No. 50 Papaya Rye
Nómada Brewing, Sabadell (Barcelona), Spain
Alcohol: 9%
This deep golden beer is an explosion of fruit, hops and rye. Malty with notes of tropical fruit and caramel, it is both intense and extremely drinkable. Nómada Papaya Rye has earned a spot in RateBeer's Top 100 and Top Imperial IPAs.
No. 49 Viaemilia
Birrifico del Ducato, Parma, Italy
Alcohol: 5%
A perennial favorite, it has consistently won medals at the World Beer Cup and European Beer Star competitions. Birrifico del Ducato was Italian Brewery of the Year in 2010 and 2011 and has won numerous other prizes. This malty beer with herbaceous, floral and honeyed notes pairs well with prosciutto, another staple of the region.
UnaBirraAlGiorno
No. 48 Brio
Olgerdin Egill Skallagrimsson, Reykjavik, Iceland
Alcohol: 4.5%
You can expect something extraordinary from a brewery named after the skald Egil Skallagrimsson. Brio features notes of herbaceous and spicy hops and cracker-like malt. Brewed with Icelandic mountain water, this beer brought home World Beer Cup and World Beer Awards medals.
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No. 47 Galaxy IPA
Other Half Brewing, Brooklyn
Alcohol: 6.5%
Cloudy peachy, resinous, herbaceous and yet surprisingly floral, with notes of tropical fruits. Other Half is a rising star in the craft beer firmament, and this IPA is considered one of the best in New York.
No. 46 Nøgne Ø Porter
Nøgne Ø, Grimstad, Norway
Alcohol: 7%
An outstanding full-bodied porter brewed in Norway - jet black with aromas of dark chocolate and espresso followed by caramel. It is the winner of the bronze medal in the Export Extra Stout category of the 2016 Barcelona Beer Challenge.
No. 45 ManBearPig
Voodoo Brewing Co., Meadville, Pennsylvania
Alcohol: 14.1%
This is a powerful beer with maple syrup and local honey, aged in bourbon barrels. It is strong, pitch black and very complex, with a pronounced and long finish. It is one of the world's best beers according to Beer Advocate in 2016.
No. 44 Black Eyed King Imp Vietnamese Coffee Edition
BrewDog, Ellon, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
Alcohol: 12.7%
Included in the world top 100 according to RateBeer. This is the world's strongest canned ale - black, intense, with powerful aromas of coffee and cocoa.
No. 43 Breakside IPA
Breakside Brewery, Portland, Oregon
Alcohol: 6.4%
This is a tasty, hoppy IPA with notes of grapefruit, pine, resin and tangerines. It has four varieties of hops plus dry hopping. Breakside IPA won a gold medal in the American IPA category at the 2016 Best of Craft Beer Awards.
No. 42 Lambo Door
Grimm Artisanal Ales, Brooklyn
Alcohol: 8%
Grimm calls it "pure hoppy candy." This double IPA, with Citra, El Dorado and Simcoe hops, took first place out of 115 double IPAs in Paste magazine's blind tasting. Grimm is one of the pioneers of contract brewing.
No. 41 Samiec Alfa
Browar Artezan, Blonie, Poland
Alcohol: 11%
This barrel-aged wonder is one of RateBeer's top 50 imperial stouts. It has a sweet aroma, low bitterness, pronounced notes of vanilla and toffee, and a creamy body.
Chmielokracja.pl
No. 40 St. Feuillien Triple
Brasserie St-Feuillien / Friart, Le Reux, Belgium
Alcohol: 8.5%
Light amber color, with pronounced maltiness. Secondary fermentation in the bottle produces a recognizable aroma created by the yeast, and the long maturation results in a long aftertaste. Gold medalist of the Barcelona Beer Challenge 2016 in the Belgian Tripel category.
No. 39 Mikkeller Beer Geek Brunch Weasel
Lervig Aktiebryggeri, Copenhagen, Denmark
Alcohol: 10.9%
This Top 50 Imperial Stout is brewed with some of the world's most expensive coffee—yes, the same coffee that has passed through the digestive tract of the civet, a picky South Asian mammal that eats only the finest, freshest coffee cherries. This is a rather rare variety of coffee with a strong aroma. It gives the beer an intense smoky profile with notes of toasted bread and toasted vanilla.
No. 38 Avec Les Bons Voeux
Brasserie Dupont, Tourpe-Leuze, Belgium
Alcohol: 9.5%
A top-fermented light beer with a copper color, light body, dry and sour. This delicious Belgian farmhouse ale ranks among the world's finest Abbey Tripels. Ideal to drink at cellar temperature, or chilled as an aperitif.
No. 37 Julius
Tree House Brewing Company, Monson, Massachusetts
Alcohol: 6.8%
This is an intimidatingly drinkable IPA, with notes of mango and sweet citrus and a rounded bitterness. Beerishealthy.com calls it "The World's Best IPA."
