Different Types and Styles of Beer

Beer has been around since the dawn of civilization, with historical evidence showing that the Sumerian Civilization was familiar with different beer styles. It has come a long way since then, with over a hundred types and styles of beer existing today.

Flavors, brewing methods, ingredients, country of origin, and even the appearance of beers are taken into consideration to determine the types. There is no single, universally accepted list of beer types, with different countries and organizations following their own unique criteria. The 1977 book The World Guide To Beer by Michael James Jackson is the basis for today’s most commonly accepted beer classification.

Classifying Beer Styles

There are several factors based on which beer can be classified, with the primary ones listed below:

1. Yeast and Fermentation

Various types of yeast are used to make beers, with the main types of fermentation being top-fermentation and bottom-fermentation. All beers can be classified based on fermentation, with the primary styles being ales and lagers.

1. Ales: The traditional beer style originally from Medieval England, Ales are brewed using top-fermenting yeast (typically Saccharomyces cerevisiae). The fermentation is done at higher temperatures between 60°F and 75 °F. Typically aged for no longer than a few weeks, modern ales come with characteristic fruity and aromatic flavors.
2. Lagers: Unlike ales, lagers are brewed using bottom-fermenting yeasts (typically Saccharomyces pastorianus) at lower temperatures compared to ales. They are aged for several months and are characterized by clean, crisp, and refreshing flavors.

2. Color and Appearance

The overall appearance of a beer, including its color, clarity, and head (the frothy foam at the top of your beer tumbler), is also important in identifying it. Most brewers use the Standard Reference Method (SRM). It measures the absorbance of light at a specific wavelength when it passes through 1 cm of beer. The resulting numeric value determines the SRM of the beer. The darker the color of a beer, the higher its SRM value.

SRM values are divided from 1 to 40, with the chart below listing the different colors of beer with examples:

3. Flavor and Aroma

1. Hoppy: Beers flavored with hops, the small cone-shaped flowers from the common hop plant in the hemp family, are called hoppy beers. They have a characteristic bitter taste with a floral, citrusy, and fruity aroma. Example: American pale ale.
2. Malty: Malty beers have a pleasant, toasty caramel flavor that comes from malt. Example: Vienna lager
3. Spiced: These are simply beers infused with seasonal spices like nutmeg and cinnamon. Example: Pumpkin ale
4. Sour: These beers are characterized by a tart or sour fruit flavor. Example: Sour beers like Berliner Weisse
5. Adjunct: Adjuncts are unmalted grains sometimes added to malted grains to brew beer. These can be whole grains or grain products like sucrose syrups. Adjuncts can cut down on production costs and add to the flavor and nutritional value of the beer. Example: Malt liquor

4. Mouthfeel

Mouthfeel refers to the texture of a food or drink and how it feels when you put it in your mouth. Like other alcoholic beverages, different types of beers can have different mouthfeel. Light-bodied beers like pale lagers have a thin, watery consistency, while full-bodied beers like stouts and strong ales have a more substantial presence on your palate. Other types based on mouthfeel include bubbly and smooth beers that depend on carbonation levels.

5. Strength

This refers to the alcohol content or alcohol by volume (ABV) of a beer. Beers with a high ABV, like barley wine and American strong ale, are considered strong. On the other hand, blonde ales, with abv between 4% and 6%, are usually on the lighter side.

6. Grains (Mash Ingredients)

Most beers have malted barley as the main mash ingredient. After all, the word ‘beer’ may actually have come from the word ‘barley.’

Malted barley may be the only mash ingredient, like in the single malt Scotch, or it can be combined with other malted grains, like wheat, corn, rice, and rye. Examples of the latter include various types of porters and wheat beers.

List of Different Types and Styles of Beer

Since fermentation is the primary basis for beer classification, the following chart has been divided into ales and lagers.

