tasting over wine tasting has something to do with the difference in etiquette: where wine tasters are obliged to spit out their samples, beer tasters actually consume the beer in order to appreciate its merits!

In short, beer theme parties seem to attract the types of guests who are keen to party. No wonder the new breed of beer tasting events is so popular!

Choosing Beers for Beer Tasting Parties

Keep things simple. Choose no more than ten to twelve different beers. Aim for a range of different types and styles of beer: pale, dark, hoppy, malty, lambic, non-lambic, etc.

Here are some suggestions for beer samples:

• Ayinger Bräu Weisse has a fresh, fruity flavor.
• Celebrator Dopplebock is strong, dark and deliciously rich.
• Cooper & Sons Ale is a great summer beer from Australia.
• Marston’s Pedigree has excellent balance between malty and hoppy flavors.
• Durham Brewery Temptation, formerly called Imperial Russian stout, has dark treacle and coffee flavors.
• Geary’s Special Hampshire Ale is hoppy with a fruity citrus finish.
• Lindemans Framboise Lambic is yeast-free beer with an exquisite raspberry flavor.
• Old Suffolk has a rich chocolate flavor.
• Orval Trappist Ale has complex flavors and an impressive head.
• Samuel Smith Old Brewery Pale Ale is an elegant, classic pale ale.

Serving Beer and Food

Serve a buffet-style selection of food that pairs particularly well with all types of beers. Invite guests to cleanse their palates between beer tastings by nibbling on the different foods.

Aim to choose foods that complement your beer menu; avoid serving foods that are too strongly flavored or overly spicy as these may dominate the flavors of the beers. Safe bets include bread-based nibbles, crackers, fruit, crudités, mild cheeses and cold meats.

However, bear in mind that half the fun of a beer tasting bash is the joy of trying out different foods that go well with beer. Provide a few more unusual treats such as patés, pickles, smoked sausages and even chocolate-based creations. You can guarantee that as the evening progresses, the guests will become more adventurous!

Tips for Throwing Beer Tasting Events

The following tips will help you throw a successful beer tasting party:

• Provide score sheets with a point system. Rate the beers according to appearance, bouquet, flavor, texture, final taste and overall impressions. Add a section for notes and observations.
• Start the beer tasting session with the subtlest flavored first, progressing to the more intense flavored beers.
• Pour three or four ounces per sample into the guests’ glasses. Make sure the beer glasses are spotlessly clean to avoid tainting the flavors.
• Serve ales at a temperature of around 55°F, lagers at a cooler 45°F.
• Pool your expertise; encourage guests to exchange tasting notes.
• Don’t rush through the beer tasting session; savor each beer at leisure. Cheers!

Useful Beer Tasting Terms

You may also want to pass out sheets with the following beer tasting terms. Inexperienced beer drinkers may find it helpful as they try to pin down the differences between beers.

• Amber describes medium intensity colored beers, ranging between pale and dark.
• Balance, as with wine, describes how a good beer should exhibit a perfect balance of ingredients, bouquet, texture and aroma. Neither the malty sweetness nor the hoppy bitterness should dominate.
• Bitterness in beer comes from the hops. Generally the higher the hop content, the more bitter the beer.
• Big beer refers to the richness or fullness of flavor derived from the malt. Big beers often have a high alcohol content.
• Black describes non-transparent, deep, dark brown beers.
• Body, as with wine, refers to the “mouthfeel,” the impact and texture of the beer on the palate.
• Bouquet , another wine tasting term, describes the beer’s complex aromas.
• Caramel refers to a buttery, toffee-flavored aftertaste.
• Clean refers to pure, crisp, fresh tasting beer, free of sediment. The opposite of clean is cloying.
• Clove refers to the flavor of wheat beers that often resembles the taste of cloves.
• Crisp, often associated with lagers and weiss beers, refers to a beer’s acidity and refreshing qualities.
• Depth denotes both the beer’s richness and its complexity of flavors.
• Finish, another wine tasting term, describes a beer’s aftertaste and your final impression of it.
• Flat refers to characterless, dull, insipid, often insufficiently carbonated beer.
• Flowery refers to the flowery aroma hops give beer.
• Fresh refers to a beer free from oxidation.
• Full-bodied characterizes malty beers with complex flavors.
• Haze, caused by yeast or protein suspension, refers to a cloudy appearance and slightly musty taste.
• The head is the frothy top layer that forms when beer is poured into a glass.
• Hoppy refers to a beer with a high hop content.
• Malty is the term for sweet, smoky, earthy flavored beers that have undertones of treacle, caramel or molasses.
• Oxidized, like wine, refers to the liquid’s exposure to oxygen.
• Smooth characterizes easy drinking beers with great mouthfeel.
• Spicy refers to a distinctly hoppy flavor or the aroma of herbs.
• Thin refers to a watery, one-dimensional beer that lacks body or character.

