[Sca-cooks] small beer

[Terry Decker]

You also get the question, was it bottom or top fermented?  Ale was
traditionally top fermented.  Beer (as in the hopped lagerbier produced by
the Germans) is bottom fermented.

It probably doesn't matter, as the encompassing term is beer.  Small beer
could easily have begun as an ale and gone on to being a lager as well.

Bear


>Was this small beer, really "beer" or was it actually an "ale"? The
>
>former having hops added. Since I believe the hops and other herbs
>were added for lengthen the time the beer would last, as well as
>perhaps for flavor, I'm not sure this would have been added for small
>beer as that was drunk rather fresh. I believe the main reason the
>alcohol level was low was the short brewing time.
>
>Stefan