When it comes to culture, Europe does not fail. And you’ve probably heard it before: European beer is superior, European beer is more potent, and European beer is unique.
When it comes to establishing the perfect atmosphere for a gathering, the type of beer you provide to your guests is crucial. When picked appropriately, it can enhance their overall experience.
Here are the best European beers that can help you host a gathering like a pro!
Weissbier
Weissbier is a top-fermented Bavarian wheat brew known for its mousse-like foam and cloudy appearance, due to a considerable proportion of wheat and a minor amount of barley malt in its preparation.
German weissbier must include at least 50% malted wheat, but most brewers use more than that. Clove, banana, smoke, and even bubble gum scents come through in these beers, brewed with yeast strains that offer clove, banana, smoke, and even bubble gum scents. Weissbiers are malty and moderately bitter beers that are historically fermented in bottles. However, this is becoming less common.
Brown Ale
Brown ale is a beer that is dark amber or brown. In the late 17th century, London brewers coined the phrase to characterize their products, such as mild ale, at the same period that European explorers set sail for the oceans in search of knowledge, trade, and power. Brown ale nearly died out, and it was only slowly reintroduced in the 1920s.
Newcastle Brown was the first brown ale prototype. However, it did not rely on the original versions. It did, however, lay the groundwork for the present variety. The style now includes both the original British form and slightly different American brown ales.
Dunkel
Dunkel is a dark lager from Germany, most commonly associated with Bavaria and Munich. This dark beer, which can range from copper to dark brown, is mainly made with Munich malt, giving it a caramel-like and toasted flavor.
Smooth, medium-bodied, easy-drinking, delicately sweet, and not too hefty beers often fall into this category. If you’re still planning on taking the train home after a party, this is the drink for you.
Dubbel
Dubbel is a full-bodied, well-balanced Trappist beer that originated in Belgium and is frequently linked with Henrik Verlinden, who invented the contemporary form in 1926 at the Westmalle brewery. Dubbel Bruin was the name given to this variant, and numerous Belgian breweries quickly replicated it.
Unlike other brown beers, candi sugar, a thick and black caramelized syrup added to the wort, gives Belgian Dubbel its flavor. These beers usually have complex aromas and flavors reminiscent of caramel, raisins, malt, and dark fruit, and they range in color from amber to copper.
Helles
Helles is a German-style lager that initially debuted in 1894 in Munich. It was a light Czech pilsner with a Bavarian twist. Although powerful and dark lagers were popular in Bavaria, the success of crisp and golden pilsner beers inspired Bavarian brewers to begin developing a similar style.
Traditional Helles is maltier and has a firmer body than pilsners and other lager varieties, but it’s still soft and medium-bodied. With slight hop bitterness and subtle malt sweetness, it’s clean, easy-drinking, refined, fresh, and dry.
Stouts
Stouts are dark beers that have been top-fermented and have a characteristic roasted flavor. Their origins can be traced back to the British porter style, which originated in London in the 18th century. The quest to make a fuller, stronger porter led to the development of stout. However, the difference is no longer made.
Aromas of roasted barley and roasted malt, suggestive of coffee, chocolate, or cocoa, are characteristics of stouts. Traditional dry stouts are dark brown to black, with a medium-light to medium-full body, smooth, creamy, and silky texture. They usually have a slight hop flavor and a lengthy, dry finish.
India Pale
India Pale ale belongs to the most intriguing beer varieties whose origins are still debated. Still, it is thought to have originated to transport pale ale brews to faraway British colonies, specifically India, where the climate was too hot to produce beer.
IPA is thought to have been formed by increasing the alcohol content and adding extra hops to preserve the beer on longer journeys better. Although the name India pale ale was first used in the 1830s, the style is thought to have existed considerably earlier.
Kronenbourg 1664
The French beer brand delivers a distinct flavor profile and a smooth drinking experience to beer enthusiasts of all types.
The aromatic Strisselspalt hop dubbed the “caviar of hops,” is used in Kronenbourg 1664, which hails from the high-altitude Alsace province. It has a bittersweet flavor with prominent citrus overtones reminiscent of grapefruit and acidic lime layered atop a pale malt flavor. Kronenbourg 1664 has a 5.9% ABV, which is relatively high for a mainstream lager beer.
Pilsner
Pilsner is a beer style that developed in the Czech city of Pilsen (Plze). It was originally made in 1842, making it one of the newest beer styles to hit the market. Pilsner Urquell was born when people of Pilsen, dissatisfied with the quality of their beer, decided to create Bürger Brauerei (Citizens’ Brewery), which later became Pilsner Urquell.
They ultimately called in Josef Groll, a Bavarian brewer who made the first pilsner brew. Although the original plan was to make a Bavarian-style lager, the addition of Czech components affected the development of a new variety. The first pilsner was created with light malted barley from Moravia and Saaz hops, and it was one of the earliest clear, light-colored beers.
Lager
Lager is one of the two primary beer categories, along with ale, and it is the most famous beer style in the world in terms of production. The fundamental difference between lagers and ales is the type of yeast used. Lagers are made with Saccharomyces pastorianus, or bottom-fermenting yeasts, which ferment more slowly and at lower temperatures than ale yeasts.
Lagers exist in various styles, each color, alcohol concentration, and flavor profile, but they tend to be cleaner and crisper than ales.