The Profile

A red ale is a form of pale ale that is categorised by its colour. There’s still debate around the fact of whether or not a red ale is really its own class of ale or whether or not it falls under the umbrella of English bitter. A red ale is categorised by a slight sweetness and tea-like flavours. It has a light hop and toasted malt flavours, making it a well-balanced beer. It is made with a high proportion of pale malts and often contains caramel colouring to give it its signature red hue. It is often that red ales will have a dry finish. These beers are very easy drinking, as our very own Tim Martin will tell you from personal experience!

The Profile

Pilsner is a pale lager and a famous style of beer that has been replicated the world over, although often not to great effect. A true pilsner, from the Czech Republic or Germany, has a medium to full body, is a light golden yellow in colour, has high carbonation and floral hops which give the beer a crisp yet bitter finish. It is most important for a pilsner to be refreshing yet delicate. It should also have a dense fluffy head.

One of the most important aspects of a true pilsner is the soft water used to make it. This is one of the reasons why pilsner still has such a strong link with its hometown of Pilsen; because it’s very hard to recreate the quality of the water found there.