Beer Styles: Beer Styles
Discover more about beer styles, iconic beers, and how best to enjoy them.
Key Topics
beer styles serving beer blind tasting the story of beer food the matchmakers beer cocktails
Heading Back To (Beer) School
WSET has long taught courses on wine and spirits but recently expanded into beer. Chronic learner Will Ziebell joined students from here and overseas in the classroom to ponder education's place in the current beer landscape.
A Taste Of Old Blighty
Long-unfancied British beer styles have been enjoying a revival in 2024. So what's behind the rise of bitters, browns and ambers? And will it last? We chatted to a couple of brewers hoping it will.
Mash Gang Australia: No Alcohol, No Limits
"Forever experimenting." The non-alc beer space hasn't always been associated with the broadest of choice, but Trenno of Mash Gang Australia is on the case, playing with new styles and creative ingredients with each brew.
The Breeders Bringing New Brewing Yeasts To Life
In June, brewers given a new yeast to play with called LalBrew Pomona. To find out how new yeasts like this hybrid come to life, we chatted to one of its creators at Escarpment Laboratories in Canada.
La Petit Rocher's Belgo-Brisbane Beer
A new project from beer industry legends Ian Watson and Rocky Reed captures the spirit of Belgian brewing, mixes tradition and innovation, and manages to be both fancy and rebellious. It's La Petit Rocher, and it's launching in July.
Down The Barrel Hole With Fox Friday
Winter's chill makes it a perfect time to enjoy barrel-aged beers. Ahead of Fox Friday releasing beers from their first ever foray into this field, we spoke to the team – no strangers to working with oak – about their approach.
Working Title's Hot Climate Coolship
Tradition dictates that coolships should be used to create spontaneously-fermented beers in the cooler months in cool climates. So Working Title decided to give it a go in subtropical Queensland. Judd Owen joined them.
Brewing With Tradition: Wheat Beer's Rich History & Modern Appeal
Classic wheat beers like Weissbier and Witbier are few and far between in Australia, at times polarising consumers. Here, we explore what these styles are, where they come from, their common ingredients, and how they taste.
Snappy 'n' Hoppy: The Rise of West Coast Pilsner & Cali IPA
Leaner, crisper styles of hoppy beer are growing in popularity. We spoke to some of those exploring West Coast pilsners and California IPAs to find out where they've come from and where they're going.
Turning Towards Terpenes
Hops are loaded with terpenes: aromatic compounds that drive much of what appeals to beer drinkers. As brewers look to use them to enhance aromas in their beers, we chatted to some of those exploring this new territory.
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For The Love Of Japanese Rice Lagers – Part II
In part two of his look at Japanese rice lager, Mick Wüst chats to some of the brewers playing around with the style and considers just where such beers sit within the contemporary Australian beer landscape.
For The Love Of Japanese Rice Lagers – Part I
“For us, it’s the pinnacle of beer. We’re just trying to do it justice.” Japanese-style rice lagers are showing up all over Australia these days. But what exactly are they? Mick Wüst explores the local appeal.
One Drop: Five Years In Five Beers
Few breweries have made their mark quite like One Drop, brewers of some of the most extraordinary beers ever seen in Australia. Here, we invite them to look back on their first Five Years In Five Beers.
Getting Blind With Crafty: Mexican Lagers
For our Mexican lager blind tasting, we veered a little from our usual approach and included some of the biggest names in the world alongside the Aussies. The big question: could a local hero claim the crown...?
Cerveza: Is The Next Big Thing In Beer ... Beer?
You've probably heard the word "cerveza" more than usual in recent weeks, and you'll hear it more in the coming months. But what exactly is it? And why are some brewers predicting a summer of cerveza?
Sobah Launch Australia's First Non-Alc Brewery
Sobah's brewery features the stainless you'll find in any Australian brewery yet the Gold Coast operation remains entirely unique. We visited Australia's first non-alc brewery to chat with founders Clinton and Lozen Schultz.
Eagle Bay Leap Through Hoops... Slowly
Eagle Bay have launched Hoops, a years-in-the-making series celebrating wild ferments, barrel-ageing and patience. We chatted to brewer Keegan Steinbacher about the passion project launched with a little help from 3 Ravens.
Shut Up And Drink Your Dessert: Pastry Beers Part 1
Sweet, thick beers that taste like dessert used to be few and far between, but now it feels like they're everywhere. In the first of this two-part deep dive, we look at what pastry beers are, where they came from, and how they're made.
No Alcohol: All Choice
There's a multitude of reasons why people seek out alcohol-free beers and the good news is that the choice has never been broader. Ahead of Dry July, we caught up with some of the people behind the more interesting non-alc beers.
Fourteen Years Of Fresh Hop Beers
The hop harvest is underway in Australia, which means fresh hop beers are on their way. One brewery has been brewing them longer than most: Bridge Road Brewers, so we chatted to co-owner Ben Kraus about 14 years of harvest ales.
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Australia's Generation XPA
From humble beginnings – and no little confusion as to what they actually are – XPAs have made a pitch to be regarded as the modern Australian pale. We examine their rise from obscurity to uniquity.
The Wild Ones
A spontaneously fermented beer won Champion Australian Beer at this year's AIBAs, and a number of Australian brewers are creating beers inspired by the lambics of Belgium. In The Wild Ones, we join them down the rabbit hole.
Something To Braggot About
With his latest collaboration with a local brewer hitting shelves – a braggot brewed with Seasonal Brewing Co – we caught up with the passionate homebrewer turned meadmaker Sean Johnson, of WA-based Erosion Meadery.
