In this post, I'm starting a new series of blog entries by going over some insider tricks and guidelines to help you maximize your beer enjoyment. Once I've covered all the aspects of enjoying a beer that I feel deserve attention, I have a feeling I'll write a post that summarizes the previous posts and also gives you some step-by-step guidance on evaluating and rating a beer yourself. While this may render me obsolete in some small way, I realize that I can't drink and review every beer out there (try as I might) so I figured the only magnanimous thing to do would be to pass what little wisdom I have on to you.
To start this series, I'll be discussing one of the most overlooked features of a beer - its temperature. The sad truth of the matter is that most people drink their beer too cold. Way. too. damn. cold. Drinking your beer too cold will severely limit how much you enjoy it. I don't blame the beer drinkers here; I blame the makers of the inferior light lagers that dominate the international beer market such as Budweiser, Miller, Coors, Labatt, Heineken, etc. These beers are streamlined to be as inoffensive as possible in order to appeal to the broadest possible audience but this streamlining is done to a fault as the beers are terribly bland and virtually indistinguishable in a blind taste test. Since they have precious little to contribute to the flavor department, indeed since their beers taste abominable the nearer you get to room temperature, their marketing departments have invested untold millions in convincing the good, honest beer drinking populace that colder is better. For proof of this, one need look no further than Coor's cold-activated can, where "the mountains turn blue when your beer's as cold as the Rockies." First, that's an awful gimmick. Since when did my hands become ineffective at determining if a drink is cold? Now I need visual confirmation? Give me a break. Second, this massive media campaign perpetuates the ice-cold beer myth. Some beers should be consumed at or slightly below 40 degrees, but never down around 32 degrees. To be fair, draft beer systems are supposed to be maintained at 38 degrees regardless of the beer being served. This temperature has more to do with maintaining homeostasis within the system rather than ideal serving conditions. Once, however, I was out with a friend at a restaurant who ordered a draft Bud Light and it was served to him with ice crystals floating on top. Completely unacceptable. I would've sent it back. Anyway, ideal serving temperature varies by beer style and I'll outline some pointers below but remember, if you order a draft beer and the style calls for it being warmer than 38 degrees (many do), your hands can once again become invaluable tools as they're quite useful in warming up a beer in no time.
The general rule is that lighter, lower alcohol beers are served cooler. Beer should never be ice cold as it freezes out your taste buds and prevents you from picking up on nuances. Beers like pilsners, kolsch, and dortmunders as well as ales like witbiers and hefeweizens are extremely enjoyable around 38-40 degrees. Beers with a little more heft like amber ales, saisons, and Belgian golden ales taste great around 40-45 degrees. Beers with some bite to them like IPAs, American Strong Ales, and Tripels are super palatable in the upper 40s. Fairly heavy beers like quadrupels, Belgian Strong Dark Ales, and other relatively rich, malty beers are best kept in the upper 40s to 50. The real heavyweights like Imperial Stouts and barleywines are best enjoyed starting out around 55 or so but I've had plenty of these styles at room temperature and they're fantastic. What's important to remember is that these guidelines aren't set in stone and you will run across beers that might not fit so neatly into the guidelines I've described ever so briefly. In these cases, do what feels right to you; beer is supposed to be fun, not work. If you're unsure about how best to enjoy a beer, a fun experiment is to start off with the beer quite cold and then notice the changes in aroma and flavor as the beer warms and opens up.
If you've not yet heard the good word that I'm preaching, if you still don't put much stock in the temperature of your beer, try this on for size: drink a good craft beer and a light, mainstream beer of your choice side by side at room temperature. I predict you'll find that the light beer tastes and smells insipid; its amazing what awful flavors these beers reveal when they're not hiding behind 30 degree temperatures. By contrast, I think you'll taste the higher quality of ingredients as well as the care and craftsmanship that goes into good beer.
Once you've realized that I'm not just a crazy nerd, that I'm actually onto something with this whole temperature thing, your efforts to better enjoy your beer may begin in earnest. If you're like me, however, you'll eventually want a little more scientific precision in your beer temperature. For this, I recommend going to your local hardware store and springing for an IR thermometer. Its a great little handheld device that bounces a laser off the surface of your beer and gives you a temperature reading accurate to within a couple degrees. This is far preferable to sticking the same thermometer that you put under your tongue in your beer. Gross. Please, enjoy beer without your household thermometer. Cheers!
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