Usenet 1994 January/usenetsourcesnewsgroupsinfomagicjanuary1994.iso/answers/alt-beer-faq

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From: [e-mail] (Dan Brown)
Newsgroups: alt.beer,alt.answers,news.answers
Subject: Alt.beer faq 12/01/93 revision
Followup-To: alt.beer
Date: 15 Dec 1993 12:03:18 -0500
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                 Alt.beer FAQ          12/01/93
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i. Intro.

This list has been compiled over the time that alt.beer has been up
available on Usenet. Please send any suggestions, corrections or
changes to Dan Brown, [e-mail].


Many Thanks to all of the people that contributed, notably:

    Tim P McNerney, [e-mail]
    Dean Cookson, [e-mail]
    John R. Mellby, [e-mail]
    Mark Enderby, [e-mail]
    Matt Dick, [e-mail]
    Roger Brown, [e-mail]
    Bruce Tindall, [e-mail]
    Tony Scott, [e-mail]
    Richard Stueven, [e-mail]

    and all of the people that have kept this newsgroup going!

If you your name is up there, and you didn't know you contributed, it
probably is because I have saved an interesting post from alt.beer.
Thanks!


This list is divided into several sections, each addressing a bit
different aspect of beer. The topic is as broad as there are tastes for
different kinds of beer.  Due to this, this FAQ list cannot possibly
cover every aspect of the subject. It is only meant as an overview
that answers a few of the multitude of "Frequently Asked Questions"

Cheers!
Dan Brown
[e-mail]

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ii. Table of contents

The sections are as follows:

i. intro.
ii. Table of contents.
I. Drinking Beer.
II. Making Beer.
III. General Beer FAQ's
and
IV. Questions about alt.beer.

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I. Drinking Beer

What kinds of beers are there?

What are Ales and Lagers, etc, types and styles.

What are ales? Ales are generally beers made with top fermenting yeasts
    They are brewed at "warm" temperatures, normally between 50 and
    70 degrees Fahrenheit.

What are lagers? Lagers are generally beers made with bottom Fermenting
    yeasts. They are brewed at cooler temperatures, generally 35 to
    50 degrees Fahrenheit.These cooler temperatures mean longer
    brewing. The process of brewing at cool temperatures is called
    "lagering." Pilsners (most American beers) are a subset of lagers.
    The style originated in Pilsen Chezkoslovakia.

What are lambics? Lambics are specifically Belgian beers, made in a
    certain part of Belgium using wild yeasts. They have a very
    distinctive taste, and are often flavored with fruit syrups.

What are the government  classifications?

What is malt liquor? Malt liquor is a classification bestowed on beers
    that are above a certain alcohol content. The laws vary from state
    to state in the US. Many beers have been given the title malt
    liquor, even though that is not their true type.

What do 3.2 and 5.0% mean? This is a "rating" of the amount of alcohol in
    the beer, by volume or by weight depending on where you are.

What is Reinheitsgebot? It is an old German "purity" law that delineates
    the ingredients that can be used to make beer. Under this law, there
    are only four; water, barley malt, hops, and yeast.

    "Rein" means clean or pure; "-heit" means "-ness"; so "Reinheit"
    means "cleanliness" or "purity".

What is do the terms used in beer commercials mean?

What is "Dry" beer? Dry beer is beer that has less malt, and more corn
    or rice sugars added to it during the brewing process. This
    produces a lighter, slightly more alcoholic, "dryer" tasting beer.
    It also probably reduces the brewing costs.

What is "Cold Filtered?" Cold filtering is beer that is physically filtered
    after it has been brewed, before it is bottled. This tends to
    eliminate all sediments (yeast and malt leftovers... things that
    can give beer character), and makes the beer clear.

What does "Heat Pasteurized" mean? It means the beer has been heated after
    fermenting, killing all of the remaining live yeasts and any other
    microganisms. It means that the beer will not continue to age in
    its bottle.

What does "bottle conditioned" mean? It is beer that has not been
    pasteurized, and still has live yeast in it. It will continue to
    age in the bottle, and the character of the beer will change over
    time. For some kinds of beer this is good, for others it means
    they will spoil after a while.

What is "draught" (draft) beer? It is beer that has been drawn or pulled
    from a cask. Beer from pressurized kegs is often referred to as
    draft beer, but this is probably a misnomer, or an "Americanism"

What is ice beer/ eisbock? Whats the difference? Ice beer is beer that has
    reportedly been fermented a nearly freezing temperatures. This is
    another ploy by Megabrewies to convince people that their beer is
    something different or better than everyone elses. Ice Beers are
    basically another style of light American lagers.

    True eisebock's are beers that have been frozen after they are
    fermented to raise the specific gravity and alcohol content of
    the beer. The water in the beer turns to ice when the beer gets
    cold enough. The ice crystals are strained or filtered out, leaving
    a beer with a higher specific gravity and generally a higher
    alcohol content.

How can you get draft beer in a can or bottle???
    Unknown.

Where can I get beer? Breweries, brewpubs, stores, restaurants,
    distributors, and by making your own.

What is a brewpub? It is a combination of brewery, pub, and maybe
    restaurant. There are LOTS of these in Europe, and are getting
    to be more in America.

Can I get beer in the mail?
    Yes...     Beer Across America's phone numbr is 1-800-854-2337,
    and Microbrew to You is, 428 E. Campbell ave Campbell, CA 95008
    408-379-0500.

How do I make my own beer?? See below.

How do I judge a beer or what is good beer?

Good beer (what is it, and how to tell). Good beer is determined by an
    individuals tastes. It has been suggested that trying a wide variety
    of beers will usually help a person figure out what beer tastes good.