Ales

	Name	ABV (%)	Taste & Flavor	Appearance	Country of Origin
1	Pale Ales	Varies	Varies	Pale gold to amber	Varies
i	Amber Ale	4.5% – 6.2%	Rich maltiness with caramel and toasty notes	Amber to copper	United States
ii	American Pale Ale	4.5% – 6.2%	Citrusy hops with a balanced malt backbone	Pale gold to amber	United States
iii	India Pale Ale (Ipa)	4.5%-20%	Hop-forward with citrus, pine, and floral notes	Straw to amber	United Kingdom/United States
iv	Blonde Ale	4% – 6%	Crisp and refreshing with subtle maltiness	Straw/pale yellow to gold	United Kingdom, Belgium
v	Irish Red Ale	4% – 6%	Caramel sweetness with a hint of roasted malt	Amber to copper	Ireland
vi	Bitter Ale/English Bitter	3% – 5%	Moderate bitterness with biscuity maltiness	Pale gold to amber	United Kingdom
—	Light Ale	3% – 4%	Light-bodied with subtle malt and hop flavors	Pale gold to straw	Varies
2	Altbier	4.5% – 5.5%	Balanced maltiness with a clean, hoppy finish	Amber to copper	Germany
3	Scotch Ale	6% – 8%	Sweet and malty with caramel and peaty notes	Deep gold to dark brown	Scotland
4	Stout Beer	4% – 12%	Roasty, chocolate, and coffee flavors	Dark brown to black	United Kingdom/Ireland/United States
5	Sour Beers (Sour Ales)	Varies	Tart and acidic with complex fruity flavors	Varies	Varies
i	Flanders Red Ale	4% – 8%	Tart and fruity with a slight maltiness	Reddish to dark brown	Belgium
ii	American Wild Ale	5% – 7.5%	Funky and complex with wild yeast and bacteria	Varies	United States
iii	Oud Bruin	4% – 8%	Funky, sour, and often fruity	Brown to dark brown	Belgium/Netherlands
iv	Lambic	5% – 6.5%	Complex blend of sour, fruity, and funky flavors	Straw/pale yellow	Belgium
—	Kriek	4% – 7%	Tart raspberry with a hint of sweetness	Rose red to dark red	Belgium
—	Framboise	4% – 7%	Rich and complex with bold malt and alcohol presence	Rose red to dark pink	Belgium
—	Gueuze	5% – 8%	Sour cherry with a hint of sweetness	Pale gold to amber	Belgium
6	Strong Ales	7%-11%	Rich maltiness with floral and earthy hop notes	Varies	Varies
i	Burton Ale	4.5% – 7.5%	Dark fruit, caramel, and toffee with a warming alcohol	Amber to copper	United Kingdom
7	Old Ale	6% – 9%	Sessionable with a balanced malt and hop profile	Amber to dark brown	United Kingdom
8	Mild Ale	3% – 4.2%	Caramel maltiness with a moderate hop bitterness	Amber to dark brown	United Kingdom
9	Copper Ale	4% – 6%	Rich maltiness with dark fruit and spice notes	Amber to copper	United States
10	Dubbel	6% – 8%	Rustic and spicy with fruity and earthy notes	Amber to dark brown	Belgium
11	Farmhouse Ales	Varies	Light and refreshing with a dry finish	Varies	Various European countries
i	Bière De Garde	6% – 8.5%	Pale ale with a malty sweetness with fruity and spicy undertones	Amber to copper	France
ii	Grisette	3% – 5%	Herbal and spicy with a distinct juniper flavor	Straw/pale yellow to pale gold	Belgium
iii	Saison	4.5% – 8.5%	Smoky wheat maltiness with a light body	Straw/pale yellow to amber	Belgium
iv	Sahti	7% – 12%	Light and malty with a slight sourness	Amber to copper	Finland
12	Grodziskie	3% – 5%	Spiced with pumpkin pie spices and caramel malt	Pale gold to amber	Poland
13	Kentucky Common Beer	4% – 6%	Complex maltiness with dark fruit and spice	Amber to copper	United States (Kentucky)
14	Pumpkin Ale	4% – 7%	Strong and fruity with a dry finish	Amber to copper	United States
15	Quadrupel	8% – 12%	Roasty, chocolate, and coffee flavors	Deep gold to dark brown	Belgium
16	Tripel	7.5% – 9.5%	Crisp and clean with a subtle fruitiness	Straw/pale yellow to deep gold	Belgium
17	Porter	4% – 6.5%	Salty and tart with coriander and citrus notes	Light brown to very dark brown	United Kingdom
18	Kölsch	4.4% – 5.2%	Smooth and creamy with a mild malt sweetness	Straw/pale yellow to pale gold	Germany
19	Gose	4% – 5.5%	Rich and sweet with intense malt and fruit flavors	Straw/pale yellow to amber	Germany
20	Cream Ale	4.2% – 5.6%	Nutty, caramel, and chocolate with moderate bitterness	Straw/pale yellow to pale gold	United States
21	Barley Wine	8% – 12%	Malty, Caramel, Fruity	Amber to very dark brown	United Kingdom
22	Brown Ale	4% – 6%	Nutty, Caramel, Malty	Light to dark brown	United Kingdom

