How to taste beer like a pro: Discover the nuances of a Proper Beer

Do you know how to spot a great beer, or do you just drink it? Admit it, many times we open a bottle and finish it without paying attention to what is actually in our glass.

In the world of craft beer, taking the step from being a mere consumer to a true taster completely changes the experience. Many of you ask us every day how we manage to identify all those nuances, aromas, and flavours that make a Proper Beer unique.

And here goes a spoiler: the secret isn't being born with a special "gift" or a privileged palate. The only secret is having a good guide and practising.

What do you need for the perfect beer tasting?

To help you train your senses, we have decided to share one of our most valuable tools. We have digitised the official Tasting Sheet that our team of master brewers uses every day at the SanFrutos brewery.

With this template, you will stop drinking on autopilot and learn to dissect each beer step by step, paying attention to the three fundamental phases of any tasting:

• 1. The Visual Phase (Sight): The tasting begins before the first sip. When pouring the beer into the right glass, you should look at the colour (from straw blondes to the most opaque blacks), the haziness, and the head (its retention and texture give us vital clues about the quality).
• 2. The Olfactory Phase (Smell): The aroma is responsible for much of the flavour. When bringing your nose to the glass, you will look for hop profiles (citrus, resinous, or fruity notes), the malt (aromas of bread, caramel, or coffee), and the yeast.
• 3. The Gustatory Phase (Taste): The moment of truth arrives. Your mouth will evaluate the body (light and watery or dense and silky), the attack, the balance between the sweetness of the malt and the bitterness of the hops, and the aftertaste (that flavour that lingers on the palate).

Get our Official Tasting Sheet (For Free)

Do you want to start tasting beers like we do at the SanFrutos brewery and keep a record of your favourites? Getting your hands on our digital guide is incredibly simple, but we are distributing it exclusively through our Instagram community.

Follow these steps to download it:

1. Go to our Instagram account by clicking here or watch the video at the end.
2. Look for our latest post about beer tasting.
3. Comment the word CATA on that post.
4. Check your direct messages (DMs). Our assistant will send you the download link instantly!

Don't just settle for drinking; start enjoying, understanding, and savouring every sip. See you in the Instagram comments!