Whatever your beer of choice, be it an 11% ABV (that’s Alcohol by Volume) Barrel-Aged Belgian like the Allagash Curieux or a 4.5% ABV macro-brewed Bud Light Lime, knowing a little bit more about the beer you drink is important knowledge. Even if the thought of becoming a full-fledged beer geek makes you cringe and you’ll happily stick to your watered-down American Light Lagers – or maybe you’re stuck somewhere in-between (and that’s not a bad place to be) and enjoy a stray Sam Adams or a pint at a local brewpub – knowing what’s behind that beer, what’s in that beer, could come in handy the next time you need to impress your drinking buddies or, better yet, your date.

What’s in my beer?

All beer is made of four basic ingredients: water, malted barley, yeast and hops and is essentially brewed the same way, too (no, Miller Light did not uncover a huge “triple hop” brewing secret – all beer uses hops for bittering, flavor and aroma). The major difference in beer is between the two types of beer – Ale and Lager. Ale yeast is top-fermenting and quick. The yeasts sit on top of the beer as they chow down on the fermentable sugars in the malt, creating the one thing we all call sacred: alcohol. Lagers, on the other hand, utilize bottom-fermenting yeasts, which are cold, fat and lazy. Even though the end result is the same, Lager yeasts sink to the bottom of the beer and take their sweet time eating through the fermentable sugars. While ales will be fully fermented in a few days, Lagers may take a month or more.

Beer styles

While there are only two types of beer – ales and lagers – there are dozens of styles of beer. They range in color and flavor from the very light, nearly clear and tasteless American Light Lagers on one end, to bright yellow Hefeweizens, to light brown-colored India Pale Ales (known as IPAs), amber and red ales, to dark brown ales, to nearly-black porters and, finally, to pitch black stouts on the other end of the spectrum.

Tasting your beer

Beer tasting does not have to be pretentious or exclusive. Invite over the guys, select a few good brews and have some fun. You can even take notes of the beers you’re drinking while watching the big game. The first step in beer tasting is actually noting how the beer smells. Do you get a lot of roasted or toasty smells? If you’re drinking a dark, malt-heavy beer like a brown or a porter then you can expect these scents. How about floral, grassy or piney smells? If your beer has a lot of hops, like an India Pale Ale, then you can expect to pick up these smells. Next, take a sip, roll the beer around in your mouth a bit, and note what you taste: is the beer tart, maybe a little fruity like a wheat beer or pilsner? Maybe roasted notes and even chocolate or coffee like you would find in a stout? Or is the beer bitter and spicy from the hops? How does it feel in your mouth? Is the beer full-bodied and creamy like a Guinness or light, thin like a Budweiser? Take a minute to think about what you see, smell, taste and feel from your beer and you will be surprised at how much more you begin to enjoy your brews.

Whatever your beer of choice – dark or pale, micro or macro – knowing more about your beer: how it is made, where it falls on the color spectrum, and being able to differentiate between the sights, smells and tastes of your beer will help you really appreciate what you’re drinking. Besides, you may have some fun in the process and who knows when any of your newly acquired knowledge can be used to impress babes and bros alike.

Luke Livingston, 25, of Portland is a graduate of Edward Little HS (’03) and Clark University (’07). Livingston is a freelance writer, homebrewer and beer enthusiast; check out his beer musings daily on www.BlogAboutBeer.com.