What makes beer go bad? (what it is and why it is bad/skunked.) Bad beer
    is beer that tastes bad of is spoiled. Beer can and will spoil
    under certain conditions. Mishandling and old age are the two
    biggest causes of spoiled beer. Skunked beer refers to beer that
    has been lightstruck, causing the hops to take on a skunky odor.
    This is often happens with clear or green bottles, and tends to
    be prevalent in certain imported beers.

I like to drink beer, how do I get rid of a beer gut?

    (ed note... this was just too classic to edit!)

|From: [e-mail]
|Newsgroups: alt.beer
|Subject: Re: Dilemma
|Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
|Date: 20 Aug 93 12:45:36 GMT
|References: <[e-mail]>
|Organization: South Bank University
|Lines: 9
|
|In article <[e-mail]>, [e-mail] (Ya'akov Miles) writes:
|> Help.  I need advice.  I have a beer belly and I like beer.  How do I get
|> rid of the belly and not have to go without beer?
|>
|> Ya'akov Miles,
|
|Stop eating, just drink Guinness.
|
|Tony Scott


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II. Making Beer

WHERE DO I START... How do I make beer? Beer is made with
    basically, water, barley malt, hops and yeast. The water, malt
    and hops are boiled to produce a wort. This wort is cooled, put
    into a fermenting vessel, and the yeast is added (pitched). This
    vessel is sealed with an air lock, and the beer is allowed to
    ferment (sugar and water is turned to alcohol, carbon dioxide, etc)
    and age for a period of time. When the fermentation is over, a
    bit of additional malt or other sugar is added (for carbonation),
    and the beer is    bottled or kegged. It is once again allowed to age
    for a period of time, during which the additional sugars carbonate
    the beer, and the taste of the beer developes and ages. The beer
    is then consumed.

Where to find more information about making beer??

What other Internet resources are available? You can find more information
    in the newsgroups rec.crafts.brewing, and rec.food.drink. There is a
    mailing list, "The Homebrew Digest" sent out almost daily.  There
    is an archive of HBD items available via ftp at sierra.stanford.edu,
    in the /pub/homebrew directory.  There is also a mead-makers archive
    in the /pub/mead directory.

What books are available on homebrewing? The most popular is "The Complete
    Joy of Homebrewing by Charlie Papazian. This is the book that
    made the phrase "Relax,    Don't worry, Have a Homebrew" popular.

Where can I find recipes? TCJOH by Papazian, "The Cats Meow" from the
    HBD, etc etc.

How should I store my homebrew? The most common method is in bottles.
    These can be either the Grolsh kind, that have a stopper that
    is attached to the bottle, bottles that you put a crown cap on,
    or bottles that you cork. How do I get the labels of the bottles
    that I am going to use for my brew? The most effective method is
    Commonly said to be by soaking them in a solution of water and
    ammonia. Most labels will fall off after soaking overnight.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
III. Some General Beer FAQ's.. AKA, Pet Peeves that pop up on alt.beer
    all too often.

What does the "33" on the back of Rolling Rock bottles mean? There are
    several common answers. First, it is said to be the number of
    words on the back label. The story goes that the Latrobe Brewing
    Company was deciding on which slogan to use on the new bottles,
    and had counted the number of words, and written it on the piece
    of paper that went to the bottle supplier. The bottle supplier
    mistakenly included the 33 on the printed bottles, and it has been
    there since. Another explanation is that it is the year that
    prohibition was repealed. One notable comment about the mysterious
    33 from a Latrobe exec goes something like; "Who cares what it
    means as, long as people continue to ponder it while drinking a
    cold Rolling Rock."

What is this new thing that Guinness is test marketing? How does it work?
    Where can I get it?  The thing is a can that has a pouch of
    Nitrogen gas in it that is used to produce a creamy head as you
    pour the beer. Probably the closest thing to "draft beer in a can!"

What is CAMRA? CAMRA - the Campaign for Real Ale was formed 21 years ago
    in the UK to protect the rapidly disappearing cask ales from a
    tide of bland keg beers which were being foisted on the public
    by the large breweries. It was fantastically successful (the most
    successful consumer movement in Europe) and now addresses other
    issues such as licensing law and protecting the British pub.
    It has now formed alliances with similar organisations througout
    Europe to deal with impending Europe issues. There are branches
    of CAMRA in several countries (eg Canada). As to Australia, I
    think there is a local organisation - will check it out during
    the break. However, you can get further details from the UK HQ at
     34 Alma Road, St Albans, Herts AL1 3BW, UK.
    Mark Enderby, [e-mail] (CAMRA Regional Director)

What is Jagermeister? It is a German herbal liquor. It is NOT beer.
    Discussions about it should be held on rec.food.drink. The same
    holds for all other beverages... like Everclear...

How is the typical mass produced American beer like sex in a Canoe?
    WHO CARES!!!! This is a lame joke that has been beat into the
    ground! Enough already! For newcomers who haven't heard it,
    the punch line is "Because they are both f*cking close to water."
    YAWN! This joke has been attributed to Monty Python. I will
    personally email 10 bottles of heavily skunked, over-primed
    homebrew beer grenades to anyone who repeats it on the net.


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IV. Questions about alt.beer.

What is it about?
    alt.beer is a newsgroup that was created for the express purpose
    of discussing topics related to beer.

Where are the archives? The alt.beer archives are available via anonymous
    ftp to ftp.cwru.edu. Change directories to ~/pub/alt.beer.
    This is hopefully going to change in the near future.

What is in the archives? Various files... this FAQ list, the alt.beer
    charter, some information about CAMRA, etc etc.
--
The views expressed in this message are mine, not EFF's.
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Dan Brown [e-mail]  Sysadmin for The Electronic Frontier Foundation.
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