Abbey beer - Belgian family of strong, fruity-tasting ales.
abv - Alcohol by volume, as a percentage. The simplest and most widely used measure. Alcohol by weight 9 (w) is sometimes used in the US. Because alcohol is lighter than water, this produces a lower figure.
Ale - English-language term for a beer made by warm fermentation, traditionally with a “top” yeast.
Altbier - German style of beer similar to British bitter or pale ale.
Amber - Very unspecific term, widely used in the US. Tends to indicate an amber-red ale in broadly the Irish style, but sometimes a Vienna lager.
Barley Wine - English language term for extra-strong ale.
Bavaria - Former kingdom and republic, now the biggest state in Germany (and the one with most breweries by far). Bavaria’s capital is Munich.
Beer - A fermented drink made from grain, most often barley-malt, and usually flavored with hops. Includes ales, lagers, wheat beers, and all other styles.
Biere de garde - Strong, ale-like style, originally brewed to be kept in storage. Typical in the northwest of France.
Bitter - implies a well-hopped ale.
Bo(c)k - Germanic term for an extra-strong beer. Often, but not always, dark. Usually a lager, but can also be a strong wheat beer. Usually 6.0abv (4.8w)
Bohemia - Along with Moravia, comprises the Czech Republic. Bohemia’s capital is Prague. Other main cities include Pilsen and Budweis.
Bottle-conditioned - With living yeast in the bottle.
Brewpub - Pub or restaurant making its own beer, sometimes also for sale elsewhere.
Dortmunder Export - Golden Lager with a mineral-ish dryness and slightly above-average strength.
Doppelback “Double” bock. Usually around 6.0 abw (7.5abv) or more.
Dunkel - German word for dark.
ESB - Extra Special Bitter. In Britain, a specific beer from the Fuller’s brewery. In America, many similar-style beer.
Export - In the German tradition, a beer of slightly above-average strength, typically 4.2-4.4 abw/5.25 abv, most often in the Dortmunder style.
Framboise - French word used in Belgium to indicate raspberry beers.
Gueuze - Young and old lambics, blended to achieve a sparkling, champagne-like beer. (not to be confused with the champagne of beers MillerHighLife)
Hefe - German for yeast.
Helles - German for “pale.” Indicates a golden beer, often a malt-accented lager.
Imperial Stout - Extra-strong stout, originally popular in Imperial Russia.
IPA - India Pale Ale. Type of ale originally made by the British for the Indian Empire. Should be above average in both hop bitterness and alcohol content.
Irish ale - Typically has a reddish color and a malt accent. It sometimes has a suggestion of butterscotch.
Kloster - German term for a beer that is, or once was, made in a monastery. May be any style.
Kriek - Flemish term for a type of cherry used in beer.
Lager - Beer fermented and matured at low temperatures. Can be any color or strength.
Lambic - Belgian term for beer fermented with wild yeasts.
Maibock - Bock released in late spring (March, April, or May). Often relatively pale, hoppy, and spritzy.
Marzenbier - Traditionally, a beer brewed in March and matured until September or October. In Germany and the US, usually implies a reddish-bronze, aromatically malty, medium-strong (around 4.4 abw/5.5 abv or more) lager.
Microbrewery - One of the new generation of small breweries that have sprung up since the mid to late 1970’s.
Munich-style - Typically a malt-accented lager of conventional strength, whether pale (Helles) or dark (Dunkel).
Oktoberfest - Traditionally a marzenbier, but today often paler. Pale Ale Originally a British style. Classically ranges from bronze to a full copper color. “pale” as opposed to a brown ale or porter.
Pils/Pilsner - An all-malt-brew, with a pronounced, flowery hop aroma and dryness. Usually misused, the term typically refers to a standard golden lager around 3.4-4.2 abw (4.25-5.25 abv). The original is Pilsner Urquell.
Porter - Dark brown or black. Made with higly-kilned malts, with a good hop balance, and traditionally top-fermenting. Traditionally associated with London.
Saison - Style of dry, sometimes slightly sour, refreshing, but strong (4.0-6.4 abw/5.0-8.0 abv) summer ale, often bottle-conditioned.
Schwarzbier - “black” beer. Usually a very dark lager with a bitter-chocolate character.
Scotch ale - Smooth, malty style classically made in Scotland. Stout dark brown to black. Made with highly roasted grains and traditionally top-fermenting.
Trappist - Strict order of mnks making strong ales of great character in severaql monasteries in Belgium. Labels include a logo saying “authentic trappist.”
Tripel - Usually an extra-strong, golden, aromatic, hoppy golden ale.
Vienna style lager - Bronze to red lager iwht a sweetish malt aroma and flavor. No longer readily available in its city of origin, but increasingly made in the US.
Weisse/weissbier - White beer. German term for a wheat beer. Implies a pale head and often a cloudy brew.