No. 36 Aecht Schlenkerla Fastenbier
Braueri Heller, Bamberg, Germany
Alcohol: 5.5%
With a reddish-brown body and large white head, this unfiltered beer has an unmistakable smoked meat aroma balanced by the flavors of cinnamon toast and caramel. Fastenbier means "beer for Lent" and this beer is only sold during Lent - from Ash Wednesday to Easter.
No. 35 Orval
Brasserie d'Orval, Florentville, Villers-devant-Orval, Belgium
Alcohol: 6.2%
An orange-copper beer with a giant white head and aroma of yeast, lemons and a light, non-overpowering aroma. A floral, citrusy and complex dry beer with a medium body. It is also the only beer that the Trappist brewery Orval produces for the general public.
No. 34 Double Barrel Jesus
Evil Twin Brewing, Westbrook Brewing Co., Brooklyn
Alcohol: 12%
In the top 100 the best varieties in the world according to RateBeer. This is a matte black stout with notes of bourbon and vanilla and a toffee-like body.
Ian Mewhinney@Flickr
No. 33 Duck Duck Gooze
The Lost Abbey, San Marcos, California
Alcohol: 7%
With a sour taste and aroma, hints of citrus, a crisp acidic finish and a hint of sweetness for balance, this ale has been one of the brewery's best-selling beers since its release in 2009. It is very difficult to find, as it is brewed only once every three years, and in limited quantities.
dontdrinkbeer
No. 32 Oude Geuze
Brouwerij Oud Beersel, Beersel, Belgium
Alcohol: 6%
Classic Belgian ale, hazy, honey-colored, with wine taste citric acidity, a hint of spice, tiny bubbles and strong carbonation. It is considered sparkling wine beer world and won the title of best sour beer at the 2016 World Beer Awards.
The Perfectly Happy Man
No. 31 Kormoran Imperium Prunum
Browar Kormoran, Olsztyn, Poland
Alcohol: 11 percent
One of the top 100 according to RateBeer and the best Baltic porter in the world. Explosive notes of prunes, smoked fruit, chocolate and malt.
No. 30 Zombie Dust
Alcohol: 6.2%
This powerful pale ale is worth buying just for the label alone. But those who are attracted by the unusual design are also fascinated by the beer itself. Powerful aroma of pine and citrus, with notes of grapefruit and honey on the palate. Ranked in the top 50 by Men’s Fitness and thefiftybest.com.
Cocktail Enthusiast
No. 29 Péché Mortel
Brasserie Dieu du Ciel!, Quebec, Canada
Alcohol: 6.5%
Coffee is added during the brewing process, resulting in an intense, dense imperial stout with the aroma of roasted coffee beans and a slightly tart finish. It was named one of the best imperial stouts by Craft Beer & Brewing magazine.
No. 28 Two Hearted Ale
Bell's Brewery, Galesburg, Michigan
Alcohol: 7%
Named after the Two Harted River in Michigan. This is a crisp IPA with explosive pine and citrus notes. According to Beer Advocate, this is one of those beers that will outlive its time.
No. 27 Darkness
Surly Brewing Company, Minneapolis
Alcohol: 9.6%
This is a complex, heavy Russian imperial stout with dark chocolate, fruit and toffee aromas, moderate carbonation and unconventional aromatic hops. He has about 10 thousand almost perfect reviews on Untappd.
№26 Oude Geuze Vintage
Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen, Bercel, Belgium
Alcohol: 6%
This vintage edition gueuze is only sold in Belgium. It is released after several years of storage in the cellars of Drie Fonteinen - unlike the regular Oude Geuze, which matures for six months. Which gueuze becomes vintage depends on the brewer's decision - he evaluates its taste and aging potential. Oude Geuze Vintage is number 18 on Beer Advocate's list of 250 great beers, based on over 10 years of reviews.
AdamChandler86@Flickr
No. 25 Dinner
Maine Beer Company, Freeport, Maine
Alcohol: 8.2%
Double dry-hopped with over 6 pounds of hops per barrel (230 grams per deciliter), this hazy golden-colored Double IPA has a dry, refreshing character. Craft Beer & Brewing magazine rates it 100 points.
Beer Chatter
No. 24 Hopslam
Bell's Brewery, Galesburg, Michigan
Alcohol: 10%
This Double IPA with Northwest hops might not be something you'll be writing a postcard home about. However, fans of this beer call all the beer stores in the city as soon as they hear a rumor that they have a couple of packs. Each sip is filled with notes of honey, and the complex hopping scheme creates an aromatic, citrusy, bitter yet refreshing beer.
No. 23 Application
Alcohol: 7%
This brown ale is aged for 12 months with sour cherries in Sonoma Valley Pinot Noir barrels. The result is a bright, acidic, fruity and slightly aromatic beer with a noticeable wine cask character.
The Perfectly Happy Man
No. 22 Weihenstephaner Hefe Weissbier
Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan, Freising, Germany
Alcohol: 5.4%
Hefeweizen in traditional style- with an earthy-forest aroma, well balanced, fruity and dry. Winner of the World Beer Cup gold medal in the “South German style Hefeweizen” category.