The Lager Renaissance
Once shunned by many in the craft beer world, lagers are enjoying something of a quiet renaissance. Graham Frizzell takes a look at why, and asks what makes a great lager for the discerning contemporary drinker?
A Hazy Shade Of Pale
Hazy pale ales look set to be one of the styles of 2021 as more and more breweries add them to their core offerings and drinkers embrace their juicy, fluffy, fruity sessionability. But just what are they?
Ten Years Of Crafty: Changing Tastes
Styles have come and gone, limited releases are a growing focus, and there's never been more choice for drinkers. Here, we look at just how far and fast tastes have changed since we launched The Crafty Pint.
Hard Seltzer: The Alcopopalypse Cometh?
Hard seltzer has taken the US by storm in the past few years and early examples are starting to appear here. But what is it, why has it exploded Stateside, and will it have the same impact with Aussie drinkers?
Down With The Sweetness?
From pastry stouts to milkshake IPAs and fruity cream sours, there's an argument to be made for 2019 being the year of the dessert beer. Mitch Wilkins spoke to people brewing and serving them about their sugary appeal.
Brisbane's Lithuanian Baker Boys
Kveik might be hogging the headlines for many but one Brisbane brewing team has taken inspiration from another Northern European beer style – one that involves baking the mash first: Lithuanian keptinis.
A Sour Taste In Their Mouths
Sour beers have really taken off in Australia in the past couple of years, but what are they? Ahead of Blobfish, a festival dedicated to sour, wild and funky beers, we chatted to four Australian and Kiwi breweries who love them.
Saison D'Être
Many brewers love them, their characteristics are ideal for Australia's climate, they offer diversity and are wonderful with food. So why are saisons proving a harder sell than most in today's beer world?
Golden Days Before They End
A few years ago, as the Australian craft beer scene started to move into overdrive, golden ales looked like being one of the driving forces. Today, they're rarely found on tap or in fridges. So, what's changed?
Hard Times
Ginger beers have enjoyed some time in the sun in recent years, but what of hard lemonades? Avowed fan Hannah Louise Grugel spoke to two local producers, asking where such drinks sit in relation to beer and how far they might go.
What's Wrong With Wheat Beer?
Australia's beer judges seem to love them, they're great with an array of cuisines and they have a fascinating history. Yet traditional European wheat beer styles remain unloved. Will Ziebell speaks to brewers, retailers and consumers to find out why.
Brut D'état: IPA's Grand Usurper
If you've not heard of Brut IPAs yet, you soon will. The style was only born in San Francisco late in 2017 but the first Australian versions are already out. So, will this replace NEIPAs as IPA's style du jour? We chat to some of the early adopters.
The Big Issue: Weird Beers
It's that time of year when more new beers hit the market than at any other thanks in part to GABS. A good percentage will be highly experimental or outright odd, with the oddest tending to gain the most media hype. But is all news good news?
X Marks The... Something
It's been three years since Wolf of the Willows launched its XPA and the number of beers bearing that name is growing fast. But does anyone agree on what an XPA should be? We ask some XPA brewers about the X factor.
Looking For New England – The Haze Craze
New England style IPAs are appearing with ever greater frequencies on these shores. Frontiersman Guy Southern dove deep into their swirling, muddy pool in the company of four local proponents to find out more.
Here Gose
Perhaps nothing should surprise in the contemporary beer world, yet the rise of gose is still an unexpected development. We chat to a couple of gose brewers and also look back into the history of the style in Germany.
Mead Made Modern
A tiny number of Australian brewers have played with mead and braggots, but there's now a small yet growing number of people specialising in these ancient beverages. Marie Claire Jarratt spoke to some of them in her debut article for the site.
Now Is The Sour
While some might have forecast the renaissance that beer has been enjoying globally, would many have predicted the rise of sours? Award-winning writer Michael Donaldson laps up the tsunami of sours breaking on Kiwi shores.
Drinking In Style: IPA
In advance of publishing the results from part II of our IPA blind tasting, our Resident Beer Scholar returns with a look at the style. Busting myths and telling the IPA's tale from the 18th century through to today's frenzied hop obsession.
Drinking In Style: Pale Lagers
Love lager or keen to know a little more about the world's most popular style? Before we publish the results of our pale lager blind tasting, here's Resident Beer Scholar Chris Brady with another colourful journey into beer's multifarious past.
Tall Story
A noble goal, unfettered ignorance, vitriol, unpleasantness, dismay and, ultimately, rebirth and redemption. The remarkable story of Tasmania's Two Metre Tall.
Big Beers
With winter closing in, here's an article The Crafty Pint's founder originally wrote for James Halliday's Wine Companion Magazine looking at big, hearty beers.
Drinking In Style: English Ales
They may not have the sex appeal of many US-inspired contemporary beers, but classics are classics for a reason. Here our resident scholar looks at some of the most popular English ale styles.
Drinking In Style: Porter
After a rather lengthy break, we reconvened the Crafty Pint Blind Tasting Panel at the weekend for a look at porters. As ever, before publishing the results, here we have our Resident Beer Scholar, Chris…
Drinking In Style: Christmas Beers
On the eve of our final Blind Tasting of 2013, resident Beer Scholar Chris Brady has taken another delve into the past so he can deliver another sermon of style. This time we’re looking at Christmas beers because, well, because it’s Christmas.
Drinking In Style: Golden Ales
With summer approaching, we decided to look at the lighter end of the beer spectrum for our next Blind Tasting. As such, we opted for a rather loose collection of beers that fall under the Golden / Summer…
Drinking In Style: Imperial Stouts
In conjunction with our blind tasting of imperial stouts, we return to our resident beer scholar, Chris Brady, to find out more about the historic style that is embraced my growing number of Aussie brewers each winter.
