NOTE: Words in italics in the definitions also appear as entries in this glossary.
ABBEY ALE: A style brewed in the Belgian tradition; made with sugar for a lighter body, greater strength, and a dry finish.
ABV: Alcohol by volume, expressed as a percentage. A measure of the strength of an alcoholic beverage, based on the volume of alcohol relative to total volume.
ADJUNCT: Any fermentable substance added during the brewing process besides barley, hops, yeast, and water. Adjuncts usually refer to corn or rice—typically considered cheap ingredients—but can also refer to fruits and sugars.
ALE YEAST: See top-fermenting yeast.
ALTBIER: An ale associated with Düsseldorf, Germany, with dark, woody malts and insistent bitterness.
AMERICAN ALE: A style characterized by robust strengths and a saturation of hop flavor, aroma, and bitterness from distinctive native hop strains.
AMERICAN STRONG ALE: A style with intense hop aroma and flavor.
ATTEMPERATION: The method of controlling temperature, usually by running water through pipes to cool hot wort.
ATTENUATION: The percentage of residual sugars that have been converted to alcohol and carbon dioxide during fermentation. The more sugars converted, the drier the beer and the more highly attenuated.
BARLEY WINE: A style of very strong ale.
BARREL: A unit of measurement equaling 31.5 gallons or two standard kegs.
BAUDELOT: A device that chills beer by running cold water through hot wort.
BEAD: The bubbles in a beer, or the cascade of bubbles that rise to the surface.
BELGIAN ALE: A variable style; usually has light body, low bitterness, and a distinctive yeastiness that may be spicy, fruity, or funky.
BELGIAN WITBIER: A style that blends pale barley, wheat, oats, and spices to produce a straw-colored beer with white haze.
BERLINER WEISSE: A tart German wheat ale known for its effervescence and winelike appearance.
BITTER: A well-hopped British ale; comes in a range of strengths.
BOCK: A strong, refined, and elegant beer with rich maltiness and alcoholic warmth.
BODY: The weight or thickness of a beer. A thin beer is called “light-bodied,” while a thick beer is “full-bodied.”
BOTTLE-CONDITION: To allow a beer to further ferment after it has been bottled. See also conditioning.
BOTTOM-FERMENTING YEAST: So called because it sinks to the bottom of the beer during fermentation. A synonym for lager yeast.
BRETTANOMYCES: A genus of wild yeast used to produce a distinctive aroma and taste.
BREW KETTLE: The vessel in which the wort is boiled with hops.
BRIGHT: Describes a beer from which the yeast has been filtered out or has settled to the bottom of the conditioning tank.
BRIGHT BEER TANK (CONDITIONING TANK): A vessel in which beer is allowed to mature further after the initial fermentation. This secondary fermentation causes carbonation and clarification.
BROWN ALE: A style with an emphasis on malt flavor and the gentle fruitiness of ale yeast.
BURTON UNION: A method of fermentation in which a number of casks are linked together, allowing excess yeast to be removed from the beer. This method also allows the development of a stable strain of yeast over time.
CAMRA: Campaign for Real Ale, an organization created in Britain in 1971 to preserve traditional brewing techniques and cask ale.
CASK-CONDITIONING: The British practice of fermenting beer a second time in a cask, with a second dose of yeast. Beer that has been cask- conditioned (cask ale) is sometimes referred to as “real ale.”
CHESTNUT BEER: A style that originated in Italy, where a portion of the barley malt is replaced by chestnut flour.
CHILL HAZE: Cloudiness caused by proteins in the beer. Can occur at low temperatures, but does not affect flavor.
CHIT: During malting, grain is germinated to begin the production of malt sugars and soluble starch; the tiny rootlets that develop are known as “chits.”
COLD BREAK: The proteins and polyphenols that precipitate out from wort at chilling; these will contribute to chill haze if left in the wort.
CONDITIONING: Aging that follows the initial fermentation, during which the beer matures and clarifies.
CONTRACT BREWING: A business arrangement in which a brewery produces at least one beer to be marketed and sold by a different company.
COOL SHIP (KOELSCHIP): A flat vessel used for cooling wort during the brewing process.
COPPER: A British term for the brew kettle.
CRAFT BEER: A term with different meanings in different countries. In the United States, it refers to any beer that is neither a mass-market lager nor an import, usually made by a small, independent brewery.
CZECH TMAVÉ: A dark Czech lager.
DECOCTION: A method of mashing in which some of the wort is removed, heated, then returned to the mash.
DORTMUND EXPORT: A pale lager, once a burly, brassy beer but now lighter and less assertive.
DRY: Describes a beer with low levels of malt sweetness; a synonym is “highly-attenuated”
DRY-HOPPING: The practice of adding dry hops to a brew after the initial fermentation period has ended.
DUNKEL: A smooth, dark lager characterized by sweet malts and a hint of roastiness.
EBU: A measure of bitterness. See IBU.
ESTER: A flavor compound that occurs naturally during fermentation and results in a fruity aroma.
