Science of ales

Does anyone know a site that is a good read to get the full understanding of ale types and what makes them

www.howtobrew.com

www.bjcp.org

If you're just looking for straight up definitions the BJCP site should work, as well as the Wiki here. If you want a more in depth history of the individual styles including some of the underlying science, the Classic Beer Styles series from Brewers Publications is where you'll want to look, but those are physical books not sites.

UnDeadPresident said:

If you're just looking for straight up definitions the BJCP site should work, as well as the Wiki here. If you want a more in depth history of the individual styles including some of the underlying science, the Classic Beer Styles series from Brewers Publications is where you'll want to look, but those are physical books not sites.

Click to expand...

Thanks,
I want to understand what is what. I have a few beers that I love, for ex flying dog RAGING ***** says Belgian style India pale ale. Cy hops says almost APA? Just want to know

dirtybasementbrew said:

I have a few beers that I love, for ex flying dog RAGING ***** says Belgian style India pale ale.

Click to expand...

I didn't know my ex had gotten into brewing...

Flying Dog Raging ***** is a Belgian (i.e., belgian yeast), that's hopped like an IPA. Here's what they state on the Flying Dog Web site:

ABV: 8.3%
IBU's: 60
Plato: 18
Specialty Malts: 60L Crystal
Hops: Warrior, Columbus, Amarillo
Process: El Diablo yeast used to give Raging ***** a trademark Belgian-style taste, dry hopped with Amarillos

And here's an extract clone with good reviews:

http://hopville.com/recipe/794466

Are you looking to learn how to clone a beer, or do you want to understand the science behind the beer?

For the former Ray Daniels "Designing Great Beers" is good. For the latter George Fix "Principles of Brewing Science" is good.

dirtybasementbrew said:

Thanks,
I want to understand what is what. I have a few beers that I love, for ex flying dog RAGING ***** says Belgian style India pale ale. Cy hops says almost APA? Just want to know

Click to expand...

Just understand that lots of commercial beers will not fit within any of the actual defined styles. You can figure some things out by looking at the information on their websites and by looking at clones. The other way to figure things out is to taste them and try to figure out what you are tasting to isolate what parts of different styles are in the beers you like.