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Which Beer Style Is Perfect for You?

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Which Beer Style Is Perfect for You?

With so many beer styles available, it might be difficult to go through the beer menu and find one that you’ll like. Every week, the list of beers expands to include new beverages developed by homebrewers and heritage breweries. They use a diverse range of hops, like Admiral, German Hallertau, and Saaz, to create novel flavors and interesting colors.

It doesn’t hurt to try something new every once in a while, but we know that at the end of the day, you just want to go home to a tried-and-tested comfort beer. So, Hop Havoc put together a list of classic beer styles. Find out which one is perfect for you.

Pilsner

Taste. Pilsners have a subtle, biscuit-like flavor that is best for beginners. It’s crisp, refreshing, and pleasantly bitter. Compared to others, it’s softer, drier, and more fragrant because of the Saaz and German Hallertau noble hops it contains.

Color. Pilsner’s color ranges from light, pale yellow to golden yellow.

Best with. Thanks to the Saaz and Hallertau noble hops, this beer is delicate enough to pair with seafood, such as calamari, crab, clams, and oysters. Pilsners also cut through the fat of hams, which make it a great choice for the holidays, like Christmas and Thanksgiving.

Pale Ale

Taste. Pale ale originated from the English pale ale. Compared to its British counterpart, this is less malty, more citrusy, and contains a more intense hop flavor. These are light beers that’re palatable to a wide range of drinkers.

Color. Pale ale has the classic look of beers. Its color ranges from golden to deep amber.

Best with. The strong hop aroma isn’t easily overpowered, so you can pair pale ale with intense flavors. Think pizza with spicy toppings, chunks of meat, and thick tomato sauce, as well as dishes with strong spices, like cumin, jalapeño, and cilantro. Pale ale also works well with cheeses with a high fat content (cheddar, blue cheese, etc.) because the bitterness cuts through the cheese.

Indian Pale Ale

Taste. Indian pale ales (IPA) have a much more hop flavor than the classic pale ale. There’s an interesting tale behind its bitter taste; Indian pale ales were developed to stay fresh while in transit from England to India. Brewers added hops as a natural preservative, which made the beer more bitter and aromatic.

Color. This beer’s color is similar to or slightly darker than pale ales, with colors ranging from gold to copper.

Best with. IPAs pair well with salty and fatty food because they tone down the bitterness. The malt also moderates common Indian spices, such as tamarind, coriander, and cardamom. IPA hops also cut through rich Mexican dishes, like burritos and fajitas.

Stout

Taste. Stouts have a strong, roasted flavor with mid to high alcohol levels. There are many types of stouts, like the American stout, which has strong coffee or chocolate notes; oatmeal stout, which is smooth and sweet, and milk stout, whose milk content adds gives it a caramel flavor.

Color. Made from deeply roasted malt, stouts’ colors range from dark brown to jet black.

Best with. Because there are a wide variety of stouts, you can pair them with a various dishes: American stout is best for heavy food like meat; Oatmeal stout tastes great with shellfish, while milk stout goes well with chocolate, ice cream, and goat cheese.

Wheat Beer

Taste. There are several types of wheat beers. German wheat beers have banana and clove flavors, while Belgian wheat beers have a distinct zesty, citrusy taste. American wheat beers have a clean, crisp, hoppy flavor, with a touch of tartness.

Color. Wheat beers are a pale to dark gold color.

Best with. The light American wheat beer pairs well with delicate dishes, like poached white fish (turbot, halibut, etc.) and garden salads. German wheat beer works well with fatty Mexican dishes, while Belgian wheat beer cuts through the grease in bacon and sausages.

Trying these beers with food is one thing; brewing them yourself is another. If you’re up to the challenge of brewing your own classic beer, get in touch with Hop Havoc for high-quality hops.
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