No. 21 The Abyss
Deschutes Brewery, Bend, Oregon
Alcohol: 11.1%
Notes of licorice in the aroma come from the addition of cherry bark and vanilla and aging in oak barrels. This is the winner of the 2016 World Beer Awards for Best Imperial Stout.
No. 20 Speedway Stout - Bourbon Barrel Aged
AleSmith Brewing Company, San Diego, California
Alcohol: 12%
Matte black with brownish foam. Aromas of chocolate and licorice combined with smoky taste roasted coffee. Creamy and sweet, this beer is great for aging. It earned 100 points from Craft Beer & Brewing magazine.
No. 19 La Fin du Monde
Unibroue, Quebec, Canada
Alcohol: 9%
Hazy, yeasty, floral, medium-bodied triple golden ale rich taste. Unibroue brewers say this beer was brewed in honor of the brave European explorers who believed they had reached the end of the world by discovering North America- New World. World's End has won more awards than any other Canadian beer.
No. 18 Dark Lord Russian Imperial Stout
Three Floyds Brewing Company, Munster, Indiana
Alcohol: 15%
Dense and caramel, with notes of chocolate and coffee in the aroma, dried fruits and brown sugar in taste. You can only buy it at the brewery on one day a year - Dark Lord Day (in 2017 it took place on May 13).
365beers
No. 17 Parabola
Firestone Walker Brewing Company, Paso Robles, California
Alcohol: 13.1%
This is an imperial stout that is described as a fine wine. Don't be surprised when you hear someone mention notes of tobacco and oak or black coffee and vanilla. This is a truly complex Russian imperial stout, both sweet and bitter, and incredibly hard to find. It is aged in bourbon barrels (Pappy Van Winkle, Woodford Reserve, Elijah Craig and others) and then blended.
No. 16 Schneider Aventinus Weizen-Eisbock
Schneider Weisse G. Schneider & Sohn GmbH, Kelheim, Germany
Alcohol: 12%
Legend has it that one winter the barrels of Aventinus froze while being transported. The brewers tasted the remaining unfrozen liquid and were amazed. And you can understand why. This is a legendary beer with the aroma of banana and the taste of dried fruits, cocoa and cloves.
No. 15 Mornin' Delight
Alcohol: 12%
With a strong espresso aroma and a thick, rich body, this imperial stout is ranked third in RateBeer's top 50 best beers in the world. Beer Advocate founder Jason Elstrom believes Toppling Goliath will remain a favorite for years to come.
No. 14 Hunahpu's Imperial Stout - Double Barrel Aged
Cigar City Brewing, Tampa, Florida
Alcohol: 11%
Every December, Hunahpu's Day tickets go on sale ($200-$400). This festival takes place in March and fans can be the first to try the new incarnation of their perennial favorite. Ticket price includes 4-12 bottles of this spicy, rich imperial stout, which is aged half-and-half rum and apple brandy barrels.
No. 13 Pliny the Elder
Russian River Brewing Company, Santa Rosa, California
Alcohol: 8%
The ancient Roman polymath writer and philosopher Pliny the Elder called hops Lupus salictarius - “the wolf in the willows” - although it is not known for certain whether he had hops in mind. Either way, the double IPA named after him is hazy, coppery-golden, and pine-like. It's fresh, with perfectly balanced hops and a fresh grapefruit flavor. The beer has won gold in the World Beer Cup and Great American Beer Festival, and is considered one of the best West Coast IPAs in history.
No. 12 Westvleteren Extra 8
Alcohol: 8%
Only six Belgian brands can claim to be made in Trappist abbeys, and the monks of St. Sixtus Abbey in Westvleteren produce the least amount of beer, so their dark ale is in extreme short supply. With notes of tea, raisins and brown bread, this dubbel is highly carbonated and has a large head of foam.
No. 11 Kentucky Breakfast Stout
Founders Brewing Company, Grand Rapids, Michigan
Alcohol: 11.2%
Bringing out the incredibly popular Breakfast Stout may have seemed like a daunting task for Founders, but they did it. Cellar-aged in oak bourbon barrels, this imperial stout is second to none. KBS, brewed with chocolate and coffee, is for those who like a hint of bourbon in their breakfast beer.
No. 10 Ann
Hill Farmstead Brewery, Greensboro Bend, Vermont
Alcohol: 6.5%
Hill Farmstead was named best brewery world according to RateBeer. The Anna honey saison is aged for many months in French oak wine barrels and only then becomes Ann. The naturally carbonated beer exhibits complex citric acidity with hints of green apple.
AdamChandler86@Flickr
No. 9 Lou Pepe Kriek
Brasserie Cantillon, Brussels, Belgium
Alcohol: 5%
Every year Cantillon manages to get a ton or two of delicate and rare sour cherries from Schaerbeek, the harvest of which is unpredictable. These cherries, used exclusively for blending, are infused in the beer for two to three months to create that acidic and juicy scream. Production is limited to a couple thousand bottles per year due to the limited supply of berries. Lou Pepe Kriek was named one of Thrillist's Best Strains of 2016.
