Beer gets a bad rap. Besides being the cause of super-drunk college students on Spring Break and the key ingredient behind the phrase “Well, I won’t be doing that ever again,” beer is actually not as bad as you may have been led to believe. We all have some misconceptions about beer that either came from our parents, our own experience or maybe from something we heard on the TV. But the truth is, honestly, beer is awesome.
It’s time to debunk these seven beer myths:
1. Beer gives you a beer belly, and other drinks don’t
GIF courtesy of giphy.com
Anything in excess is bad for your health, however beer is not as bad as you think it is. Beer is relatively low in sugar and there are plenty of lighter beers when it comes to calories. Who knew cocktails would turn out to be one of the most sugary alcoholic drinks?
2. Drinking beer from the bottle is the only way to enjoy it
GIF courtesy of giphy.com
Drinking beer from a bottle is kind of like drinking wine from a bottle. It doesn’t allow you to actually smell or see the beverage, and how much we like or dislike a beverage also depends on our other senses like olfactory or sight. Our brain decides if it likes the beverage or not depending on all three sense including taste. However, by drinking beer from the bottle, our brain ends up depending only on the taste of the beverage, which confuses our judgement.
3. Beer should be served cold
GIF courtesy of giphy.com
If the beverage is served ice-cold, your taste buds become numb and can’t function properly. On the contrary, beer should be served at 44° F in order to taste it properly. Some beers, like stouts, are better slightly warmer than that, but as a rule of thumb, it’s best to avoid ice-cold beer at all costs.
4. Beer is simpler than wine
GIF courtesy of giphy.com
Beer is not simpler than wine. People believe that because beer only contains four ingredients (malt, yeast, water and hops) are used to make beer, it’s a simple beverage. In reality, brewers tweak those 4 ingredients, in terms of temperature, proportion, ingredient source, and many other factors, to produce thousands of different flavor profiles and notes. These variations change the intensity and taste of the beer. Wine and beer are both a result of careful experimentation.
5. All dark beers are heavy
GIF courtesy of giphy.com
If you don’t drink dark beer just because you think it’s heavy, then you’ve been misguided. The color of the beer is based on the roast level of the malt used to make them. This is what gives the dark beer its color. Intensity usually has nothing to do with the color.
6. Canned beer is cheap beer
GIF courtesy of giphy.com
In the old days, canned beer would always taste like aluminum. This made all canned beer taste pretty much the same. However, today cans are lined with a layer of water so that the beer doesn’t actually touch the aluminum. This gives the beer its actual taste, so canned beers shouldn’t be considered cheap.
7. Frosted mugs are classy and taste better
GIF courtesy of giphy.com
Beer shouldn’t be served in frosted mugs because it doesn’t have to be cold. Do you serve wine in a frosted glass? No, right? Also when it’s ice-cold, you can’t actually taste the beer because the cold temperature numbs your taste buds.