Rating a beer’s appearance

The first step in forming an overall opinion of a beer is to judge its appearance in terms of:

• head retention
• colour
• clarity

The head of a well-crafted beer should not dissipate overly quickly, and should leave a coating of “Belgian lace” on the glass as it dissipates.

In order to effectively judge the colour and clarity of a beer, hold the beer up to a white background in a well-lit environment. Look through it to gain an impression of its clarity, then at the top and sides of the glass to rate its colour. Keep in mind that a beer’s colour and clarity must be assessed in the context of its style. For example, lagers and filtered styles should be clear and bright, whereas bottle-conditioned ales or wheat beers will have a somewhat cloudier appearance.

Unusual appearance

Check also for any unusual features of the appearance - does the beer have notably large bubbles? Is there sediment present, and if so, how fast does it settle?