Beer is a generic term covering alcoholic beverages made from malted barley, hops, yeast and water*. All beers fall into one of two main categories – lagers or ales. The major difference between lagers and ales is the type of yeast used during production. Lagers are made from bottom-fermenting yeast (which sinks to the bottom of the fermenting container) whilst ales use top-fermenting yeast which forms a thick head on the top of the fermenting container. In addition, lager fermentation takes place at a relatively low temperature, whilst ales ferment at a higher temperature and the fermenting process is shorter.
Ales include any sort of beer with 'ale' in the name, porters, stouts, bitters, milds, barley wines and many Germany specialty beers. Lagers include pilsners, dopplebocks, helles and oktoberfests.
Lager style beer was originally from Bavaria and was traditionally brewed during the cooler winter months and then stored in cool cellars through the summer months where it continued to brew. This extended brewing time allowed the flavour to develop and the yeast to settle at the bottom of the drink, leaving a beer with a clean taste, pale colour and naturally occurring high levels of carbon dioxide (ie fizz).
By contrast, mass produced lagers are stored for 1 – 3 weeks, and are made to fairly standardised recipes – producing lagers that for the most part, do not have the variety of flavours found in traditionally brewed beers. In addition, they have to be artificially carbonated, since the shorter brewing time does not allow for carbon dioxide to develop naturally within the drink. Despite this, some mass produced lagers are of fairly good quality, containing only the basic four beer ingredients (lager, hops, malted barley and yeast) and artificially introduced carbon dioxide. However, the lowest quality mass produced lagers may contain added artificial ingredients such as preservatives and flavourings and may also include rice or maize in with the barley to reduce costs - we would recommend that these are best avoided.
Lager accounts for the majority of beer sales in the UK and the majority of lager sold in this country is produced by just four major breweries. The domination of the beer industry in the UK by a few key players is a cause for concern since it cannot help but affect the variety (and ultimately the quality) of beer available to consumers.
At one point this dominance of the beer market in the UK was threatening beer brewing traditions by making it very difficult for smaller craft breweries to survive. With the arrival of CAMRA (The Campaign for Real Ale) in 1971 however, there appears to have been a revival of interest in traditionally made beers. CAMRA campaigns on behalf of traditional beer varieties, independent pubs and small scale breweries and champions 'real ale'.
'Real ale' is also known as 'cask-conditioned beer', 'real cask beer', 'real beer' and 'naturally conditioned beer'. It is often referred to as a live product, since it is not pasteurized before transferring to the cask or barrel (as most mass produced beer is), and so the yeast present in the beer is still live. This produces a secondary fermentation in the cask, which allows the flavour of the beer to fully develop and produces light levels of carbon dioxide naturally. By contrast, brewery conditioned beer (which includes any mass produced beer) is filtered to remove the yeast and the drink is pasteurized to make it sterile – this makes the beer keep longer and is obviously more convenient for the producers, but will inevitably affect the flavour of the final product.
Scene Green would always recommend small scale traditional methods of making food and drink wherever possible, since it provides rural employment, keeps traditional skills alive and provides consumers with a real alternative to mass produced items which are often cheaply manufactured with little concern for the quality of the end product. There is a large variety of traditionally produced beers available in the UK made by small scale breweries who care passionately about the beers they product and Scene Green recommend that they are well worth seeking out. And of course, if you can find small scale breweries who use organic ingredients to produce their beers, then so much the better.
* Although this is generally true, it is a loose definition and does not apply to all beers. For example, some ales do not contain hops. Wheat beer, as the name suggests is made primarily from wheat (as well as barley), whilst white beer uses a blend of herbs to add flavour (although hops are sometimes included).
