If you don't know a bitter from a hop, use this glossary as a quick study guide.  After you pass the test, treat yourself to an ale or a lager.

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February 2005
Updated April 2008

Product Reviews / Main Nibbles / Beer

Beer Glossary

So Many Types Of Beer: These Definitions Let You Know What You’re Drinking

For those of you who have never been exactly clear on the difference between all the beer types—ale, pale ale, bock, pilsner, and lager (only that you’re happy to drink them all)—this glossary is a tutorial.

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ABBEY BEER
A beer not necessarily made in an abbey, or by monks, but imitating the Trappist monk style. These are top-fermenting brews that characteristically add sugar in the kettle and are always bottle-conditioned. Sometimes these beers are licensed by an abbey, but there is no legal regulation of the term. See Trappist.

A.B.V.
The abbreviation for Alcohol By Volume, the percent of the beer that is alcohol. It is analogous to % alcohol on a wine label, or the proof of a spirit (the percent of alcohol is half the proof, e.g., 80 proof is 40% alcohol by volume). Some beers, such as Imperial Stout, can approach the levels of low-alcohol wines (10%).

ADJUNCT, MALT ADJUNCT or CEREAL ADJUNCT
Any substitute, unmalted cereal grain or fermentable ingredient, added to the mash in order to reduce costs. It is used to produce more, usually cheaper, fermentable sugars, and/or to produce paler, lighter bodied and less malty beers. Adjuncts include corn, flaked rice, inverted sugar, glucose, maize, oats, tapioca flour and wheat. In Belgium, the amount of unmalted cereals added to the grist varies from 10% to 50%, whereas French and U.S. lager beers may contain 30% to 40% adjuncts. In Germany, the use of adjuncts was long prohibited by law; now it is permitted.

ALE

The English language term for a beer made with top-fermenting yeast, which generally gives the beer a fruitiness. Ales are produced in a wide variety of colors, palates and strengths: Bitter, Brown Ale, India Pale Ale, Light Ale, et al. The state liquor authorities of some American states wrongly apply the term to indicate brews of more than 4 percent alcohol. Interestingly, the term ale, once used to indicate a beer made without hops, now generally indicates a dark amber, strongly hopped malt beverage. 

ALTBIER
A dark amber, hoppy pale ale brewed around Düsseldorf and the Lower Rhine region of Germany. The name literally means “old beer,” and refers to the pre-lager brewing method of using a warm top-fermenting yeast (like British pale ales). The production techniques create a cleaner, crisper ale.

AMERICAN BEER
American beer styles include amber ale, American pale ale, American-style lager, cream ale and steam beer.

BARLEY WINE or BARLEYWINE

An English term for an extra-strong ale, implied to be as potent as wine (beers tend to be 3% to 5% alcohol, compared to 10% to 15% for wines).

BAVARIAN BEER and BOHEMIAN BEER
Bavarian and Bohemian both describe the region the beer comes from, not a particular brewing style. Although a brewer might be located in Bavaria or Bohemia, you’d still be ordering a weissbier, a lager, a dark ale, etc. (i.e., a particular style of beer based on seasonality and personal preference). Appending the region is marketing cachet, evoking an area famous for its good breweries. It’s no different from appending the entire country name on exports—“Belgian beer” or “Austrian beer,”  for example, since both countries are known for making fine beer.

BEER or BIER

One of the oldest of alcoholic beverages, with archaeological evidence dating to about 3000 B.C.E., beer was well known to the ancient Egyptians, who were good home-brewers. In fact, for much of its history, beer was a home brew or of monastery manufacture. Not until late Medieval times did it become a commercial product; it is now made by large-scale manufacturers in almost every industrialized country (though today’s beers are might lower in alcohol content than their predecessors). Beer is made by brewing and fermenting cereals (today malted barley is most commonly used), usually with the addition of hops as both a flavoring agent and stabilizer). The word beer comes from Middle English ber, from Old English beor, and probably from Latin bibere, to drink. Bier is the modern German word for beer.

