What is your favorite type of beer to enjoy? Lagers are a beloved go-to beer for easy, smooth drinking, especially when the sun is shining and the air is warm and breezy. What is a lager? A lager is a beer that has been brewed at a low temperature using bottom-fermenting yeast. The yeast used to ferment lagers gather at the bottom of the fermentation tank, as opposed to ales, where the yeast ferments on the top. Lager yeasts can tolerate cooler temperatures than ale yeasts; lower temperatures help reduce the number of by-products during fermentation, creating a cleaner, crisper beer. Without further ado, let’s pour out some lager facts to whet your beer trivia palate.
5 Malty Lager Facts
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- Lagers are a relatively recent development in the beer world – or is it? (source) While ales have been around for thousands of years, lagers first appeared in Bavaria in the 1400s, where monks would store their beer in frigid mountain caves over the summer. However, a recent discovery of traces of the yeast used to make lagers was discovered in 1,000-year-old ceramic vessels in South America.
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- Stella Artois has the oldest company logo still being used today. (source) It has been in use since 1366! Stella Artois is a pilsner beer, which is a type of pale lager.
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- The term ‘lager’ refers to a storeroom or warehouse in German. (source) This may be due to the long resting period involved in crafting lagers. They undergo an aging process in cold temperatures for a few months, which allows a soft and light flavor to emerge.
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- Lagers are the most popular beer style in the world. (source) Lagers Budweiser, Coors Light, Corona, and Michelob Ultra account for roughly 87% of America’s beer marketplace.
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- Lagers are not always “light” – there are many types of lagers. (source) There are American pale lagers, American dark lagers, Vienna lagers, bock beers, doppelbocks, eisbocks, pilsners, and more. Grains are often used to add richness and depth to lagers.
Featured image photo credit: Stephen Bowler, 2016. Originally found on Pxhere.com. Image was resized and cropped. Creative Commons 2.0.