No. 8 Celebrator
Brauerei Aying, Aying, Germany
Alcohol: 6.7%
Doppelbock stands apart from other German styles. This strong but not overpowering beer with a lush foam is aged for six months. A great beer to celebrate with friends and family.
No. 7 St. Bernardus Abt 12
St. Bernardus Brouwerij, Watau, Belgium
Alcohol: 10%
Powerful, rich, spicy, malty, strong - like drinking an alcoholic fruit cake with chocolate and caramel. This is an abbey ale brewed in the classic Belgian quadrupelle style using an old Trappist recipe. St. Bernardus is considered by the beer community to be one of the best beers in the world.
No. 6 Bourbon County Brand Stout
Goose Island Beer Company, Chicago
Alcohol: 13.8%
This limited edition stout is no joke. It has a distinct black hue with a slight caramel-colored head and strong aromas of bourbon, vanilla and fig, followed by notes of chocolate and molasses.
No. 5 Heady Topper
The Alchemist, Waterbury, Vermont
Alcohol: 8%
This Vermont Double IPA is incredibly hard to get your hands on—unless you live within 50 miles of the brewery—but it's beloved by beer enthusiasts around the world. This award-winning, elusive beer sells out as soon as it hits shelves.
No. 4 Rochefort Trappistes 10
Brasserie Rochefort, Rochefort, Belgium
Alcohol: 11.3%
The traditional Belgian quadrupel Rochefort "blue cap" is one of the few true Trappist varieties. This malty, strong beer produces notes of plum and apricot when cold, and when heated, the beer's true character is revealed. It is suitable for sipping slowly, like a good scotch or wine. Last October, the beer won the Belgian Beer Journal's blind tasting of quadruples.
No. 3 Pliny the Younger
Russian River Brewing Company, Santa Rosa, California
Alcohol: 10.25%
Named after the nephew and adopted son of the above-mentioned Pliny the Elder. Pliny the Younger documented the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD, during which his uncle died. This is a true triple IPA (it has three times the usual amount of hops) and is very difficult, time consuming and expensive to make. It is distinguished by moderate bitterness and beautiful copper color. Available on tap only and released for two weeks only at the beginning of February.
No. 2 Westvleteren 12 (XII)
Westvleteren Abdij St. Sixtus, Westvleteren, Belgium
Alcohol: 10.2%
This beer is definitely one of the best of the best, and some experts believe that it deserves first place. This is a real Trappist beer, brewed by the monks in the Abbey of St. Sixtus. A dark chestnut brown beer with dark fruit and brown sugar aroma. This is a complex and spicy quad with lively carbonation. Ranked No. 1 in the Abbey Beer/Quad category by RateBeer and awarded 100 points by Craft Beer & Brewing magazine.
#1 Kentucky Brunch Brand Stout
Toppling Goliath Brewing Company, Decorah, Iowa
Alcohol: 12%
This barrel-aged coffee-infused imperial stout is extremely hard to find. It has a powerful maple aroma with notes of chocolate and hazelnut. In 2015, Esquire magazine named it one of the "10 Great Beers You'll Never Try," and Beer Advocate ranked it #1 in the global top 250.
MyBeerCollectibles.com
If we talk about the technique of making the most favorite low-alcohol aperitif, then dark beer is easier to make than light beer. The main ingredients that give the dark shade are roasted malt (the highest color intensity), caramel or dark malt.
The brewer performs a special ritual before starting to make dark beer - he grows barley grains. Then the grains undergo careful selection, after which they are calcined. After all the required stages of making the drink have been completed: steaming and crushing the malt, mashing, filtering, the initial wort for fermentation is obtained. However, filtration during the production process is used only by those breweries that intend to subsequently bottle beer for widespread sale. The fact is that the technology of this process allows you to kill the microflora of living beer and extend its shelf life. If unfiltered beer is stored for several days (up to a week), and then can spoil, then filtered beer - for a couple of months, and sometimes even longer due to the addition of preservatives.
Distinctive characteristics of dark beer
The main criterion by which you can distinguish dark beer from light beer is its unique taste, with sweetish notes. The color palette can vary to black and brown shades. Another one characteristic This foamy drink has an obligatory malt aftertaste in the mouth. By the way, dark beer helps to quench not only thirst, but also hunger.
A lot has been said about the benefits of beer for human health, but what is surprising is the fact that dark beer is considered healthier than light beer. This is due to the presence of free iron in the former in much greater quantities than in the latter. In unfiltered beer, the amount of this element is much higher than in bottled beer, and this increases the level of hemoglobin in the blood.
To one more important property Dark beer can be attributed to its ability to influence the improvement of skin quality, helping to get rid of acne.
Why is draft dark beer better than bottled beer?
Connoisseurs and connoisseurs of this drink confidently declare that beer is a living drink and if it is sealed in bottles, then without chemical additives it didn't work out. Thanks to natural fermentation, this aperitif quickly spoils, so if you want to experience the pristine taste, you need to take dark beer on tap. In addition, draft beer is never pasteurized and does not contain preservatives (or in very small doses).