Brewpubs across the US, trendy European gastro-pubs and up-market eateries in many countries are all doing it: cooking with beer. Beer is a versatile beverage that can add flair and flavor to simple dishes both sweet and savory.

The benefits of using beer as a staple ingredient in a wide range of recipes are well documented. Beer lends itself to many different food preparation techniques including marinating, deglazing, simmering, poaching, braising, stewing and baking. From casseroles and fish recipes to cakes and desserts, your favorite brew can transform even the most traditional dishes.

Advantages of Cooking with Beer

The main benefits of cooking with beer are threefold:

• The hop content of beer adds bitterness and acidity.
• The malt content adds a subtle sweetness.
• The yeast content produces a light, fluffy texture especially good in batters. Yeast can also help to tenderize tougher cuts of meat.

Use beer in a marinade for meat before cooking on a barbecue. The acidity in the beer helps tenderize the meat.

Tips for Cooking with Beer

The following are some easy ways to incorporate beer into a given recipe:

• Substitute part of the liquid content in traditional brownie recipes with the equivalent volume of stout.
• Slow cook beef casseroles in a combination of beef stock and brown ale for a richer meal.
• Use beer for making batters: deep-frying food in beer batter yields light, golden, fluffy and crisp results.
• Steam shellfish in beer for wonderful flavor.
• Deglazing refers to adding liquid to a pan in which food has just been sautéed to make a quick sauce. When using beer in cooking, especially for deglazing, remember that the beer’s natural flavors become more concentrated as its alcohol and water content evaporate.
• For a professional tasting glaze, baste a ham several times during roasting with the beer of your choice.
• Avoid flavor overkill: cook with a beer that doesn’t overwhelm the flavor of the other ingredients in the recipe.

Tried-and-Tested Beer Recipes

Below are some recipes that make cooking with beer easy.

Vegetables in Beer Batter

(Recipe from Tastes of Wales, by Gilli Davies)

Ingredients (serves 4):

• 100 g (4 oz or 1/2 cup) self-rising flour
• pinch of salt
• 150 ml (1/4 pint) best bitter beer
• 100 g (4 oz or 1/2 cup) cauliflower cut into florets
• 100 g (4 oz or 1/2 cup) snow peas or mange tout
• 1 large carrot cut into matchsticks
• 50 g (2 oz or 1/4 cup) whole button mushrooms
• 50 g (2 oz or 1/4 cup) baby corn

For the mayonnaise:

• 4 tablespoons home-made or quality store mayonnaise mixed with 1 crushed clove of garlic and 1 tablespoon chopped sorrel

Method:

• Prepare the beer batter by sieving the flour into the bowl.
• Add a pinch of salt and blend in the beer slowly until the mixture reaches the consistency of thick cream.
• Cover and leave in a warm place while you prepare the vegetables (about 10 minutes).
• Blanch the cauliflower and snow peas by covering with cold water in a saucepan and bringing to a boil. Drain and rinse under cold running water.
• Pat dry and coat the cauliflower, snow peas, carrots, mushrooms and baby corn with the beer batter.
• Deep-fry quickly in hot oil, until golden brown.

Note: You can use any combination of crisp vegetables.

Carbonnade of Beef

(Recipe from Mary Berry’s Complete Cookbook, by Mary Berry)

Ingredients (serves 4 to 6):

• 2 tbsp sunflower oil
• 2 lb (1 kg) chuck steak trimmed and cut into 2-inch (5 cm) cubes
• 2 large onions, sliced
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 2 tsp light muscovite sugar
• 1 tbsp plain flour
• ¾ pint (450 ml) brown ale
• ¼ pint (150 ml) beef stock
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
• A few parsley sprigs
• 1 thyme sprig
• 1 bay leaf
• salt and black pepper
• thyme sprigs to garnish

Method:

• Preheat oven to 300°F (150°C).
• Heat the oil in a large flame-proof casserole.
• Add the beef in batches and cook over high heat for a few minutes until browned. Lift out with a slotted spoon.
• Lower the heat and add the onions, garlic and sugar.
• Cook, stirring for four minutes or until browned.
• Add the flour and cook, stirring for 1 minute.
• Add the brown ale and stock and bring to a boil, stirring until thickened.
• Return the meat to the casserole and add the red wine vinegar, parsley sprigs, thyme sprig, bay leaf, and salt and pepper to taste.
• Bring back to the boil, cover and cook in a preheated oven at 300°F (150°C) for 2 1/2 hours or until the meat is very tender.
• Remove and discard the herbs. Taste for seasoning.