Lagers

	Name	ABV (%)	Taste & Flavor	Appearance	Country of Origin
1	Vienna Lager	4.7% – 5.5%	Rich maltiness with toasty and caramel notes	Amber to copper	Austria
2	Malt Liquor	6% – 9%	Sweet, malt-forward, with high alcohol presence	Pale gold to amber	United States
3	Pale Lager	4% – 6%	Varies	Straw/pale yellow to gold	Varies
i	Pilsner (Pilsener)	4.5% – 6%	Crisp and hoppy with a clean, bitter finish	Straw to deep gold	Czech Republic, Germany
ii	American Lager	4% – 6%	Clean and mild with a balanced flavor profile	Straw/pale yellow to gold	United States
iii	Australian Lager	4% – 6%	Crisp and light with a moderate bitterness	Straw/pale yellow to gold	Australia
iv	Helles	4.5% – 6%	Smooth maltiness with a slightly sweet finish	Pale gold	Germany
v	Dortmunder Export	5% – 6%	Clean and balanced with a subtle maltiness	Deep gold to amber	Germany
4	Bock	6.3% – 13% and higher	Rich and malty with a smooth, full-bodied taste	Amber to dark brown	Germany
i	Maibock	6.3% – 8%	Toasty maltiness with a hint of bitterness	Pale gold to amber	Germany
ii	Weizenbock	7% – 9%	A wheat beer with malty sweetness with banana and clove notes	Amber to dark brown	Germany
iii	Doppelbock	7% – 10%	Rich caramel and malt flavors with low bitterness	Dark amber to brown	Germany
iv	Eisbock	9% – 14%	Sweet and fruity with a full-bodied richness	Amber to very dark brown	Germany
5	Kellerbier	4.7% – 5.4%	Malty with a slight hoppy character	Straw to amber	Germany
6	Zoigl	4% – 5.4%	Toasty maltiness with a light hop presence	Pale gold to amber	Germany
7	Dunkel	4.5% – 5.6%	Malty sweetness with chocolate and nutty notes	Dark brown	Germany
8	Märzen (Märzenbier)	5% – 6%	Toasted maltiness with caramel sweetness	Amber to copper	Germany
9	Schwarzbier	4.4% – 5.4%	Roasty and chocolatey with a clean finish	Dark brown to black	Germany

Specialty Beer Types

Over the years, brewers have crafted unique beer styles by experimenting with modern techniques and materials, often deviating from the above typical categories.

These beers can have various types of grains like corn, rye, and wheat as the main mash ingredient instead of barley. Most of them  are the result of spontaneous fermentation of different types of yeasts, which means they can have characteristics of both ales and lagers.

Wheat Beers

• Weissbier
• Witbier
• Berliner Weisse

Rye Beers

• Kvass

Others

• Fruit Beers
• Hard Soda
• Malt Beer
• Small Beer
• Tella
• Spruce Beer
• Ice Beer
• Steam Beer
• Corn Beers
• Smoked Beer
• Barrel-Aged Beer
• Millet Beers

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