Of course, if you visit a pub where there is own brewery, it’s easy to buy draft beer. But what if there is an important event coming up, where you simply cannot do without friendly gatherings with a refreshing and sweetening dark aperitif? Now this is not a problem. Live beer is poured into special kegs, which are used for storing and transporting beer. They are equipped with a special intake head for manual filling, as well as a valve to prevent air from entering. This is a very convenient system that allows you to drink an invigorating drink at any time and place, which is in third position in the popularity ranking after water and tea.
When choosing a beer to suit your taste, you need to remember that not a single bottled beer can have its own taste characteristics comparable to live beer. Unfiltered dark beer in moderate quantities not only has a beneficial effect on the body, but also excites the sense of smell with its cascade of odors.
Dark beer is foamy drink, which is brewed by fermenting wort based on hops, water and barley malt. Most often, caramel (or dark) malt is used for production, which results in a characteristic shade. The depth of color depends on the degree of roasting of the malt.
The difference between dark beer and light beer
Along with light, dark beer forms a group that includes many varieties. In this regard, the question arises: what is the difference between dark beer and light beer? Let's look at the main differences:
- Light beer has a bitter aftertaste, and dark varieties On the contrary, sweetness is felt.
- When producing dark beer, barley is roasted longer and dried.
- Dark varieties have more malt, while light varieties have more hops.
- Light beer is enriched with silicon, and dark varieties contain a lot of iron.
Varieties and types of dark beer
Dark beer has many varieties, just like light beer. Here are the most famous types of dark beer:
- Ale is a beer produced by top fermentation at high temperature. This drink is mainly produced in England and Belgium.
- Porter is a strong dark beer with a rich taste with notes of wine, as well as a deep aroma of malt and burnt sugar.
- Stout is the strongest type of dark beer. It has a burnt taste and a coffee-nut aroma.
The benefits and harms of dark beer
Dark beer is an alcoholic drink, but in moderate doses it can even be beneficial. Let's find out the benefits of dark beer:
- Thanks to the presence of grain crops in the composition, beer is enriched with vitamins and minerals.
- The drink contains vitamin B6, which reduces the risk of cardiovascular diseases.
- Dark beer improves appetite.
- When heated, the drink perfectly treats colds.
It's important to remember that positive effect beer has an effect moderate consumption. If you drink it often and in large quantities, it can lead to shortness of breath, headaches and irritability.
What do you drink dark beer with?
It is also important to know what you drink dark beer with. Properly selected snacks combined with a foamy drink will give you real pleasure. Potato chips, grilled sausages and meat dishes go well with dark beer.
You can try different varieties of this amazing drink at the Karlovy Brewers restaurant.
The foamy drink is incredibly popular around the world. It is not surprising that there are a huge number of brewing companies that produce their own products. We could list popular beer brands for a long time: German Spaten and Paulaner, Czech Krusovice and Pilsner Urquell, Austrian Gosser and Zipfer, American Miller and Bud, Belgian Hoegaarden and Leffe, Irish Guinness and Kilkenny. Let's not forget the domestic brewers producing beer: Baltika, Klinskoye, Sibirskaya Korona, Polar bear, Khamovniki, Zhiguli. This process can be continued indefinitely. All brands of beer have their own characteristics, and, therefore, an army of fans.
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Dark beer - foamy, alcoholic and soft drink, which is one of the most ancient of its kind. The manufacturing process involves mixing water, hops, and barley malt to obtain wort and its subsequent alcoholic fermentation. As a result of combining the listed ingredients, a delicious dark beer is obtained, which not only perfectly quenches thirst, but also fights hunger. This drink has pleasant aroma, saturated color, and after drinking it leaves a bitter aftertaste in the mouth, which all lovers of dark beer like. The most popular is beer from a barrel, called “live”, which is most often unpasteurized. You can buy it in glass in bottles, cans, and also drink it from a glass or glass on tap in the establishment itself. For some connoisseurs of both dark and light beer, drink a glass of cold intoxicating drink, for example, “Velkopopovitsky Kozel”, “Spaten Dunkel”, “Žatetsky Gus”, “Chernovar”, enjoying the wonderful taste of Belgian, Czech, German or other beer in the warm season or on weekends after a difficult work week has actually become a tradition.
Dark and light beer: the difference
Dark and light beer: the difference between these types is quite significant. This division according to color characteristics among all classifications, of which, by the way, there are quite a lot, is one of the most common, despite the fact that the masters of brewing this drink have created a lot of varieties, types and recipes for its preparation. The following questions arise: “What is the difference between dark and light beer?”, “Which beer is better and stronger: dark or light?”, “Which beer is more tasty?”, “How many calories and degrees are in light beer, and how many in dark? and the like. Not even all beer drinkers know what the difference is between these two types of intoxicating alcohol. Many of them, without hesitation, will say that the difference is only in color, and they will be wrong, since in addition to the color factor there are significant differences.
Perhaps one of the most common misconceptions is that dark beer is exclusively ale, and light beer is lager, when in reality ale and lager are two types of foamy drinks that differ in the method of preparation.
