How to... taste beer
There are some pieces of advice that need a lot of hammering home to persuade people that a little chore is worth doing. Then there are some that probably don't.
The advice that you should taste your beer every morning before opening undoubtedly falls into the second camp. This is the call to action from Greene King in this feature, the first of a series of 'How To' guides that will run in The Publican as part of Beer Matters, the initiative aiming to improve the on-trade's knowledge of, and profits from, beer.
You should taste your beer before opening to ensure it is up to scratch, Greene King says. This quality control check will avoid customers being put off by a dodgy pint and make it more likely that they will come back to your pub. It is especially important with cask beer - as a live product, it continues to evolve and change in nature in its container.
Greene King head brewer John Bexon says there are several simple steps you should use to properly taste beer and a number of signs you should be looking out for to alert you to a problem. "All too often, licensees are not familiar with the beer they are selling," he explains.
"They need to be, because quality control is so important."
The film strip opposite shows Bexon demonstrating the process, which begins with taking a clean glass and filling it half-full. Then you should look at the beer. Is it clear, as it should be, or cloudy, which would indicate a potential problem?
Next, you should swirl the beer in the glass, and then take a good sniff to check the aroma. The gap left in the glass allows the aromas of the beer to circulate, something that is a big determining factor in taste.
Finally comes the drinking. Take a sip of the beer at first, and then take a bigger slurp over the entire tongue to really assess the taste. Make yourself aware of which parts of the tongue receive different elements of flavour by checking the diagram (right). For most beers, the really important part is found at the back of the tongue, where the bitterness receptors are.
This does not necessarily mean you have to swallow the beer. Even once it reaches this point of the mouth, you can train yourself to spit it out as you would wine in a wine tasting, Bexon says.
If your beer tastes sour or vinegary, this means it is almost certainly off, something that is generally caused by the beer having been on too long. Greene King recommends selling a full cask of beer within three days and not keeping it for any longer than that. If it tastes stale, that indicates it is going off.
If your tasting detects either of these problems (and it is much better that you do so, rather than having your customers do it for you!), stop selling it immediately, then determine the cause of the issue.
Greene King advises that in most cases, it will be either because the beer has been on too long or because of poor cellar hygiene, which can be remedied by better standards of cleaning.
If you don't believe either of these reasons accounts for the problem, then seek advice by looking on www.cellardoctor.co.uk or speaking to your cellar services contact.
With practice, a licensee will be able to learn the individual taste characteristics for each beer they sell and make sure it tastes as its should, or is what brewers call "true to type". For example, with Abbot Ale, you should be picking up masses of fruit character and maltiness. With Greene King IPA, there should be a very hoppy taste.
Bexon advises that you should be very familiar with the taste of your main beers, in order to be able to detect if they are not quite right. This is the reason why only licensees who truly know their stuff should be rotating large numbers of cask beers on a regular basis, or running ambitious beer festivals.
Ask the brewer for tasting notes. By using brand's tasting notes - or the industry-wide tasting notes scheme Cyclops - you can brief yourself on what the beer should taste like.
Of course, being au fait with beer and what it should taste like will help you with talking confidently and making recommendations about your products to customers. If you're feeling really confident, you could even create a special event to draw in trade by running tutored tastings for groups of customers.
Greene King says
John Bexon, Greene King's head brewer, says: "Everyone in Greene King is obsessed with beer quality. This ranges from selecting only the very best-quality ingredients for brewing to ensuring that no beer leaves the brewery gates without our independent tasting panel first approving it.
"Beer tasting is one of the most important jobs in the brewery - and it should be one of the most important jobs in the pub too!
"As cask beer is a live product that continues to mature in the pub cellar, you are very much part of the brewing process. You should know all the principles of looking after cask beer, but just as importantly you should be able to taste it and tell whether it is in good condition. You should also teach your staff to be taste experts so they can identify any problems before the beer goes on sale, but also to talk up cask beer and use their knowledge to sell more.
"If beer matters to your business, so should daily beer tasting!"
CASE STUDY: The Old Tea Warehouse
Greene King managed pub the Old Tea Warehouse is found in the heart of London's financial district and labels itself a "traditional pub for the modern world". It serves a decent selection of cask and keg draught beers.
Manager Richard Woodger is one licensee who checks the taste of his beer before he opens up every day. He says: "There are three points the customer will consider when enjoying a beer - appearance, temperature and taste.
"It is important to me to taste a sample of the beers every morning, as imperfect taste is the least obvious at the point of dispense and we pride ourselves on delivering the perfect pint every time."