BEER-MAKING PROCESS

Beer is fermented grain. American beer is made of barley, except as noted, for example, wheat beer, mostly produced by craft brewers. The barley is malted (soaked in water until it is partially germinated, then dried) which releases the starches, which in turn are made into fermentable sugar. It is the fermentable sugars that are converted into beer. To begin the process, ground malt is added to a mash tun, where it is mixed with boiled, pulverized corn (grits) to create the mash. The hot grits raise the temperature of the mash, releasing enzymes that break down the starches into fermentable sugars. The mash is then separated from the fermentable sugars, which are called the wort. The wort is boiled for 90 minutes or so, then hops are added. Then the wort goes into the fermentation tank, where carbon dioxide is created and the wort transforms into beer. It is cooled, aged and bottled.

BELGIAN BEER
Belgian beer styles include dubbel, enkel, Flanders red ale, lambic, oud bruin, saison, tripel and witbier.

BERLINER WEISSE

A classic Berlin brew, a white, top-fermenting wheat beer that has gone through lactic fermentation to produce a sparkling high carbonation, and a low alcohol content of (around 3% by volume) and a characteristic sour flavor.

BIÈRE BLANCH

French for wheat beer, the same as a Belgian witbier. See Weisse.

BITTER

A well-hopped beer, mostly found in a draught (pronounced draft) beer. The name suggests hop bitterness. There is often some acidity in the finish; the color varies from bronze to deep copper.

BOCK or BOCKBIER

Bock is the German word for strong, referring to a strong beer brewed from barley malt. Bock beer is traditionally served in autumn, late winter and spring. It was originally brewed by top fermentation in the Hanseatic League town of Einbeck (beck bier became bock bier) in Lower Saxony, where it is still brewed (and known as Ur-Bock, the original bock). But the style has evolved. It was once a heavy, dark beer brewed in winter for consumption in spring. German bock beers are now brewed by bottom fermentation and are usually dark brown. Pale bocks are increasing in popularity and a distinction is sometimes made between light bock beer and dark bock beer. Because the word bock also means billy goat in German, a goat is often found on the labels of bockbier brands.

BOHEMIAN BEER
See Bavarian Beer.

BREWING
In the brewing processes, a mash, generally prepared from crushed barley and water (and often using other cereals such as rice and corn) is heated and rotated in a mash tun. This dissolves the solids and permits the malt enzymes to convert the starch into sugar. The solution, called wort, is drained into a copper vessel, where it is boiled with the hops which provide beer with its bitter flavor. The liquid is then run off for cooling and settling and is transferred to fermenting vessels where yeast is added. The yeast then go to work converting the sugar into alcohol. Unlike fermented beverages such as wine, which continue to evolve and improve in the bottle (“bottle age”), brewed alcohols like beer and saké are meant to be drunk fresh. After a few months, they will begin to deteriorate.

BREWPUB
A microbrewery that does not produce to distribute its beers, but sells them primarily through its own restaurant or bar, which is generally on the premises of the brewery.

BROWN ALE

A dark brown ale made with a dark or brown malt; the roasted malt produces caramel and chocolate flavors. The original style originated in London but today brewed in a variety of styles: sweet, low alcohol beers (in southern England, such as Mann’s Original Brown Ale), medium-alcohol amber beers with moderate bitterness (such as Newcastle Brown Ale and Samuel Smith's Nut Brown Ale) and malty/hoppy American beers which were traditionally drier due to the American hops (Brooklyn Brown Ale, Pete’s Wicked Ale, Sierra Nevada Brown Ale). However, with more American brewers using imported hops, this may change.

CASK-CONDITIONED

Draft beer or ale that is neither filtered nor pasteurized and has a secondary fermentation and natural clarification in the cellar of the pub. This should produce a relatively clear brew with a light natural carbonation.

