Glossary

Question 1

American hops –

Answer 1

American brewing hops from the craft beer era, typically having citrusy, resiny, evergreen, or similar characteristics. More modern hops can add a wider range of characteristics, such as stone fruit, berry, tropical fruit, and melon.

Question 2

Continental hops, Old World hops –

Answer 2

traditional European brewing hops, including German and Czech landrace hops, British brewing hops, and those other varieties from continental Europe. Typically described as floral, spicy, herbal, or earthy. Generally less intense than many New World hops.

Question 3

Dry-Hopped –

Answer 3

a post-boil addition of uncooked hop products that gives the beer a fresh, bright hop aroma. A dry-hopped beer is often more robust, vivid, and focused than the same beer without dry hops. It can shift the balance of the beer to be more hop-focused without adding bitterness. Should not be grassy, vegetal, oxidized, cheesy, or old in character. Bright and fresh, not cooked.

Question 4

Juicy –

Answer 4

a trendy modern term used to describe hops that have a quality like fresh fruit juices, especially tropical fruits. Has other meanings, such as “mouth- watering” or “wet” that don’t apply in brewing.

Question 5

New World hops –

Answer 5

American hops, along with those from Australia and New Zealand, and other non-Old World locations. Can have all the attributes of classic American hops, as well as tropical fruit, stone fruit, white grape, and other interesting aromatics.

Question 6

Traditional German or Czech hops –

Answer 6

also called noble or landrace hops, long considered having the finest, most refined character for traditional European lagers. Often having a subtle, lightly floral, spicy, or herbal character. Traditional implies that these are classic types, not modern, aggressive hops.

Question 7

Biscuity –

Answer 7

dry, toasted grain, flour, or dough flavor reminiscent of English digestive biscuits or cookies; in brewing, a flavor commonly associated with Biscuit malt and some traditional English malts.

Question 8

Maillard products –

Answer 8

a class of compounds produced from complex interactions between sugars and amino acids at high temperatures, resulting in brown colors and rich, malty, sometimes even somewhat meaty compounds. In previous versions of the guidelines, known as melanoidins, which are a subset of Maillard products responsible for red-brown colors (and, according to Kunze, are “aroma-intensive”). In some brewing literature, melanoidin and Maillard product are used interchangeably. The chemistry and flavor characterization of Maillard products are not well understood, so brewers and judges should avoid excessively pedantic discussions around these points. The takeaway is that we mean the richly malty flavors, and need some kind of convenient shorthand to discuss them. Maillard is pronounced, roughly, as “my-YARD.”

Question 9

Munich malt –

Answer 9

can provide a bready, richly malty quality that enhances the malt backbone of a beer without adding residual sweetness, although some can confuse maltiness with sweetness. Darker Munich malts can add a deeply toasted malt quality similar to toasted bread crusts.

Question 10

Pilsner or Pils malt –

Answer 10

continental Pilsner malt is quite distinctive, and has a slightly sweet, lightly grainy character with a soft, slightly toasty, honey-like quality. Higher in DMS precursors than other malts, its use can sometimes result in a low corny DMS flavor.

Question 11

Vienna malt –

Answer 11

can provide a bready-toasty malt presence, but don’t expect the toasted notes to be extreme – they’re more like the crust of freshly baked bread than toasted bread.

Question 12

Bubblegum –

Answer 12

refers to the flavor profile of Bazooka Bubble Gum original flavor, a pink chewing gum; a sweet mixed fruit flavor dominated by banana and strawberry with fruit punch flavors.

Question 13

Clean fermentation profile –

Answer 13

the quality of having very low to no yeast-derived fermentation byproducts in the finished beer, typically implying that there are no esters, diacetyl, acetaldehyde, or similar components, except if specifically mentioned. A shorthand for saying that the long list of possible fermentation byproducts is not present in significant or appreciable quantities (barely perceived trace quantities at the threshold of perception are typically acceptable, nonetheless).

Question 14

Kveik –

Answer 14

traditionally, a mixed blend of yeast in Norway used to produce farmhouse style ales, often available as single strains today. Not a beer style.

Question 15

Pome fruit –

Answer 15

apple, pear, quince. The botanical classification contains other fruit, but these are the common ones we mean.

Question 16

Stone fruit –

Answer 16

fleshy fruit with a single pit (or stone), such as cherry, plum, peach, apricot, mango, etc.

Question 17

Acetic character –

Answer 17

vinegar-like, sharp, not a clean sourness.

Question 18

Brett –

Answer 18

shorthand term for Brettanomyces, an attenuative genus of yeast that often is used to produce fruity (pome fruit, tropical fruit, stone fruit), floral, and often funky complex flavors (leather, sweat, barnyard, horse blanket, funk, etc.) in fermented beverages. Derived from phenols or fatty acids produced during fermentation. Literally means “British fungus” and is associated with qualities produced during barrel aging. Common species used in brewing include B. bruxellensis and B. anomalous, although they are sometimes known by other names; several strains exist with very different profiles (as with S. cerevisiae). Typically used as secondary fermentation strain, although a few strains exist that can fully attenuate wort enough to be used for primary fermentation.

