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New year brings a new appreciation for craft beer

 
Munich helles
Munich helles
Published Jan. 8, 2015

New Year's resolution: become a better beer taster.

My favorite reference guide for beer is the Beer Judge Certification Program style guide, which can be downloaded at bjcp.org. It's also available as a smartphone app. Using the style guide in conjunction with a focused beer tasting is a powerful method to develop an expert palate.

Start by picking a few styles that you want to explore in-depth. I picked light lagers from the Czech Republic and Bavaria because I feel these are beers that many people have trouble telling apart.

Picking styles in similar categories is a great way to identify nuance and really get down to what makes each style unique. For example, you might choose Category 6 (light hybrid beer) and explore the differences between cream ale, blonde ale and Kölsch. Or you may try Category 11 (English brown ale) to finally get a feel for what differentiates southern and northern English brown ales.

Get a few examples of each style, and try them side by side; first, without any style information, and then with the BJCP guidelines. I picked two beers from each style, including both traditional versions and domestic versions of the styles, and made notes of how on-style the beers were, as well as unique identifying characteristics that will help me to evaluate similar beers in the future.

German pils: This is the German version of the original, Czech/Bohemian pilsner, using German noble hops (e.g., Tettnanger, Hallertau, Spalt) and the region's hard, mineral-rich water. It's extremely pale in appearance, has a neutral or slightly grainy nose, and is both drier and more noticeably bitter than a Bohemian pilsner. The examples I tried were Bitburger Premium Lager and Florida Beer Company Sunshine State Pils.

Bohemian pilsner: This is the first pale lager, originating from what is now the Czech Republic. This beer prominently features spicy, floral Saaz hops (native to the Czech Republic), as well as a richer, nuttier malt base than the German style. The latter is the result of soft brewing water and a decoction mashing process, which results in a beer with more residual sugars post-fermentation. I went full-traditional on this one, with the original example of the style, Pilsner Urquell, as well as a popular competitor, Staropramen.

Munich helles: This light lager from Munich was originally designed to compete with Bohemian pilsner, but it's more malt-forward than both that style and the German pils. According to the BJCP guidelines, the hop bitterness is in a "supporting role," rather than up-front as in the German pils style. Like Bohemian pilsner, this beer showcases the flavor of pilsner malt, but it's much milder than its pilsner cousins. For this style, I tried Hacker-Pschorr Munich Gold, as well as Cigar City Brewing Hotter Than Helles. If you want to try the original, go for Spaten Premium.

The results: Each pair of the three styles agreed with the BJCP guidelines on every level. They were remarkably consistent in appearance and flavor, with the Florida-brewed versions very well-matched to their traditional counterparts. More importantly, however, all three styles, while fairly similar upon first taste, became immediately identifiable, even when mixed up and tasted blind, after comparing the beers to the BJCP guidelines.

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Why is this important? First of all, I like to know all I can about beer, and I'm constantly working to refine my palate. I'm now confident that I can identify whether or not a beer brewed in these three styles is brewed to-style or if it has characteristics inconsistent with the style. Future "research" will no doubt follow, but this is a really great start.

Second, focusing on subtle differences between three similar styles forced me to appreciate a level of nuance that I may have missed otherwise. The next time I drink a Bohemian pilsner, a German pils or a helles lager, I'll not only be confident in my ability to critically evaluate them, I'll be confident that I'm enjoying them on a deeper level than I was before.

— jg@saintbeat.com