CHOCOLATE BEER
Chocolate beer, which can be a lager, stout or other beer variety, has the subtle flavor of chocolate. This can be achieved by blending different types of roasted barley, adding real chocolate to the brew, or both. Some brewers use chocolate extract, some brew over cacao beans. Depending on the method, the beer will have a greater or lesser intensity of chocolate flavor, but the result is a slightly sweet brew that can be enjoyed with dessert or incorporated into one. Here’s a recipe for a Chocolate Stout Float. See also Stout.

CREAM ALE

An American term for a very pale ale. Usually it is a golden ale that may have been blended with a lager.

DESSERT BEER
Fruit-flavored and chocolate-flavored beers are often enjoyed with dessert. Chocolate beer and stout are growing in popularity. See Chocolate Beer.

DOPPLEBOCK or DOUBLE BOCK
Dopplebock is German for extra-strong—around 7.5% alcohol by volume, or stronger. It is a bottom-fermented beer, tawny or dark brown in color. It’s a southern Germany spring specialty, seasonally brewed in March and April.

DUNKLEWEIZEN
A dark version of a wheat beer (“dunkel” is the German word for dark).

DRAFT BEER
Beer drawn from a keg. Bottled or canned beer labeled “Genuine Draft” implies that it, like most beer pumped from kegs, is unpasteurized. However, it is sterile filtered for longer shelf life.

DRAUGHT
The British spelling of draft. It is pronounced “draft.”

DRY BEER
Adapted and named by the Japanese after the popular German beer, Diat Pils, a low-carb Pilsner fermented to higher alcohol. American Dry Beer has standard alcohol levels, little taste and no finish.

EISBIER or ICE BEER
A higher-alcohol beer produced by chilling it below 32°F (0°C) and filtering out the ice crystals that form.

ENGLISH BEER
English beer styles include barley wine, bitter, brown ale, imperial stout, India pale ale (IPA), mild ale, old ale, porter and stout.

FRAMBOISE or FRAMBOZEN
Raspberry beer, usually made from lambic. See also kriek.

GRUUT
A Medieval Belgian wheat beer, brewed today in a somewhat different recipe. The original was brewed with spices rather than hops; today’s gruut contains some hops along with coriander, bitter orange and orange peel.

HEFEWEIZEN or HEFE-WEIZEN

A wheat beer (Hefeweizen is German for “yeast wheat”—Hefe is the word for yeast) in which the beer is not filtered before bottling. Thus, the yeast continue to act (known as bottle conditioning), and there may be sediment in the bottle. Also called Hefeweisse, Hefeweissbier and Weissbier. Some Weizenstarkbiers (high-alcohol wheat beers) are left unfiltered, and therefore are Hefeweizens.

HELL
Rather than a bottle of fire and brimstone, hell is simply the German word for “pale,” and indicates an everyday beer that is golden in color.

HOP
A climbing plant, much like a grape vine. The cone-like blossoms on hops are the tannins, which help preserve and clarify beer and are the essential ingredients that impart aroma, dryness and the characteristic bitter flavors.

IMPERIAL STOUT

An opaque black stout that was originally brewed by Thrale’s Brewery in London, England for export to the court of the Tsar of Russia. It is very rich, with powerful malt flavors, hints of dark fruits and often, chocolate notes. The high alcohol content (generally 9% to 10%) was originally intended to preserve it during the long journey, as well as to provide fortitude in the cold Russian climate. Also known as Imperial Russian Stout or Russian Imperial Stout.

INDIA PALE ALE or IPA
In the 19th century, the British in the Indian Empire was supplied with ale from England, largely because the Indian water was caused health problems to systems not raised on it. The original IPA was high in density and hops, to help it travel well. Today, the term implies a super-premium pale ale.

KELLERBIER

An unfiltered lager with a high hop content and low carbonation.

KLOSTER BIER or CLOISTER BEER
A beer that is, or formerly was, produced in a monastery or convent. See also Abbey Beer and Trappist Bier.

KÖLSCH BIER
Beer in the style of the city of Cologne: a top-fermented beer producing a golden brew with soft, layered flavors that have a delicate fruitiness and a prominent hoppiness.

