What is the difference between ale and beer in taste?!


Question: Beer is beer. Ale is a sub division of beer distinguished loosely by the strain of yeast used in the fermentation (warmer top fermenting yeasts). Lager is the another sub-division of beer again loosely distinguished by its yeast strain (colder bottom fermenting yeasts). There are a few hybrid styles in between.

90% of beer styles are ale. Within those styles you will find a range of flavors from lemons to chocolate so you can't really pin a single flavor on ale really.

If I had to pick a beer that I could say "hey that's an ale-like beer" I would pick Sam Adam's Boston Ale, note Boston ALE not Boston LAGER, Boston ale is sometimes hard to find. There's always just been something about that beer that struck me as the most beer like beer I've ever had. There's really no science or logic to that thought though just personal belief.


Answers: Beer is beer. Ale is a sub division of beer distinguished loosely by the strain of yeast used in the fermentation (warmer top fermenting yeasts). Lager is the another sub-division of beer again loosely distinguished by its yeast strain (colder bottom fermenting yeasts). There are a few hybrid styles in between.

90% of beer styles are ale. Within those styles you will find a range of flavors from lemons to chocolate so you can't really pin a single flavor on ale really.

If I had to pick a beer that I could say "hey that's an ale-like beer" I would pick Sam Adam's Boston Ale, note Boston ALE not Boston LAGER, Boston ale is sometimes hard to find. There's always just been something about that beer that struck me as the most beer like beer I've ever had. There's really no science or logic to that thought though just personal belief.

Beer is a generic term for drinks made with fermented cereal
Guinness, Lager and Ale are all beers, ale has a varied taste from citrus fruity to dry hoppy to sweet malty

Ale is brewed from malted barley, and it has a sweet, fruity taste.

Beer is a more vague word that encompasses ale, lager, bitter and various other types of beers, so it could taste of anything. However, it normally refers to lager, which generally has quite a simple taste.

Those are some good answers, I have to agree with AleSmith.
check out this cool quiz on beer i just found:
http://www.esnips.com/r/k_ya_beer/social...

Alesmith is on the right track but missed the most important difference between ales and lagers (which is not the yeast strain though that does differ as well), The main differenced is that lagers are COLD fermented and Ales are fermented at room/cellar temperatures. That's basically it in a nut shell, there are some hybrids like steam beer, an american original that uses a lager yeast but ferments at room temperature but there are few of these.
Ales and lagers alike can be dark or light colored and hoppy or malty flavored.
--------
one last thing, 90% of beers are definitely not ales, probably closer to 65%, the lager family includes bock's, double bock's, triple's, octoberfests, american light lager, american macro lager (bud, coors, miller, michelob etc), all pilsners are lagers... on and on, check http://beeradvocate.com/beer/style for a fairly comprehensive list.

Ahh,

This reminds me of Freinds. Ross and Mike! LOL.
Sorry :/





The consumer Foods information on foodaq.com is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment for any medical conditions.
The answer content post by the user, if contains the copyright content please contact us, we will immediately remove it.
Copyright © 2007 FoodAQ - Terms of Use - Contact us - Privacy Policy

Food's Q&A Resources