Beer Characteristics:

Alcoholic: Warming taste of ethanol and higher alcohol's.

Ale: Beers distinguished by use of top fermenting yeast strains, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The top fermenting yeast perform at warmer temperatures than do yeast's used to brew lager beer, and their byproducts are more evident in taste and aroma. Fruitiness and esters are often part of an ale's character.

Amber: Any top or bottom fermented beer having an amber color, that is, between pale and dark.

Bitter: Bitterness of hops or malt husks; sensation on back of tongue.

Bitterness: The perception of a bitter flavor, in beer from iso-alpha-acid in solution (derived from hops). It is measured in International Bitterness Units (IBU).

Black malt: Partially malted barley roasted at high temperatures. Black malt gives a dark color and roasted flavor to beer.

Body: Thickness and mouth-filling property of a beer described as "full or thin bodied".

Bottle-conditioning: Secondary fermentation and maturation in the bottle, creating complex aromas and flavors.

Bright Beer Tank: See conditioning tank.

Caramel: A cooked sugar that is used to add color and alcohol content to beer. It is often used in place of more expensive malted barley.

Caramel malt: A sweet, coppery-colored malt. Caramel or crystal malt imparts both color and flavor to beer. Caramel malt has a high concentration of unfermentable sugars that sweeten the beer and, contribute to head retention.

Cask: A closed, barrel-shaped container for beer. They come in various sizes and are now usually made of metal. The bung in a cask of "Real" beer or ale must be made of wood to allow the pressure to be relived, as the fermentation of the beer, in the cask, continues.

Chill haze: Cloudiness caused by precipitation of protein-tannin compound at low temperatures, does not affect flavor.

Chill proof: Beer treated to allow it to withstand cold temperatures without clouding.

Conditioning: Period of maturation intended to impart "condition" (natural carbonation). Warm conditioning further develops the complex of flavors. Cold conditioning imparts a clean, round taste.

Conditioning Tank: A vessel in which beer is placed after primary fermentation where the beer matures, clarifies and, is naturally carbonated through secondary fermentation. Also called bright beer tank, serving tank, and, secondary tank.

Dry-hopping: The addition of dry hops to fermenting or aging beer to increase its hop character or aroma.

Fruity/Estery: Flavor and aroma of bananas, strawberries, apples, or other fruit; from high temperature fermentation and certain yeast strains.

Grainy: Tastes like cereal or raw grain.

Hang: Lingering bitterness or harshness.

Heat Exchanger: A mechanical device used to rapidly reduce the temperature of the wort.

Hoppy: Aroma of hops, does not include hop bitterness.

Length: The amount of wort brewed each time the brew house is in operation.

Light-Struck: Skunklike smell; from exposure to light.

Liquor: The brewer's word for water used in the brewing process, as included in the mash or, used to sparge the grains after mashing.

Metallic: Tastes tinny, bloodlike or coinlike; may come from bottle caps.

Mouthfeel: A sensation derived from the consistency or viscosity of a beer, described, for example, as thin or full.

Musty: Moldy, mildewy character; can be the result of cork or bacterial infection.

Oxidized: Stale flavor of wet cardboard, paper, rotten pineapple, or sherry, as a result of oxygen as the beer ages or is exposed to high temperatures.

Phenolic: Flavor and aroma of medicine, plastic, Band-Aids, smoke, or cloves; caused by wild yeast or bacteria, or sanitizer residue.

Salty: Flavor like table salt; experienced on the side of the tongue.

Sour/Acidic: Vinegarlike or lemonlike; can be caused by bacterial infection.

Sulfurlike: Reminiscent of rotten eggs or burnt matches; a by-product of some yeasts.

Sweet: Taste like sugar; experienced on the front of the tongue.

Tart: Taste sensation cause by acidic flavors.

Winy: Sherrylike flavor; can be caused by warm fermentation or oxidation in very old beer.

Yeasty: Yeastlike flavor; a result of yeast in suspension or beer sitting too long on sediment.