KRIEK
Cherry beer, usually based on lambic, with 5% to 6% alcohol by volume.

KRISTALLWEIZEN
A German filtered wheat beer. Kristall is the German word for crystal, so indicates that the beer will be clear, not cloudy (as opposed to a Hefeweizen, which might have sediment). It is often served with a slice of lemon on the rim of the glass, or in the glass, similar to the lime served with Mexico’s Corona beer. Also known as Kristall Weissbier and Kristallweizen.

LAGER

Any beer made by bottom-fermentation. It is usually golden in color but sometimes can be dark. Lager requires a longer, colder fermentation than ale (which is a top-fermenting beer), and uses a different species of yeast, that tolerates cold temperatures well. The result of the cold fermentation is a lighter, crisper, smoother beer. Ale was the beer of England, and as the British colonized America, it was the beer of the Colonies. Lager beer was introduced to the U.S. during the German immigration of the early 1800s. It was immediately adopted and the country switched from being an ale-drinking country  to a lager-drinking country. The only challenge was that brewing lager required a colder environment, 30°F to 40°F. Brewers would manufacture in caves or burrow into sides of mountains to find the right environment. Lager is the German word for storage place.

LAMBIC

A spontaneously-fermenting style of wheat beer, unique to Belgium. See Framboise.

LIGHT ALE
In England, light ale is the bottled counterpart of a draught bitter. In Scotland, “light” applied to beer indicates the lowest gravity (density) draught beer—coincidentally usually dark in color. Neither term implies a low-calorie beer.

LIGHT BEER

An American term indicating a watery pilsner-style beer that is lower in calories.

MALT

Beer-making starts with the grain. Barley is malted (soaked in water until it is partially germinated, then dried) which releases starches, which in turn are made into fermentable sugar. See Beer-Making.

MALT LIQUOR

Neither malty nor a liquor, usually a strong American lager intended for a cheap high. Some states require the term malt liquor to be applied to all beers of more than 5.0 percent by volume.

MARZENBIER or MAR ZEN
An amber-red, Vienna-style beer with a malty aroma, classically, more than 5.5% alcohol by volume. Originally brewed in March (Mar zen) and laid down in caves before the summer heat made brewing impossible, it is now seasonal to the Oktoberfest.

MASH
The mixture of ground malt and boiled grits that break down into fermentable sugars (the wort) in the beer-making process.  See Beer-Making for the entire process.

MEAD
A fermented beverage made from honey, sometimes referred to as “honey wine.” Plausibly humankind’s first fermented beverage, mead is also the beverage drunk by the mythological gods on Mount Olympus.

MICROBREWERY
A boutique brewery that produces fewer than 15,000 barrels annually. The American microbrewery movement began in the 1980s, fueled by the increasingly sophisticated American palate and consumer dissatisfaction with the bland beers produced by the large commercial breweries. By 2000 there were more than 400 U.S. microbreweries and more than 1,000 brewpubs.

MILD ALE
A malty beer that originated in the Britain, in the 1600s or earlier. Modern Mild Ales are dark ales, generally with an ABV of 3% to 3.6%, although some have up to 6% ABV. The term “mild” originally meant a young beer, as opposed to an aged one. Today, it refers to a mildly hopped beer. Mild ale has declined in popularity since the 1960s, and can be difficult to find.

OLD ALE
In the U.K., this term refers to a medium-strong dark ale. In Australia, “Old” simply means dark ale.

PALE ALE

A bronze- or copper-colored ale, as opposed to dark brown ale. Some English brewers use this term to describe their premium bitters.

PILSNER or PILSENER or PILS

A general name for pale, golden-hued, highly-hopped, bottom-fermented beers. The original Pilsner was first brewed at the Bürgerlisches Brauhaus in the Bohemian town of Plzen (meaning green meadow), Czechoslovakia in 1842. It was then the palest beer available, and the style was soon copied worldwide. The archetypal Pilsner is Plzensky Prazdroj or Pilsner Urquell (urquell meaning original source), a name trademarked in 1898.