Welsh Rarebit

(Recipe from Good Housekeeping Cookery Book: The Cook’s Classic Companion)

Ingredients (s erves 4):

• 8 oz (225 g or 1 cup) cheddar cheese, grated
• 1 oz (25 g or 2 tbsp) butter
• 1 tsp (5 ml) English mustard
• 60 ml (4 tbsp) brown ale
• 4 slices white bread, crusts removed

Method:

• Place the cheese, butter, mustard and beer in a heavy based pan over low heat.
• Stir occasionally until the cheese is melted and the mixture is smooth and creamy.
• Season to taste.
• Toast the bread under the broiler on one side only.
• Turn the slices over and spread the cheese and beer mixture on the un-toasted side.
• Place under the broiler until golden and bubbling.

Rich Fruit Cake with Guinness

(Recipe from The Complete Vegetarian Cookbook, by Chris Hardisty)

Ingredients ( makes one deep 7-inch or 18 cm cake):

• 8 oz (225 g or 1 cup) soft margarine
• 8 oz (225 g or 1 cup) dark brown sugar
• 4 medium eggs
• 10 oz (275 g or 1 1/4 cup) whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp mixed spice
• 1 lb 2 oz (500 g or 2 1/4 cup) mixed dried fruit
• 10 tbsp Guinness

Method

• Preheat oven to 325 °F (160°C).
• Cream margarine and sugar together.
• Beat in the eggs one at a time.
• Gradually stir in the flour and mixed spice.
• Mix in the dried fruit.
• Add 4 tbsp Guinness to mix.
• Place the mixture into a 7-inch (18 cm) loose-bottomed cake tin and make a deep well in the center (this allows the finished cake to have a flat top).
• Cook for one hour at 325°F (160°C) and then turn down to 300°F (150°C) for a further 1 1/2 hours.
• Allow the cake to cool in the tin.
• Remove and turn upside down; prick the base of the cake all over with a skewer and slowly pour over the remaining Guinness.
• Store in a cool place for at least a week before eating.

Chocolate Stout Cake

(Recipe from the Great American Beer Cookbook, by Candy Schermerhorn)

Ingredients (makes 1 8-inch or 20 cm 2-layer cake):

• 1/4 cup (2 oz or 50 g) cocoa powder to dust the baking pans
• 2 sticks butter or margarine
• 1 cup (8 fl oz or 240 ml) stout or porter
• 2/3 scant cup (5 oz or 180 g) Dutch-process dark cocoa powder
• 1 scant teaspoon salt
• 2 cups (16 oz or 450 g) unbleached flour
• 2 cups (16 oz or 450 g) sugar
• 1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda, sifted
• 2 extra-large eggs
• 1/2 cup (4 fl oz or 110 ml) sour cream

Method:

• Heat oven to 350°F (175°C).
• Lightly dust 2 greased 8-inch (20 cm) spring-form pans with cocoa powder.
• In a heavy saucepan or microwave oven, heat butter, beer and cocoa powder until butter melts. Cool.
• Sift dry ingredients together, add the beer-cocoa mixture and beat thoroughly for 1 minute on medium speed. Add eggs and sour cream and beat 2 minutes on medium.
• Pour batter into prepared pans and bake at 350°F (175°C) for 24 to 30 minutes or until a pick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Place pans on a wire rack, cool 10 minutes, remove the sides, and cool completely.
• Use a long serrated knife to even tops of the cakes. Using a flexible spatula, spread each layer with a thin coating of chocolate frosting, stack and cover the sides with frosting.

Today beer guts or beer bellies are everywhere. These eye-catching beer guts are unfortunately and an all-too-common affliction of modern society’s affection for booze, a sedentary lifestyle and an abundance of fast food.

Often, a large bulging beer belly is accompanied by fat in other areas of the body, especially a man’s chest. According to the experts, men who booze to excess tend also to produce increased levels of estrogen, the female hormone, while at the same time producing less testosterone, the male hormone. For hardened male boozers, the risk of developing breast-like tissue is indeed disturbing news.

