rcd@opus.UUCP (Dick Dunn) (01/27/86)
Let's try to sort out a confusion or two here... > >...indicates that the brewing of ale is done with the yeast at the top of the > >brew, while the brewing of beer is done by yeast at the bottom... > > My hassle with defining a beer as a bottom brewed malted beverage is that the > yeast (Carlsbergensis, for the Danish brewery) was not isolated until the > 1870's... > ...No folks, I don't buy the top/bottom argument. That date > is the advent of LAGER beer but what of other types of beer? Good guess on the date (actually 1845-6), but that was only the isolation of the particular yeast; it had probably been in use for quite some longer time than that. OK, here are some terms. I'm giving US usage, by the way, though there's not a lot of variation: beer: the most inclusive term--any fermented, undistilled malt beverage The ingredients are supposed to be water, malt (malted barley), hops, and yeast. Other grains besides barley are sometimes used for lighter or specialty beers ale: a type of beer, distinguished by the yeast used to make it (S. cerevisae). This yeast tends to work more on the top of the fermenting beer and needs more oxygen; hence is called top-fermenting. lager: a type of beer, again distinguished by the yeast used to make it (properly S. uvarum, but sometimes also known as S. carlsbergensis after the person who first isolated it). The lager yeast tends to work more on the bottom of the brewing tank; hence is called bottom-fermenting. Most US beers are lagers. pilsener: a type of lager, after a particular Czechoslovakian style. Many US beers label themselves "pilseners" but are not. There are dozens of other distinctions and styles; I thought that these four would sort out the first level of confusion. Essentially, beer covers the whole shebang. Beer is divided into ale and lager (ignoring some minor styles) depending on type of yeast. -- Dick Dunn {hao,ucbvax,allegra}!nbires!rcd (303)444-5710 x3086 ...I'm not cynical - just experienced.