beer being served

The Case for Craft Beer

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ccording to chemical tests of ancient pottery jars, beer has been with us for a very long time — as far back as 7,000 years — and in it’s infancy it was mainly brewed on a domestic scale (you can say it was the original “craft” beer)!

mug of beer

Today, the brewing industry is a huge global business and beer stores everywhere sell hundreds of different beers from various breweries and countries. (The Beer Store in Ontario, Canada sells more than 720 brands of beer from 180 brewers around the world.)

Giving beer as a gift used to be a rare idea, but the advent of craft beer may have changed a lot of this thinking. These days the craft-brewing segment of the industry is attracting new consumers who would normally drink other types of alcohol, and who feel that receiving a case of a craft beer is just as satisfying as getting a bottle of wine. More and more people bring along a case of a special craft beer when visiting friends.

bottles on table

Is a craft beer just a snobby way of drinking beer, you ask? Well, according to most, craft beer tastes better. It is made in small batches and focused on a desired flavor palate. Craft beer just tastes great. Ordinary beer is usually pale or yellow looking, and when poured into a glass, the head is short-lived. This kind of beer is meant for the masses and mass-produced by big beer companies — taste is not their goal.

brewery

Another reason to buy craft beer is that the beer is normally made by small independent breweries, therefore you are supporting small businesses and communities across the country. The definition of a craft brewer is that the brewer is "small, independent and traditional”. Friends love to rave about the various brands when visiting the craft breweries.

If you know your friends or relatives love craft beer, here’s the opportunity to surprise them with gifts of craft beers and associated products and accessories.


For the history of craft beer see: History of Craft Beer


Here are some of the most popular craft beers in the USA: drinking beer 9 new Canadian craft beers:

To know more about craft beer, satisfy your curiosity by visiting: Craftbeer.com

Some facts about beer girl and beer

All beers are either lagers or ales. Ales have a quick fermentation period of a week or less, are very flavorful and tend to contain more sugar. Lagers take much longer to ferment (sometimes months) and produce a beer that tastes cleaner and crisp. Most people think that the color of a beer determines its bitterness, heaviness, strength or alcohol content. Not true. (It doesn’t even tell you whether it’s an ale or lager.)

Ales are made with yeast that ferments at the top of the mixture while lager yeast ferments at the bottom. The beer style family is determined by its color, flavor and aroma and within that style are different varieties.


Here's a list of some of the craft beers:
Pale Ale

Pale Ale

Pale ale is a top-fermented beer made with predominantly pale malt. The highest proportion of pale malt results in a lighter colour. The term first appeared around 1703 for beers made from malts dried with high-carbon coke, which resulted in a lighter colour than other beers popular at that time. Wikipedia

India Pale Ale

India Pale Ale

India pale ale is a hoppy beer style within the broader category of pale ale. Among the first breweries known to export beer to India was George Hodgson's Bow Brewery on the Middlesex-Essex border. Wikipedia

Brown Ale

Brown Ale

Brown ale is a style of beer with a dark amber or brown colour. The term was first used by London brewers in the late 17th century to describe their products, such as mild ale, though the term has a rather different meaning today. 18th century brown ales were lightly hopped and brewed from 100% brown malt. Wikipedia

Wheat Beer

Wheat Beer

Wheat beer is a beer, usually top-fermented, which is brewed with a large proportion of wheat relative to the amount of malted barley. The two main varieties are Weissbier, based on the German tradition, and Witbier, based on the Belgian tradition; minor types include Lambic, Berliner Weisse and Gose. Wikipedia

Stout

Stout

Stout is a dark beer. There are a number of variations, including Baltic porter, milk stout, and imperial stout; but the most common variation is dry stout, as exemplified by Guinness Draught, the world's best-selling stout. Stout is a top-fermented beer. Wikipedia Wikipedia

Porter

Porter

Porter is a dark style of beer developed in London from well-hopped beers made from brown malt. The name was first recorded in the 18th century, and is thought to come from its popularity with street and river porters, who carried objects for others. Wikipedia

Bock

Bock

Bock is a strong lager of German origin. Several substyles exist, including maibock, a paler, more hopped version generally made for consumption at spring festivals; doppelbock, a stronger and maltier version; and eisbock, a much stronger version made by partially freezing the beer and removing the ice that forms. Wikipedia

Amber Ales

Amber Ales

Amber ale is an emerging term used in Australia, France and North America for pale ales brewed with a proportion of amber malt and sometimes crystal malt to produce an amber color, generally ranging from light copper to light brown. Wikipedia

Cream Ale

Cream Ale

Cream ale is a style of American beer, of which examples are light in color and are well attenuated. First crafted in the mid-1800s at various breweries in the United States, cream ale remained a very localized form with different styles until the early 20th century. Wikipedia

American Pale Ale

American Pale Ale

American pale ale is a style of pale ale developed in the United States around 1980. American pale ales are generally around 5% abv with significant quantities of American hops, typically Cascade. Wikipedia

Sour beer

Sour beer

Sour beer is beer which has an intentionally acidic, tart or sour taste. The most common sour beer styles are Belgian lambics, gueuze and Flanders red ale. Wikipedia


For info about specialty beers scroll to mid-page of Webstaurantstore

Craft beers by their very nature are not available in your average corner beer store. They are brewed in noticeably smaller batches and have a limited marketing range. These beers are usually found in specialty stores and bars. What you like and purchase locally may not be available in another city.

You can check out the Internet for your favorites. Some limited beers are only available from the brewery itself but in many situations you can purchase and have delivery arranged (depending where you live in the world) to your home.

Along with your gift of craft beer you can also give officially licensed beer apparel and merchandise. Here are a few sites:

craft sign

You may also want to add some bar essentials. Here is a website. Shop Beer Gear with some accessories alone that can make for great gifts. Consider giving a bar fridge, or a great set of beer glasses or steins.

A unique gift would be a craft home brew beer-making kit. With any of these kits your gift almost makes itself:


beer server

Or (finally) as your gift you can just take your guest to a pub or brewery for a night of pleasant company and the enjoyment of sipping that special craft beer.

By JM Pietron

Photo Credits: See Acknowledgements