Question 19

Clean sourness –

Answer 19

a quality descriptor for sourness to imply that the sourness has no vinegar, complex funk, or excessive overtones; often used to describe a good- quality, sharp lactic sourness.

Question 20

Ethyl acetate –

Answer 20

a yeast-derived ester formed from acetic acid and ethanol and produced at various levels depending on yeast strain and stress. Low levels are fruity like pears, pineapples, or berries but high levels are objectionable faults and have the aroma of solvent or nail polish remover. High levels of oxygen and wild yeast can create excessive amounts.

Question 21

Indole –

Answer 21

formed by ‘coliform’ bacteria contamination during fermentation. It is often associated with simultaneous production of DMS. Most often found in beers that have a very long lag time or in spontaneous- fermented beer. Smells of feces, dirty farm, or pig farms. At lower levels, can be jasmine or floral. Always a fault.

Question 22

LAB –

Answer 22

shorthand for Lactic Acid Bacteria, including Lactobacillus, Pediococcus, and others in the family Lactobacillaceae. A broader term for identifying the source of a lactic sourness.

Question 23

Lacto –

Answer 23

shorthand term for Lactobacillus.

Question 24

Pedio –

Answer 24

shorthand term for Pediococcus.

Question 25

Ropiness –

Answer 25

describes a mouthfeel where the beer develops an increase in viscosity and pours thick and syrupy. Various bacteria are the usual cause, Pedio being most common, and happens from an increase in production of polysaccharides. A common stage in mixed-culture fermentation; the presence of Brett will reduce this viscosity over time.

Question 26

Sacch –

Answer 26

shorthand term for Saccharomyces.

Question 27

THP –

Answer 27

shorthand for tetrahydropyridine. Usually produced by Lacto or Brett. At low levels, lends grainy, toasted oat cereal-like character (think ‘Cheerios’ cereal in the US). At high levels, can be perceived as mouse cage, mousy, or urine-like (similar to the fault in cider and wine). THP increases with oxygen exposure but active Brett will reduce it over time. Always a fault.

Question 28

Adjunct quality –

Answer 28

a characteristic of beer aroma, flavor, and mouthfeel that reflects the use of higher percentages of non-malt fermentables. Can present as a corny character, a lighter body than an all-malt product, or a generally thinner-tasting beer. Does not necessarily imply the use of any specific adjunct.

Question 29

Balanced –

Answer 29

relative to a style, balanced implies a pleasant, harmonious, agreeable, complementary mix of elements, not an equal amount of each component. Does not imply any absolute quantity, more of a measure of appropriate coordination of flavor constituents.

Question 30

Clean –

Answer 30

lacking off flavors; a positive term.

Question 31

Crisp –

Answer 31

a rapid, abrupt change in the mouthfeel of beer from smoothness to sharpness, leading into a dry finish. Usually a positive term.

Question 32

DMS –

Answer 32

Dimethyl Sulfide, which can take on a wide range of perceptual characteristics. Most are inappropriate in any style of beer; however, a light, background cooked corn quality may be noted and is acceptable in beers with high levels of Pilsner malt. When the guidelines state that any levels of DMS are appropriate, it is this light cooked corn flavor, not other cooked vegetable characteristics or other DMS flavors.

Question 33

Dry –

Answer 33

same usage as with wine, meaning lacking perceived sweetness. Well-attenuated. Obviously does not mean “opposite of wet” in this context.

Question 34

Elegant –

Answer 34

smooth, tasteful, refined, pleasant character suggestive of high-quality ingredients handled with care; lacking rough edges, sharp flavors, and palate-attacking sensations.

Question 35

Harsh –

Answer 35

when applied to beer, an unpleasant, sharp, intense, or disagreeable texture, flavor, or aftertaste. Some synonyms in this context are rough, coarse, abrasive, not fine, dirtier, less refined, and less pure. A quality term indicating the opposite of smooth, clean, and pleasant. Can imply astringency, but also can apply to bitterness, alcohol, and other sensations. Negative.

Question 36

Funky –

Answer 36

a positive or negative term, depending on the context. If expected or desirable, can often take on a barnyard, wet hay, slightly earthy, horse blanket, or farmyard character. If too intense, unexpected, or undesirable, can take the form of silage, fecal, baby diaper, or horse stall qualities.

Question 37

Rustic –

Answer 37

coarse, hearty, robust character reminiscent of older, traditional ingredients; perhaps less refined as a general sensory experience.

Question 38

Belgian Lace, Lacing –

Answer 38

a characteristic and persistent latticework pattern of foam left on the inside of the glass as a beer is consumed. The look is reminiscent of fine lacework from Belgium, where it is considered a desirable indicator of beer quality.

Question 39

Legs –

Answer 39

a pattern that a beverage leaves on the inside of a glass after a portion has been consumed. The term refers to the droplets that slowly fall in streams from beverage residue on the side of the glass. Not an indication of quality, but can indicate a higher alcohol, sugar, or glycerol content.