Lager is a type of beer that currently ranks first in popularity among other similar drinks. It is made using the principle of bottom fermentation by cooling the brewed wort, adding yeast to its composition, pumping liquid into a fermentation tank... And when is the 21-day procedure infusion at low temperatures will be completed, filtered and poured into vessels for sale or bottling - in jars, barrels, bottles, glasses, mugs. There are several varieties of lager itself: filtered and unfiltered, light and dark.
Ale, on the other hand, is a type of beer that is prepared using the top-fermentation method and by infusing at higher temperatures for a short period of time, compared to bottom-fermentation (ale takes only 5-6 days or even less to ferment).
So, what is the difference between dark beer and light beer? It is worth noting that there are several discrepancies between these types of foamy drink, since each of them has its own properties and characteristics. What are we talking about? Now you'll find out.
- Preparation of ingredients. The composition of dark and light beer is not very different, but there is a difference in how exactly the ingredients are prepared. To prepare the first type, you need to use special barley, which must be sprouted for 9 days, and dried for another 2 additional days. To prepare the second, barley should be sprouted for 7 days and dried for 24 hours. It follows from this that making dark beer is a labor-intensive process that takes more time than making light beer.
- Cooking technology. To make dark beer, barley needs to be roasted, whereas to make light beer you don't need to. Roasting the barley is what gives dark beer its velvety, caramel-brown hue, while not doing so keeps other beers light.
- Amount of hops. There is a widespread belief that more hops are added to dark beer, as a result of which it becomes significantly stronger than light beer. This judgment is erroneous, because if you add more hops to the light one, it will, accordingly, have a strength higher than the dark one, but the light shade will still not change
- Included beneficial properties. Yes, no matter how absurd it may seem at first glance, both types of beer contain substances that benefit the human body. It is impossible to say that dark beer is more healthy than light beer, since both types contain useful material. Dark beer contains iron, while light beer contains silicon.
This is not to say that dark beer is better than light beer. This is a matter of taste and every connoisseur of an intoxicating drink chooses for himself: someone prefers light Czech or Belgian, because, in their opinion, it is lighter and not bitter, while others, on the contrary, value precisely these qualities in dark Irish, German beer, considering them taste advantages.
Types and varieties of intoxicating drink
There are currently quite a lot of types and varieties of intoxicating drinks. Each variety includes many types, brands, sold in stores and having a certain price, reviews, calorie content, taste, and cooking technology.
Most famous varieties dark beer is considered to be as written below.
- Porter. Porter is a tasty type of beer, it has a strength, since it uses 4-4.9% of the original wort. Poter differs from other types of foamy drinks in that its taste is quite rich, with a hint of wine, and the malt emits a pleasant aroma. When preparing porter, use burnt sugar and dark malt. If we delve deeper into the history of this variety, it should be noted that its creator is the English brewer Ralph Harwood, who lived in the 18th century. According to the original plan, porter was supposed to become a replacement for British ale and be a drink for people with heavy physical work due to its nutritional value. Interesting fact! According to the literal translation from English, the word “porter” means “loader”. There are several types of porter: “Brown Pote”, which in the original sounds like Brown Porter, “Reubast Pote” - aka Robust Porter and “Baltic Pote”, which sounds like Baltic Porter. The first type is quite classic among others; it is dark brown in color, has a malty aroma and a slight toastiness. It was this look that the British working class loved so much. The second type is Robust Porter, also of a dark brown, chocolate hue, in which notes of hop are felt, the aftertaste is dry, and the foam is thick. Baltic Porter is produced in countries that border the Baltic Sea, hence its name. This variety is radically different from the previous ones, since hops are not felt at all in its taste, but only caramel and licorice can be felt.
- Stout. Stout is a drink that initially was practically no different from porter. The country where its production originated is Ireland, where it, among other varieties, was distinguished by its dark, rich color and special strength. The Russian translation of the English “stout” is the word “proud”. Arthur Guinness was the first to describe this type of dark beer, and after his work, “stout” became a general name for those types of beer whose strength exceeds others. After a while, it separated from the porter and began to exist as an independent species. At the present stage, manufacturers have stopped making stout too strong; in this regard, it is significantly inferior to porter. Now stout is the smell of coffee and a burnt taste. British brewers showed imagination and added oats to the composition of this beer variety during production, making the taste lighter and softer, and the smell was nutty. Dark beer connoisseurs were pleased. Interesting fact! International Stout Day is celebrated on the first Thursday of November.
- El. Ale is a type of beer produced in Belgium and the UK. In the English original there are two variations of ale - real ale, which translates as “real / live ale” and traditional British beer - traditional British beer. Ale is not as strong as a stout, not as sweet as a porter, even though it is made in one way - top fermentation, but it is still especially tasty. At the same time, the ale is dark, moderately strong, dense and bitter, with little sweet aftertaste. To make it, barley or wheat is often used as malt. Today, due to the spread of other types of beer and other alcoholic beverages, ale has somewhat lost its popularity, however, thanks to the increased interest in such a variety as craft beer, the production and sale of ales is increasing again.
