Fascinating facts about beer 2
February 19th 2009 07:05
Some of the great European beers use what are known, appropriately, as noble hops. The term traditionally refers to four varieties of hop which are low in bitterness and high in aroma. They are the central European cultivars, hallertau, tettnanger, spalt and saaz. They are each named for a specific region or city in which they were first grown or primarily grown: Hallertau, Tettnang, Spalt and Žatec (Saaz in German). They contain high amounts of the hop oil humulene and low amounts of alpha acids cohumulone and adhumulone, as well as lower amounts of the harsher-tasting beta acids lupulone, colupulone, and adlupulone.
European lager beers such as pilsener and dunkel are distinguised by a low relative bitterness but strong aroma. In beer, they are considered aroma hops, as opposed to bittering hops. The classic of this category is the Czech Pilsner Urquell.
The bitterness of beers is measured in international bitterness units, or IBUs. An IBU is measured with a device known as a spectrophotometer. Bitterness comes from the hops used during brewing. The bittering effect is less noticeable in beers with a high quantity of malt, so a higher IBU is needed in heavier beers to balance the flavor. For example, a stout may have an IBU of 50, but will taste less bitter than an English Bitter with an IBU of 30. A light American lager might be as low as 5 on the scale. The technical limit for an IBU reading is about 100, after which human taste can't recognise further change.
As with grapes, hops from different regions have varying characteristics. As a result, for example, Dortmunder beer may only be labelled Dortmunder (within the EU) if it has been brewed in Dortmund, and noble hops may only officially be considered noble if they were grown in the areas for which the hops varieties were named.
The English beers Fuggle and East Kent Golding have claims to nobility. They have low alpha-acid levels (2–5%) with a low cohumulone content, low myrcene in the hop oil, high humulene in the oil, a ratio of humulene to caryophyllene above three. They also prone to oxidation, which means they store poorly. But that is good news, not bad, as it means a relatively consistent bittering potential as they age, due to beta-acid oxidation, and a flavour, therefore, which improves over time.
Tourists in Scotland are often confused by the names of the beer on offer. Most Scottish pubs will offer the following beers: 60/-, 70/-, 80/- and 90/-.
They are pronounced 60 shilling, 70 shilling etc, and are based on prices charged per barrel for beer during the 19th century, the stronger or better quality beers costing more. The practice of classifying beers by the shilling price was not specific to Scotland, but was revived there in the 1970s, a period of when real ales brewed in kegs again became popular. The shilling names were used to differentiate between keg and cask versions of the same beers. That differentiation has now been lost, but the shilling names remain.
While the shilling names were never pinned down to exact strength ranges, and Scottish brewers today produce beers under the shilling names in a variety of strengths, it is largely understood that:
Light (60/-) was under 3.5%
Heavy (70/-) was 3.5-4.0%
Export (80/-) was 4.0-5.5%
Wee heavy (90/-) was over 6.0%
Note for tourists: If you want to sound vaguely a like a local ordering an 80/- beer, ask for, "A pint of 80 bob please."
en.wikipedia.org, forum.tapesh.com, www.absoluteastronomy.com, beerfacts.net. images: muzeumhumoru.onet.pl, www.routerforums.com, www.boozebasher.com, picasaweb.google.com
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