Real Ales

Finding a good pint of real ale is not always easy. Here are a few pointers to make life a little bit easier in finding a satisfying pint.

1) Having too many beers on draught can be a bad sign. This leads to beers that are not fresh due to some of the less popular beers being on tap for too long. Unless the pub is known for good ale. It would be advisable to stick to the well-known beers that would presumably sell quicker. Thus guarantying a fresher pint.

2) Always watch how the beer is poured. Serving real ale takes time. The swan neck hand pump works on gravity and has a piston inside. It takes a few moments for the piston to fill up after each pull. If you don't wait, air gets into the system. It leads to a poor head and adds oxygen into the beer which spoils the flavour of the beer. Brewers go to great lengths not to add oxygen to their beer as it leads to infection and beer spoilage.

3) The appearance of real ale should be clear unless stated to be a cloudy wheat beer. Also make sure there are no foreign bodies in the beer (if there are it could mean they don't clean their lines). In most cases the beer should also have a good head. A good tip is if you stick your finger in the head. There should be a nice amount of the head stuck to your finger. There are some regions where they do not like much head on the beer. A great beer will almost have a shine to it due to the crystal clarity.

4) As with wine, the aroma of the beer is also key. It can tell you a lot about the beer before tasting it. It can tell you quite simply if a beer is bad. If you detect vinegar or T.C.P.'s take the beer back as it's "off". You are looking for floral, fruity and resinous notes from hops. From the malt you should detect nutty, malty and caramel notes.

5) When you finally taste the beer you are looking for "beery" qualities. A good beer will have what we call a "start, middle and end". A good brewer picks his/her ingredients so that there is story to the beer. Generally you get the malt flavours coming through first. You may get a smoky flavour and some sweetness. As the beer passes over the tongue the bitterness of the hops will come through. Finally you will get a warming feeling and sometimes a little sharpness from the carbonation. Flavours you are not looking for are metallic and sulphury.

6) As you are savouring your ale. It will warm up as it is in your hands and from the ambient temperature of the surroundings. The flavour of the beer may change accordingly. I

Ale: A beer brewed with a top-fermenting yeast. It used to refer to a beer made without hops but this is not the case now.

Bitter: A highly hopped beer and the most common type of draught ale. Bitters can range from below 3.5% up to 5% ABV.

Brown ale: A bottled, lightly hopped and sweetish mild ale. Usually lower in gravity though there are exceptions.

Heavy: A Scottish and North East term for a medium strength beer usually light in colour!

IPA: India Pale Ale. Strictly speaking a high strength pale ale for export but the term is commonly used for light bitter ales.

Lager: A British term for a continental beer made with a bottom fermenting yeast using different malt and hops than most bitters. They undergo a long secondary fermentation at a low temperature. Most British lagers are weak, inferior versions of their mainland Europe namesakes.

Light ale: A low gravity bottled ale. Scottish light ales are usually dark coloured!

Mild: A lightly hopped beer, often dark in colour and usually (but not always)low in gravity

Old ales: See Winter ales.

Pale ale: A medium gravity bottled ale. The term is used in the South West to refer to low gravity draught ales.

Porter: A dark and sweetish but well hopped beer.

60/-, 70/-, 80/-, 90/-: 60 shilling, 70 shilling, 80 shilling, 90 shilling ale, all terms for Scottish beers. They equate, very roughly, to mild, light, heavy and strong.

Stout: Usually very dark, heavy and well hopped beer. Dry tasting with a creamy head. Though the term is no longer used, Milk Stout is thought to have been so named because it contained lactose, a sugar derived from milk. As lactose cannot be fermented by yeast, the sugar stays in the beer.

Wheat beer: A beer originating from Bavaria where it is known as Weizen. The wheat is added to the mash and results in a refreshing summer drink. Both pale and dark versions are available, some are brewed to be drunk hazy, some brewed to be drunk clear.

Winter ale: Usually a high gravity and full-flavoured beer sold during the winter months. The name is now synonymous with Old ale.