Barley is used as a fermentable sugar in beer – the equivalent of grapes in wine.

The malting process heats and roasts the barley and this produces biscuity, caramel, coffee, chocolate and roast notes. Similar processes are used in making chocolate and coffee, as well as in cooking. Adjuncts such as rice, sugar, maize and sorghum can be used instead of malt. The best example of this is Peroni Nastro Azzurro which uses one quarter Nostrano Dell'isola Italian maize, creating a unique blend of three quarters barley and one quarter maize which gives the beer its unique taste.
 

The main ingredient in beer is water. In fact, water makes up an incredible 95% of the finished product.

Water in certain parts of the world is better suited to making specific types of beer. Hard water, for example is best for making ales while soft water lends itself perfectly to lighter, lager style beers. Our Czech beer, Kozel, uses 'soft' water drawn from forest spring wells surrounding the Velke Popovice brewery which helps to make Kozel an easy to drink, yet flavoursome lager.
 

Hops are responsible for the bitterness, aroma, foam and shelf life of beer. Hop aroma varies depending on the variety and how they are used by the brewer.Hop aromas can be described as anything from floral and citrus to spicy and woody.

Pilsner Urquell uses one of the most famous, the Saaz hop from the Zatec region of the Czech Republic - also known as Noble Hops. Compared to most Czech lagers, Pilsner Urquell has double the amount of hops, giving it a fine hoppy aroma and unique, pleasing bitterness.
 

Yeast provides flavour and taste, and also delivers the beer's fizz. Some yeasts provide floral and fruity tastes such as banana and apple, while others deliver spicy notes, for example, those used in wheat beers. Each strain delivers its own unique taste, which is why brewers are so protective of their own yeasts.

Our Belgian beer, St. Stefanus, still uses the original Jermanus yeast strain from the Saint Stefanus Monastery, which gives the beer its distinctive flavour and lively character.
 

'Milling', 'mashing', 'lautering' and 'whirlpooling' are terms used to describe some of the stages in the brewing process. Each step adds to the distinctive flavour of each of our beers.

 

...has approximately the same number of calories as a glass of
fruit juice but three times less sugar.
 

... began perfecting their craft many thousands of years ago and while there is some debate as to who nailed the process first - some say it was the ancient Egyptians while others argue it was the Babylonians - we know who took it more seriously, as the latter were known to drown any brewer of a bad batch in their own beer!
 

There are a number of factors that affect the shelf life of beer, including how and where it is stored. Avoiding direct sunlight is a must and ideally, it should be kept upright in a cool, dark place.

In some instances, beers are specially brewed to mature the longer they remain on shelves. St. Stefanus, for example, has yeast added to it just before bottling and is then left unpasteurised and cellared for at least 3 months to allow it to develop deep and complex aromas. It continues to mature in the bottle until it's opened, allowing consumers to choose how they want their beer to taste.
 

Before Louis Pasteur's revolutionary discovery of yeast, brewers either used sediment from the previous brew or simply left the new batch open to the air to use airborne spores of yeast to start the process!

Fortunately, it's much more of an exact science these days, which means we can get each batch of beer tasting just how it should!
 

There are four main types of beer – Lagers, Ales, Dark Beers and Wheat Beer.

The differences between them are down to a variety of factors including the ingredients, brewing process and yeast - all of which have a big impact on the appearance and taste of the beer. For example, lagers use a bottom fermenting yeast, whereas the other three types of beer use ale yeasts which are ‘top fermenting’.