Types of Beer

Before you begin brewing beer, you need to decide what type of beer you want to make. The vast majority of beers can be grouped as ales or lagers, depending on the type of yeast used to make them. In general, ales are easier and take less time to homebrew, making them the better choice for first-time brewers.

Ales

Most ales are rich, full-bodied, and high in esters—organic compounds that produce a fruity aroma and taste. Though virtually all ales share these basic traits, the various types of ales can differ in many ways:

Abbey: A strong, amber beer that usually contains a number of specialty grains and has a mildly malty aroma. Commercial brands include Chimay, Brigand, and Orval.
American ale: A broad category of ales that borrow characteristics from European-style ales. Made in many varieties, including brown, amber, wheat, and cream. Commercial brands include Sierra Nevada, Harpoon Ale, and Genessee Cream.
Bitter ale: An old-style English ale with a creamy head (the foam that rises to the top of the beer) and low carbonation. Commercial brands include Tetley’s, Young’s London Special Ale, and Fuller’s ESB.
Brown ale: A brown ale that has a deep copper hue with subdued hops flavor, low bitterness, and mild chocolate flavor. Commercial brands include Newcastle Brown, Samuel Smith Nut Brown, and Pyramid Brown.
India pale ale (IPA): A heavily hoppy, crisp, fruity ale with a golden hue. Commercial brands include Harpoon IPA, Anchor Liberty, and Dogfish Head IPA.
Irish red ale: A dark-hued ale with a malty, caramel, and buttery flavor. Generally less hoppy than English ales. Commercial brands include Killian’s Irish Red, Smithwick’s Ale, and Phoenix Beer.
Porter: A full-bodied dark ale, generally with malty sweetness and moderate bitterness. Commercial brands include Samuel Smith Taddy, Young’s London, Edmund Fitzgerald, and Anchor Porter.
Stout: A hearty, full-bodied dark beer known for its roasty flavors, moderate malty caramel sweetness, and low hops flavor. Commercial brands include Guinness, Murphy’s, Samuel Smith Imperial, and Watney’s Cream.
Weizenbier: A fruity, well-carbonated wheat beer (also called weizen or weisse) made with roughly 50% wheat and 50% barley malt. Belgian varieties are often spiced, while German or American versions usually aren’t. Commercial brands include Schneider Weisse, Hoegaarden Witbier, Blue Moon, and Stone City Hefeweizen.

Lagers

Lagers lack the fruity flavors of ales and instead are usually crisper, drier, and lighter. Classic types of lagers, all of which you can brew at home, include:

American lager: A broad category that includes beers from Budweiser, Coors, and Miller to Anchor Steam, Brooklyn Lager, and Henry Weinhard’s. American lagers can be pale and watery or deep amber with a balanced malty-bitter quality.
Bock: A hearty, copper, German-style lager with malty, chocolaty flavors. Bocks generally are sweet and creamy with a bit of bitterness. Commercial brands include Spaten, Einbecker, Catamount Bock, and Otter Creek Brewing’s Mud Bock.
Oktoberfest: A well-carbonated amber lager that is medium-bodied and malty with a subtle bitterness and toasty aroma. Commercial brands include Spaten Ur-Märzen, Hacker Pschorr Oktoberfest, and Samuel Adams Octoberfest.
Pilsner: A pale, malty and well-hopped lager with an understated maltiness, often with caramel flavors and aromas and significant bitterness. Commercial brands include Pilsner Urquell, Kozel Pilsner, August Schell Pilsner, and Stoudt’s Pils.