PORTER

A London style of beer, Porter is a strong, dark ale, bottom-fermented with the addition of roasted malt to give flavor and color. Higher in alcohol and more roasted-tasting than ale, it is lighter-bodied than stout.

PREMIUM BEER
“Premium” is a term used by breweries to describe their top-of-the-line offerings, made from the best ingredients. It doesn’t describe a style of beer, or even mean that the beer is of superior quality. There is no FDA regulation of the term, so it would behoove any brewer to call its beer “premium” as a marketing advantage (similar to putting the word “gourmet” on a product label—gourmet mustard, e.g.). Beer connoisseurs would prefer a “microbrew” or “craft beer”  from artisan brewers that only make premium beers, as opposed to a mass-marketing giant selling a “premium” beer.

QUAFF
To drink deeply.

SCHWARZBIER

Black (schwarz) or very dark beer. The most famous is made in Kostritz, Germany.

SCOTCH ALE
A very strong, often extremely dark, malt-accented, Scottish specialty beer.

STOUT
The darkest of beers, a stout is top fermented and differentiated from a regular ale by its brown-black color, chocolate-coffee flavors and fuller body. This is achieved by brewing with barley that has been dark-roasted to the point of charring (think of espresso beans, compared to a medium-roast coffee). It is thus both darker and maltier than porter, has a more pronounced hop aroma, and may reach an alcoholic content of 6% to 7%.

Chocolate Stout is a sub-category that uses different malts for an even more pronounced chocolate flavor. These days, some brewers add actual chocolate into the brew, or brew over cacao beans, or both.

Imperial Stout or Russian Stout has more of a rich, roasted quality and a higher level of alcohol. These are potent beers that can be almost as thickly textured as liqueur. Examples include Samuel Smith’s Imperial Stout at 7% alcohol and Brooklyn Brewery’s Black Chocolate Stout, at 8.7% alcohol. The alcohol content of imperial stouts can go to 9% and 10%.

Oatmeal Stout adds oatmeal to the mash, which gives smoothness and creaminess to the stout. It has more restrained flavors and less alcohol than Imperial stout. Samuel Smith makes a benchmark oatmeal stout, with notes of fruit, licorice, chocolate and toffee.

TRAPPIST
An order of monks with five breweries in Belgium and one in The Netherlands, that produce strong (6% to 12% alcohol), top-fermenting brews. By law they have exclusive right to use the term Trappist in marketing their products.

WEISSE or WEISSBIER or WEIZENBIER or WITBIER

Weissbier is the German word for white beer, a pale brew made from wheat. Weizenbock, a bock beer made from wheat, is sometimes served as a Christmas beer. The Dutch/Flemish (Belgian) term for Weissbier is witbier. Belgian witbieren often are brewed with spices such as coriander, or fruits such as bitter orange peel, giving them slightly fruity nuances. In Germany, there are two styles: Weizen in the western and northern regions and Weissbier or Weisse in Bavaria. See also Berliner Weisse, Gruut, Hefeweizen, Lambic and Kristallweizen.

WEIZENSTARKBIER
A high-alcohol wheat beer.

WHEAT BEER

A beer that is brewed with a significant proportion of wheat, which provides a distinctive pale color, creamy texture and a light, sweet flavor. Some have overtones of banana and clove. The best-known wheat beers are Belgian witbier and German Weissbier. See Weisse.

WORT

The fermentable sugars made from the mash. See Beer-Making for the entire process of beer-making.

YEAST

Yeast cells love to eat sugar. In doing so, they cause the wort (the sweet liquid from the water and heated grains) to ferment, which produces alcohol and carbon dioxide. Yeast also imparts flavor and can be used to give a fruity taste to beer.

ZYMURGY
The science or study of fermentation.

Some terms in this glossary are © 2005 National Beer Wholesalers Association. All rights reserved. Other content is © Lifestyle Direct Inc. All rights reserved.