This is interesting! Dark beer is “velvety”. Why is this drink often called that way, because its taste is far from that, but, on the contrary, is bitter. True, but in addition to this, it also has a peculiar sweetness that is easily perceived and felt by lovers of this intoxicating alcohol. Hence the name.
Quite well-known brands are both imported and domestic producers of dark beer, the top of which include: Amsterdam, Bakalar, Bavaria, Belhaven, Bernard ( "Bernard", Black Desert, Boroda, Brander Biar, Budweiser, Cernovar, Spaten Dunkel "), Franziskaner, Gösser, Grimbergen, Guinness Draft with nitrogen capsule, Hofbrau, Karlovec, Keltske Dedictvi, Klaster, Kruger, Krusovice, Leffe Brune, Lowenbrau, Miller (“Miller”), Velkopopovicky Kozel (“Velkopopovicky Goat”), Zatecky Gus (“Zhatetsky Goose”), Zlaty Bazant (“Golden Bazant”), “Baltika”, “Bouquet of Chuvashia”, “Zhiguli”, “Ker Sari” , “Obolon”, “Old Miller”, “Dark Night”.
Other types of beer, such as Afanasy, Varnitsa, Vasileostrovskoe, Volzhskoe, Vorsin, Okhota, Pyaterochka, Petrogradskoe, Samara, Stalingradskoe, Taezhnoe ", "Trehsosensky", "Khamovniki" are no longer so famous, because they have given way to newer brands. The list of listed names includes Belarusian, Belgian, Dutch, Irish, German (Munich), Russian, Czech (Prague), Scottish vintage bottled and draft types of intoxicating drinks. They can be alcoholic and non-alcoholic, filtered and unfiltered, pasteurized and unpasteurized, nitrogen, chocolate, cherry, caramel, nut, as well as other flavors and aromas.
This is interesting! On the first Friday of August, International Beer Day is celebrated, which is celebrated in 23 countries around the world, including Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, the United States of America, France, Ireland, Germany, Italy, Poland and many others. On this day, beer lovers get together with friends and try different brands and glorify the producers while enjoying the taste of the intoxicating drink. It is considered a tradition to treat everyone you know to beer prepared according to recipes from foreign countries, as well as to taste all new, experimental varieties.
Home cooking technology
The technology for preparing it at home is quite simple, so there is no need to go shopping at the store. In order to make dark beer with your own hands, you need to use the following ingredients: rye flour, malt, yeast, hops, sugar. Flour is mixed with malt, diluted with water until homogeneous mass. Cooking should be carried out in a saucepan with a small hole in the bottom so that the wort flows through it. This slot is covered with gauze, and the contents of the pan are transferred to another container and placed in the oven. You need to keep the dough inside until it is well fried. Afterwards, you need to pour boiling water over it, and pour the wort back into the pan.
The hops are poured with water and boiled over a fire. After cooking at home, the broth is mixed with the wort and stirred thoroughly. Yeast and sugar, previously diluted in water, are added to the pan with hops and wort. The entire composition is left to ferment for one night, and then distributed among vessels - jars, bottles, barrels. As you can see, the recipe for making dark beer at home is absolutely not complicated.
How strong the resulting drink will be after brewing at home depends on the proportion of roasted malt and dark raw materials used during brewing. The color of the beer does not matter for its strength: light beer can be stronger than dark beer, despite the difference in color saturation. A weak beer is one that contains 5% of the original wort, a medium beer is one that contains 12% of the wort, and a strong beer is one that contains more than 14% of the original wort.
Worth knowing! The first Saturday in November is the day of learning how to brew beer at home.
Dark beer in cooking
Dark beer in cooking is nothing new. The intoxicating drink becomes the basis for preparing a marinade for meat kebab or boiled goulash from beef, chicken, pork, rabbit, sausages, making sauce with sour cream and batter for ribs, baked Bavarian shank.
Ribs, shanks and other meat dishes end up incredibly tasty and juicy. Dark beer has special taste, making it perfectly compatible with a number of products:
- stewed meat, such as beef or fish, as well as mussels;
- onion, cheese, beef first courses soups;
- boiled shrimp.
The dark, foamy drink is also used when preparing baked goods: biscuits, brownies, muffins, cookies, bread. Red, black, brown hoppy beer is used to prepare a variety of cocktails, for example, with birch kvass, juice, Jägermeister liqueurs and others.
IN pure form dark beer is consumed from cans, bottles after purchasing in a store or mugs, glasses, glasses when drinking on tap in special establishments. Bartenders pour the liquid slowly, so that the foam does not splash out.
What to eat with this drink? Traditional snack dark beer is a pretzel - a salty pastry, fried sausages, sausages, chicken ribs, baked pork shank.
To prevent the intoxicating drink from being warm, which spoils its taste, you need to store it vertically in a dark, cool room, the temperature in which will be +4...+12 degrees. To ensure that beer remains as mature and tasty, store it in freezer Not recommended.
Benefits of the drink
The benefits of the drink are known. Dark beer has some properties that have a beneficial effect on the health and human body as a whole, and thanks to these features it is also used in folk medicine. Dark beer is believed to stimulate digestive processes. It is used hot and as a folk remedy during the treatment of cough, to increase leukocytes in the blood.