Did you know that . . .
. . . a pint of beer contains about 200 calories? So even a modest couple of pints on the way home from work five days a week can rack up the equivalent of an entire day’s calorie allowance. Now that’s booze for thought!

Tips for Trimming Beer Bellies

Most beer lovers know that their beer consumption is getting out of hand when they develop a beer gut and an expanding waistline. Doing something about it, however, is a different matter. Biting the bullet and cutting down on the booze is easier said than done, particularly with a stressful lifestyle and well-developed habit. However, it is possible.

Just bear in mind that reducing the size of your beer belly is not an all-or-nothing situation. Beer bellies can be beaten with a few modest adjustments to your lifestyle that will enable you to tighten your belt and trim your tummy. Here’s how:

• Think positive: Remind yourself that notching up those extra beers not only costs you money but can possibly lead to hangovers and liver damage.
• Review your overall diet: Beer guts are often caused by a poor diet, as well as by excessive beer consumption. Review your eating patterns. Aim to eat a balanced diet: a realistic healthy diet you can live with is better than a diet specifically targeted at weight loss.
• Exercise: For best results, concentrate on toning exercises that work those abdominal muscles, such as resistance or light-weight training. Swimming and yoga are also great for overall toning.
• Change your daily routine: As with smoking, beer drinking has more to do with habit. You can successfully break that habit by making a few minor changes. Introduce an element of distraction into your daily routine with simple activities that you enjoy.
• Food and alcoholic beverages: Drink alcohol only with food, as this tends to restrict your alcoholic intake and discourages binge drinking.

Health Benefits of Beer Drinking

Contrary to popular belief, all is not doom and gloom for those who enjoy moderate beer consumption.The health benefits for those who drink beer in moderation include reduced risks of developing cardiovascular and coronary disease, stroke, high blood pressure, obesity and possibly even arthritis.

Moderate beer consumption has also been shown in studies to improve bone density and to protect against stomach ulcers and gallstones. In addition, beer contains proteins, iron and vitamin B, as well as hops that are known for their sedative effect.

Binge Drinking

Research has shown that binge drinking can result in a wide range of health problems including:

• liver damage
• alcoholism
• addiction
• depression
• high blood pressure
• obesity
• diabetes
• brain damage
• fetal damage in pregnancy
• memory loss
• impaired cognitive ability
• dementia
• cancer.

Hangovers Explained

Hangovers occur when the body can’t cope with a heavy-boozing, binge drinking session. As the liver goes into overdrive in an attempt to process the excess alcohol, it also produces toxic chemicals that cause the body to become dehydrated.

Hangovers produce flu-like symptoms including lethargy, headache, sickness, palpitations, shaking, nausea, dehydration, impaired memory and judgment and poor physical coordination. Regular hangovers often result in liver damage that may prove fatal.

Forget the stereotyped notion that beer drinking is a male phenomenon. More women worldwide are drinking beer, particularly light ales, than ever before. The fact of the matter is that modern women no longer play a passive role in beer consumption or, indeed, in beer advertising.

Women and Beer Advertising

Do you remember those traditional, cheesy advertisements featuring an attractive female bartender obligingly serving beers to an exclusively male clientele? Of course, these stereotypical ads featuring young blondes with generous cleavages and ingratiating smiles successfully sold a lot of beer.

However, those were the days when male punters did most of the beer purchasing and advertisers needed to appeal to the male ego to boost sales.

Today, such cloyingly traditional ads are unlikely to appeal to the new generation of discerning female beer consumers. Consequently, beer advertisers are being forced to rethink their strategy, generating surprising results.

Several new advertising campaigns, for instance, feature women taking the lead, ordering the beer and displaying their (often superior) knowledge of which brew is best. Going by statistics, these new-style ads with the broader female appeal are beginning to sell more beer.

Innovative beer advertising agencies have done their research: women and beer is a winning combination. Ads that depict raucous males drinking beer and giving a bartender babe a hard time are passé.

Women and Beer: The Facts

Here are some facts about women and beer:

• The sale of beer to women is a growing market.
• Women currently account for 25 percent of beer consumption in the USA.
• Women between the ages of 21 and 30 are drinking more beer than women in other age groups.
• Beer drinking among women in the 50-plus age group is on the increase, a fact that has not gone unnoticed among beer advertisers worldwide.

Women and Beer Appeal

Women beer drinkers are a discerning bunch. They demand more of their beer: more flavor, more complexity, more fruitiness, fewer calories and lower carbs.

