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How To Taste Beer
When analyzing a beer, you can't just swill it down,
burp and say "it's great" or "it's crap." And, even though tasting
is an individual art, there are a few steps, which if followed, will
take your beer tasting to a blissful level.
Look
Take pause and marvel at its greatness before you partake of it.
Raise the beer in front of you, but don't hold your beer to direct
light as this will dilute its true color. Describe its color, its
head and its consistency.
Agitate
Swirl your beer, gently in the glass. This will pull out aromas,
slight nuances, loosen & stimulate carbonation and test head
retention.
Smell
90-95% of what you experience is through you sense of smell. Breathe
thru your nose with two quick sniffs, then with your mouth open,
then thru your mouth only (nose and mouth are connected in the
experience). Let olfaction guide you. Agitate again if need be, and
ensure that you are in an area that has no overpowering aromas.
Enjoy its bouquet.
Taste
Now sip the beer. Resist swallowing immediately. Let it wander and
explore your entire palate. Let your taste buds speak. Note the
mouthfeel, the consistency of the liquid's body, and breathe out
during the process of tasting. This process of exhaling is called
"retro-olfaction" and will release retained stimulations at the
mucus and mouthfeel level, but at a higher temperature. At times
this will be the same as the olfactory process if not different and
complimentary. Try to detect any sweetness, salty flavors, acids and
general bitterness. Explain what they are, or what they are similar
to.
Also, try tasting the beer after it warms a bit (just a bit mind
you). Really cold beer tends to mask some of the flavors. As a beer
warms, its true flavors will pull through, become more pronounced.
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