Fact! A mug, glass or glass of homemade or store-bought beer, however, like some other alcoholic drinks, stimulates an increase in appetite.
They say that beer makes you gain weight, but it is worth mentioning that the calorie content of this drink is 48 kilocalories per 100 grams, which is not so much. Weight gain will occur if fatty dishes, as well as other foods with high calorie content. And if you drink an alcoholic or non-alcoholic, intoxicating foamy drink in large quantities. One can or bottle holds 500 grams of the drink, one glass - 250 grams, one tablespoon - 18 grams, and one teaspoon - 5 grams.
Dark beer contains 90 grams of water, 3.4 grams of alcohol, 0.2 grams of ash, 0.2 grams of organic acids.
Due to its calorie content, dark beer has a high nutritional value. It includes:
- 0.8 mg vitamin PP, 0.05 mg riboflavin (vitamin B2), 0.01 mg thiamine (vitamin B1), 0.7 mg vitamin B3;
- 0.1 mg, iron, 60 mg potassium, 13 mg calcium, 12 mg magnesium, 20 mg sodium, 18 mg phosphorus;
- 0.3 grams of protein, 5.7 grams of carbohydrates, no fat in dark beer.
It is a common belief that beer prevents Negative influence per person of such a substance as aluminum, an excessive amount of which in the body leads to the development of Alzheimer's disease, prevents coronary heart disease, stomach cancer and ulcers, as it fights the spiral-shaped bacterium Helicobacter pilori.
When preparing hair masks at home, women also use dark beer. An intoxicating drink as part of health-improving mixtures promotes hair growth, restores hair structure damaged, for example, after dyeing, eliminates fragility and returns beautiful hair. appearance. Currently, cosmetologists have shared big amount proven hair masks.
Recipe and application |
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To restore hair structure | 100 ml of dark beer are mixed with an egg yolk and four tablespoons of rum. The entire mixture is shaken with a mixer. Ready mass applied to the entire length of the strands. Stays on for 20 minutes and then washed off with warm water. |
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Bread revitalizing mask | Take 200 grams of bread and pour one liter of dark beer. Leave the composition for three hours in a warm place. When the specified time has passed, beat with a mixer. The mask is ready for application. Keep the product on your hair for 20 minutes, and after the specified time, rinse with warm water and vinegar. Using this mask twice a week will be enough to keep your hair healthy. |
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Mask against hair breakage | Mix 3 tablespoons of dark beer with one tablespoon of gelatin. The composition should infuse for 20 minutes. When the specified time has expired, you need to add vitamins A and E, which are sold in capsules at all pharmacies. The product should be applied along the entire length of the hair, heated with a hairdryer, and then put a bathing cap or plastic bag on the head. Keep the mask on your strands for 30 minutes, then simply rinse off under warm running water. |
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Mask against hair loss | Take a small container, mix hot beer (one glass) with one tablespoon of burdock and the same amount of calamus root. The mask should be infused for two hours. After time, strain the mixture and apply pure to your hair. To get results, you need to keep the mask on for 6-9 hours and use it 7-8 times, 2 procedures per week, or even less often. |
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Hair growth mask | The recipe for its preparation is as follows: 100 grams of crushed birch leaves and 2 spruce cones (also crushed) should be poured with hot beer and the mixture should be left to infuse for 2 hours. After time, the composition is filtered and applied to the hair, and special attention is paid to the roots. Keep the mask on for 5-10 minutes, and then simply rinse off with lukewarm water. |
Harmful properties
Dark beer also has harmful properties. Excessive consumption of this drink will clearly lead to weight gain and is fraught with addiction. Therefore, to prevent extra pounds from appearing, you should drink beer in reasonable quantities. The consumption of both dark and light, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beer is strictly prohibited:
- pregnant women;
- women who are nursing mothers;
- children;
- people suffering from a number of chronic diseases, including gastritis, diabetes, ulcers.
That is, in addition to its benefits, homemade or store-bought wheat beer also causes harm to the human body.
Experimental dark beers
Experimental beers keep popping up every day. Brewers from Belgium, Holland, the Czech Republic and some other countries of the world share descriptions of new products. Just recently, Czech brewers produced non-alcoholic beer based on cactus. The brewing masters assure that this drink can be consumed by people with diabetes and athletes.
There are also types and varieties of beer specifically focused on the tastes of women: banana, cherry, caramel, coffee, blueberry.
There is also so-called “golden beer”, which contains such a valuable metal as gold. The preparation technology is very simple: you need a gold plate, the size of which will be 8 by 8, which is dipped into an empty container, then filled with beer, as a result of which the plate splits into a large number of small pieces. The container is shaken and gold particles are visible through the glass. This beer was very expensive, the exact price is unknown, however, this variety is not included in the wide range, but is made to order.
Now you are aware of the features of new and experimental types and varieties of dark beer, you are aware of the technology of its preparation at home and its use in cooking, and you have also become familiar with its beneficial and harmful properties.
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