Ale: What is it? - By: Corrie Duana

Ale is basically a kind of beer. It is brewed form barley malts, with most Ales flavored with Hops. They are very common in Germany, Britain, Ireland, Belgium, as well as Scotland. Most ales have that bitter, herbal flavor that neutralize the malt sweetness which defines them as a beverage.

Ale has a long standing history, dating back to the 15th century. The old world saw Ale as a staple food along with the ever popular varieties of bread that thrived during those times. The name comes from the Old English word, ealu, which took its origins from the Proto-Indo-European word alut, referring to certain connotations to sorcery, possession, intoxication and magic.

Today, the magic of the beverage comes in various types of ale, which the world just loves. Here are some of the more popular types of ale:

Dark Ale

Dark ales are distinguishable by their dark color. This type of Ale uses dark-roasted barley malts as its main brewing ingredient, thus its dark hue. Mild Ale and Stout ales are good examples so of dark ale. Stout ales are generally black in color, truly living up to their dark ale class of ales.

Pale Ale

Using pale shaded barley malts, pale ales bring about the selfsame hue of the barley malts used in brewing them. The Hops levels used in making them differ from one pale ale type to another, giving particular pale ale types a distinctive flavor. Amber Ale and Bitter Ale are two solid examples of Pale ale, with Bitter Ale being the most common in English pubs.

Brown Ale

Brown ales are somewhat in-betweens for Dark Ales and Pale Ales. They are brewed with a darker than amber colored malt, thus their brownish appearance. They are generally flavorful ale types, which are usually lightly mixed with hops. The Newcastle Brown Ale would be a good example of brown ales.

Cream Ale
Often called “creamers”, cream ales are generally brewed to be refreshingly light, and are often related to American lagers. Genesee Cream Ale and Little Kings Cream Ale are good examples of cream ale. With cream ale, malt flavor and hops is usually subdued, but not as a given standard.

German Ales

This type of ale is fermented with lower temperatures, and often have more body than Belgian or British ales. Germans ales are usually the results of the traditional German decoction mash, which gives German ales more oligosaccharides that results to more body to the beer.

So there you have it, the most popular of ale types in the world.

Bottoms up!

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