FERMENTATION: A step in the brewing process in which yeast consumes sugar and produces alcohol and carbon dioxide.
FIRST RUNNINGS: Wort drained during the beginning of the runoff process, high in sugar content.
FLOOR MALTING: A traditional method of malting, in which the grain is spread on a large stone floor and encouraged to germinate, then moved to a kiln room where furnaces heat the floor from below.
FOEDER: A large oak aging barrel, ranging in size from 60 to 250 hectoliters.
FREEZE-DISTILLATION: A process in which beer is lowered to a temperature at which water will freeze but alcohol will not. The frozen material is then removed, leaving the beer with a higher alcohol content.
FRENCH ALE: A family of ales characterized by malt smoothness; the use of spices and local ingredients and the ease of pairing with food are also common elements.
FRESH-HOP ALE: A style made with fresh hops for an earthy and wild flavor.
FRESH (WET) HOPS: Hops that have just been harvested and not kilned or dried; often used in making seasonal fall brews.
FRUIT LAMBIC: A style that infuses young lambic beer with fruit.
GARDE: A French term meaning “to age.”
GERMAN WEIZEN: A wheat ale of Bavaria, served cloudily unfiltered, with vigorous carbonation. Characterized by spicy, clovelike phenols and banana esters.
GOSE: A tart German wheat ale with a soft, delicate palate accented by coriander and salt.
GRANT: A vessel located between the lauter tun and kettle; used to control the flow of wort.
GRIST: The grain or combination of grains that have been milled and are ready for brewing.
GRUIT: A mixture of herbs and spices used for brewing that predated the use of hops. Now used to describe a beer that does not use hops in the brewing process.
GUEUZE: A beer made with blends of different vintages of lambic.
HELLES: A pale lager similar to pilsner but emphasizing more soft maltiness.
HIGH-GRAVITY BEER: Beer fermented to a high alcohol content, which is then weakened to the desired strength by the addition of water.
HOGSHEAD: A type of cask holding 54 imperial gallons (243 liters).
HOP BACK: A strainer or sieve used to filter hops out of the wort. Can also be filled with fresh hops through which the wort then passes, to increase its flavor.
HOPS: A creeping vine whose flowers are dried and used in the brewing of most beers to create flavor, aroma, and bitterness.
HOT BREAK: The point during boiling at which protein resins, assisted by hops, coagulate and precipitate out of the wort.
IBU: International Bittering Unit; the accepted system for describing the hop bitterness of a beer.
INDIA PALE ALE: A strong, hoppy style, originally brewed by the British.
KEG: Equal to one-half barrel or 15.5 U.S. gallons.
KILNING: The step in the malting process of heat-drying germinated grain.
KÖLSCH: Pale ale brewed in the city of Cologne. Delicate and balanced with spicy hops, subtle fruitiness, and smooth malts.
KRAUSEN: To add a small amount of partially fermented wort to an already fermented beer, inducing secondary fermentation.
LACTOBACILLUS: Bacteria that convert sugar into lactic acid. Some brewers add lactobacillus intentionally to create a sour flavor in certain styles of beer.
LAGERING: The process of storing bottom-fermenting beers at cold temperatures, for maturation and clarification.
LAGER YEAST: See bottom-fermenting yeast.
LAMBIC: A style aged in wooden vessels for one to three years to fully develop the character provided by wild yeasts.
LAUTER TUN: A vessel used for lautering, the process of removing the sweet wort from the grains by straining.
LEES: Yeast deposits from secondary fermentation in the bottle.
LIGHT-STRUCK: Describes beer that has reacted to UV light, creating a skunky smell and flavor.
LIQUOR: Hot water used in the brewing process.
MAILLARD REACTION: The natural browning that occurs between sugars and protein when food or wort is heated. This happens to roasting malt or beer brewed over an open flame.
MALT: Grain (usually barley) that has been germinated, then dried or kilned to create the base ingredient for brewing.
MALT BILL: The combination of grains used in the mash.
MALTING: The process during which grain (usually barley) is steeped in water, allowed to sprout, then dried or roasted. See malt.
MÄRZEN: An amber lager.
MASH: A mixture of warm water and milled or crushed grain.
MASHING: The process of soaking milled or crushed malt in warm water in order to convert starches to sugars that yeast can consume and turn to alcohol.
MASH TUN: A vessel used for mashing, with a perforated bottom so liquid can be strained out.
MICROBREWERY: Originally used to refer to the small breweries that started opening in the 1970s. Now can refer to a brewery that produces less than 15,000 barrels of beer per year.
MILD ALE: A low-alcohol, low-hopped British beer style.
MILLING: Grinding or crushing the grain before mashing.
MIXED FERMENTATION: A process that uses a blend of yeast and bacteria to create alcohol and lactic fermentations in a beer, typical of the tart ales of Flanders.
MOREISH: An English term describing a beer that retains its interest and ease of drinkability over the course of two or three pints.
MOUTHFEEL: Qualities of beer other than the flavor; includes body and amount of carbonation.
