Sean
Amber
Amber is used to refer to the color and full-bodiedness of a beer. It can describe ales and lagers, but either way an amber tends to be maltier, fuller, and darker gold. Samuel Adams Boston Lager or Sleeman’s Amber Ale are popular examples.
Blonde
Blondes are usually ales which are a paler yellow color. They have a milder but crisp flavor and a hoppy aroma, with a light sweetness and minimal bitterness.
Brown
With Newcastle Brown Ale as perhaps the best known example, brown beers are darker in color with strong hints of caramel or chocolate in their flavor profile. Many variants include nutty tones, usually called nut browns.
Cream
Golden ales with a crisp, mild, and sweet flavor. Typically relatively clear and easy-drinking.
Dark
Dark beers are typically either ales, stouts, or porters, though dark lagers have emerged recently and are gaining popularity. Dark ales are typically chestnut brown with a full-bodied, malty flavor. Porters and stouts, such as Guinness, are dark nearly to black.
Fruit
Fruit beers are brewed like ales, but the malts are held back in order to allow fruity characteristics to come through more fully. These beers are usually crisp, light, and not bitter.
Golden
Golden beers, such as Becks or Samuel Adams Golden Ale, were first produced in the UK. They carry overtones of vanilla and citrus, sometimes with additional flavors that carry a hint of spice. These are rarely hoppy and always crisp.
Honey
Creamy, full-bodied, and slightly sweet, these beers are usually fuller-bodied than, say, a Golden or a Cream. Sleeman’s Honey Brown is a popular example.
India Pale Ale
The original IPA. It is a hoppier version of the pale ale and was originally developed during British rule in India to survive the long distance between countries. These have emerged as enormously popular in recent years.
Light
Light beers are generally simple lagers with a lower alcohol content and milder flavor. Traditional examples include Bud Light and Coors Light, which are popular throughout the United States.
Lime
These are a relatively recent addition to the light beer collection, with Bud Light Lime being the foremost example. Light in flavor and alcohol content with the addition of lime.
Pale Ales
The pale ale, an English invention, is a mild but enjoyable beer with a hint of fruity flavor and a clear, yellow or copper color. Many of the most well-known beers are pale ales, such as Heineken, Dos Equis, and Budweiser.
Pilsner
Pilsners are lagers made in a particular style with hard water. They are typically more bitter than a traditional lager, with a dryer and crisper flavor and similar coloring. Stella Artois is a pilsner.
Red
Reds, such as Rickards Red, are ales that range from red to brown in color and have a heavier flavor than an amber. Mildly hoppy and with traces of caramel, they strike a balance between light beers and dark.
Strong
The definition of a “strong” beer may vary geographically, but in general it refers to the broad category of beers with an alcohol percentage greater than 7%. Most malt beers, like Olde English and Colt 45, fall into this category, as do many modern craft IPAs.
Wheat
Wheat beers can be either filtered or unfiltered. Either way, they are typically light, easy-drinking, and mild in flavor. Unfiltered wheat beers have a cloudy profile and are hazy and opaque.