Above all, women want a beer with more style and character. Research shows that women who enjoy beer tend to prefer lighter versions with lower alcohol content. Popular options include lambics, hefeweizens and light ales.

Targeting the Female Beer Drinking Population

In response to demand, trend-setting brewers around the world are constantly introducing new brews that will appeal to female beer drinkers without alienating existing loyal male customers.

Results to date are encouraging, with a new breed of advertising campaigns that emphasize equality, contemporary attitudes and successful social interaction.

Out are the ‘babes and booze’ spots in advertisements that appeal to a wider, genderless, international audience. Savvy beer advertising campaigns are pandering big time to their expanding female clientele. The overriding message is that women beer drinkers are at last being taken seriously.

Women and Beer: Back to Basics

Aside from being consumers, women have a history of brewing beer as well. A quick glance at the history of brewing reveals that women dominated the scene in early times: evidence has shown that women brewed beer in ancient Egypt, during the Pharaonic period.

By the 1700s, women brewers were commonplace throughout Europe. It was only during the Industrial Revolution, when commercial brewing was introduced, that men began to take over from women as master brewers.

Today, however, more and more women are returning to the business of brewing beer. Certain forward-thinking breweries headed by women are giving this hitherto male-dominated industry a run for its money. The evidence is in the sales. Female brewmasters are constantly coming up with new beers that have huge contemporary appeal for both male and female consumers and are flying off production lines.

A microbrew is usually defined as a beer brewed commercially by a small brewery (a microbrewery) using craft brewing methods. Often the brewery makes up part of a brewpub, a brewery attached to a bar or restaurant.

In order to survive, microbreweries have tended to look for niche markets not being supplied by the mega brewers such as Anheuser-Busch and Coors. For example, German-style lagers, Belgian-style fruit flavored beers and Irish-style stout are currently being produced by North American microbreweries.

A Brief North American Beer History
The American and Canadian history of brewing beer predates the arrival of the Pilgrim Fathers in 1620. The earliest immigrants are believed to have brewed beer from corn soon after they arrived in North America. Two Dutch immigrants, Adrian Block and Hans Christiansen, set up the first commercial brewery on Manhattan Island in what is now New York City in 1612.

Successive generations of settlers found that barley (for malt) and hops flourish in much of the eastern United States. Consequently, small breweries that brewed for local consumption prospered.

Following the Civil War in the 1860s, the growth of cities and the development of the railroad system made beer distribution simpler. The easier methods of distribution coupled with the influx of beer drinkers from Germany and Ireland led to a dramatic expansion in the volume and types of beers produced. By the end of the nineteenth century, brewing German-style lager beers, rather than traditional ales, had become the norm.

Beer History: Prohibition

With the introduction of prohibition in 1919, the brewing industry faced turmoil. Many small and large regional brewers ceased brewing altogether. The larger brewers, including Anheuser-Busch and Pabst, switched to producing near beer: beer containing less than 0.5 percent alcohol.

By the end of prohibition in 1933, the American public had developed a taste for light, insipid, lager beers. As a result, large brewers gained a stranglehold on the mass beer market.

More Recent Beer History

In the second half of the twentieth century, more Americans traveled abroad than ever before. American military personnel and tourists alike discovered the wide variety of tasty, full-bodied lagers and ales available at German beer gardens and in traditional British pubs.

In the early 1980s, a number of pioneering American and Canadian brewers set up microbreweries to reintroduce a choice of high-quality beers to North America. Although setbacks occurred during the early days of craft brewing, the sector is continually growing stronger in the beer market. Microbreweries now supply about three percent of all beer consumed in the United States.

Microbreweries: Where Next?

Microbreweries and brewpubs have come a long way since their difficult rebirth in the 1980s. Every US state and Canadian province now seems to have microbreweries. In addition, longer-established regional brewers, such as Anchor Brewing in San Francisco and Samuel Adams in Boston, have seen a resurgence of interest in their beers due to the growing craft brewing phenomenon.

The growth of microbreweries is not restricted to North America. The globalization and consolidation of the world beer market have encouraged the development of craft brewing and microbreweries in many countries, including Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand.

Great Britain’s Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) reported that 80 new breweries had opened in the year leading up to September 2005. Great Britain is now hosting to about 500 microbreweries, more microbreweries per person than any other country in the world. Beer drinkers around the world have been more than pleased to follow the North American-born trend of the microbrewery!