NANOBREWERY: An imprecise term; refers to very small breweries, often not much bigger than homebrew systems.
NITROGENATED BEER (NITRO): Beer in which nitrogen is used in addition to carbon dioxide to create a silky, creamy form of carbonation. Nitrogenated beers—often stouts, such as Guinness—contain approximately 70 percent nitrogen and 30 percent carbon dioxide.
NOBLE HOPS: The four traditional European varieties of hops: Hallertauer, Tettnanger, Spalt, and Saaz. They are generally characterized by an aromatic flavor and low bitterness.
OLD ALE: An English beer style, usually dark and strong; may include sherry-like notes produced during wood aging.
ORIGINAL (STARTING) GRAVITY: An expression of the amount of dissolved sugars in wort before fermentation. See specific gravity.
PALE ALE: A hop-forward style that relies on a foundation of malt sweetness and expressive hop flavors and aromas.
PARTI-GYLE: A method of brewing in which the runnings from a mash are collected separately, boiled, and later blended to create multiple beers of different strengths.
PASTEURIZE: To sterilize using heat.
PHENOL: A chemical compound that, in beer, causes spicy, smoky, or sometimes medicinal or Band Aid-like aromas.
PILS (PILSNER): A pale lager first brewed in the 1840s in the Czech Republic town of Plzen (Pilsen).
PITCH: To add yeast to wort after it has cooled.
PORTER: Dark ales of modest strength and medium body, characterized by roasty flavors.
REINHEITSGEBOT: The Bavarian law dating to 1516 that restricted the ingredients in beer to water, malted barley, and hops.
SAISON: A rustic ale exhibiting interesting grain character, hazy appearance, spiciness, and/or dryness.
SCHWARZBIER: A dark lager marked by smoothness, with a range in flavor from cocoa and vanilla to licorice and coffee.
SCOTCH ALE: A style created by Americans who misunderstood Scottish ale. Scotch ales are generally strong, and always contain peat-roasted malt.
SCOTTISH ALE: Scottish ales may be light-bodied and sessionable like English ales, or strong and malt-forward (wee heavy).
SECONDARY FERMENTATION: Another term for bottle- or cask-conditioning, when yeast and/or sugar are added to create a secondary fermentation and naturally carbonate a beer.
SESSION BEER: Beer that has a light body and a relatively low alcohol content, therefore easy to consume in larger quantities (sometimes described as “sessionable”). In Britain, to have multiple beers at one sitting is known as a “session.”
SHANDY: A mixture of beer and Britishstyle lemonade, ginger beer, or citrus soda.
SORGHUM: A grain high in sugar, often used in the production of gluten-free beer.
SPARGE: To sprinkle grain with water at the end of mashing, to rinse off all remaining sugars.
SPECIFIC GRAVITY: A measure of the density of solid materials in the beer, as compared to the density of water.
STIFF: Describes the quality of a beer made with minerals, particularly calcium, that limns flavors with a harder edge.
STOUT: A dark ale with a pronounced roast note.
TART FLEMISH ALE: A style of brownish- red beer, bright and acidic, fruity, and often slightly sweet.
TERMINAL (FINAL) GRAVITY: The specific gravity of the beer at the end offermentation.
TERROIR: The unique soil, climate, and topography, among other characteristics, of a crop’s geographic location, which affect the finished product. Often used in reference to wine and the grapes used to make it, but occasionally also used in descriptions of hops or, more rarely, barley.
TOP-FERMENTING YEAST: A synonym for ale yeast, so named because the cells rise to the surface of the fermenting wort; they are sometimes skimmed off the surface for later re-use.
TORREFIED WHEAT (PUFFED WHEAT): The word “torrefy” refers to heating or scorching; wheat treated with high heat puffs the kernel, breaking down the cellular structure to make the starches more fully available during fermentation.
TRAPPIST ALE: Beer made under the direct supervision of a strict order of monks in Trappist monasteries, principally in Belgium.
TRUB: Sediment formed when proteins and hop resins precipitate out of the wort during boiling and chilling.
TUN: A large vessel used in brewing beer, often where the mash is steeped.
TURBID: Hazy; the appearance of cloudy beer. Can also refer to a type of traditional mash used in Belgium.
VIENNA LAGER: A type of amber lager.
VINOUS: Characteristics that recall wine; typically refers to tart, dry, alcoholic notes or grape-like flavors.
WHIRLPOOL: A vessel that stirs the wort until a vortex forms, allowing easier removal of the trub.
WILD ALE: Any beer that derives its central character from wild yeast and/or bacteria.
WILD YEAST: Yeast collected from the environment that has not been domesticated, but may have been cultured by a brewery or yeast company. Brettanomyces is a typical variety.
WORT: The liquid extracted from the mash and fermented into beer.
YEAST: A one-celled fungus that, when exposed to the sugars in the wort, produces carbon dioxide, alcohol, and flavor and aroma compounds like phenols and esters.
YORKSHIRE SQUARES: Square-shaped slate brewing vessels.