Become aCraft Beer Expert
Master the art of craft beer appreciation with comprehensive guides on styles, brewing, flavors, and history crafted by industry experts. More to come!
Learning Progress
Discover Your Perfect Beer Style
Learn to identify and appreciate different beer styles from around the world. From hoppy IPAs to smooth stouts, discover the characteristics that make each style unique.
A hoppy beer style that balances malt sweetness with hop bitterness. Known for its golden to amber color and citrusy hop character.
A hop-forward beer with intense bitterness and strong hop aroma. Originally brewed with extra hops to survive long journeys to India.
A dark, rich beer with roasted flavors. Often featuring notes of coffee, chocolate, and caramel from roasted malts.
A crisp, clean lager with a light golden color. Known for its refreshing character and noble hop flavor.
A light, refreshing beer made with a significant portion of wheat. Often cloudy with citrus and spice notes.
A dark brown beer with roasted malt character. The precursor to stout, offering chocolate and coffee notes.
The Art & Science of Brewing
Understand each step of the brewing process and how it contributes to the final flavor, aroma, and character of your favorite craft beers.
Crush the malted grains to expose the starches inside
15-30 minutes
Room temperature
17% Complete
Key Points:
- Break open the grain husks to expose the starches
- Maintain some husk integrity for natural filtration
- Different grain bills create different flavor profiles
- Proper mill gap is crucial for efficient extraction
The Magic of Hops
Discover how different hop varieties create the distinctive flavors, aromas, and bitterness that make each beer unique. From citrusy American hops to noble European varieties.
Hop Flavor Wheel
The most popular American hop variety, known for its distinctive citrusy character.
FLAVOR PROFILE
Sometimes called "Super Cascade" for its intense citrus and floral characteristics.
FLAVOR PROFILE
A noble hop variety that defines the classic pilsner character.
FLAVOR PROFILE
A high alpha hop with distinctive pine and spice characteristics.
FLAVOR PROFILE
Complex hop with tropical fruit, berry, and herbal characteristics.
FLAVOR PROFILE
A classic German noble hop variety with mild, spicy character.
FLAVOR PROFILE
9,000 Years of Brewing Heritage
Journey through time to discover how beer shaped civilizations, survived prohibition, and evolved into the diverse craft beer culture we celebrate today.
Historical Timeline
7000 BCE - 500 CE
The birth of brewing coincided with the development of agriculture. Ancient civilizations discovered fermentation by accident and refined it into an art.
500 - 1500 CE
Monasteries became centers of brewing innovation, developing techniques that would define European beer styles for centuries.
1700 - 1900
Technological advances revolutionized brewing, enabling mass production and the creation of lighter, more consistent beers.
1920 - 1933
Prohibition devastated American brewing but also led to innovation and the eventual resurgence of craft brewing.
1965 - Present
A renaissance of small-scale, artisanal brewing brought unprecedented creativity and diversity to the beer world.
Beer's Cultural Impact
Beer has been the centerpiece of social gatherings for millennia, fostering community and friendship.
From ancient trade routes to modern craft breweries, beer has driven economic development worldwide.
Beer has evolved from sustenance to sophisticated culinary art, with complex flavors and food pairings.