It’s common knowledge that few things taste better than a crisp, ice-cold beer on a hot day. But just how cold should that beer be? It all depends on style and quality, which means that if you are serving all your different beers at the same temperature, you might not be giving your customers the full drinking experience.

While beer chilling is not as complex as wine chilling, there are a few rules you can follow to get the very best flavor from your beers, whether they are poured from a draught handle or sipped out of a can. Here is a rundown of some of those rules, from your team for restaurant equipment repair Eugene, OR:

• Quality: If all you serve is basic, inexpensive domestic beer, then you may as well keep serving it ice cold, meaning colder than 44 degrees Fahrenheit. Keep in mind that the colder a beer gets, the less carbonation is emitted, meaning that there is less flavor involved. For beers that don’t have flavor as a main selling point, that’s fine—but for everything else, follow the next few tips.
• Lagers: These days, premium lagers are a whole lot more special and flavorful than classic “lawnmower” beer, and they should be treated as such. That means you ought to serve lagers at somewhere between 44 and 48 degrees Fahrenheit, if possible—cold enough to be refreshing, but not so cold that you cannot pick up on any subtle flavor.
• Ales: Ales go through a different brewing process than lagers, and will often have a bit more flavor than their lager counterparts. To ensure your customers can enjoy their ales to the fullest, try serving them somewhere between 44 and 52 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Stouts: Stouts are a bit of an anomaly in the beer world, as they are more about being rich and dark, rather than crisp and refreshing. Authentic British stouts tend to be best when a bit warmer than a typical ale or lager, but you probably do not want to go much warmer than 55 degrees Fahrenheit, which is traditional British cellar temperature.
• High gravity beers: High gravity beers are those big, bold, high-alcohol content beers that are often acquired tastes—think barrel aged stouts, barley wines and strong ales, to name a few. Because these beers tend to resemble hard alcohol a bit more than other beers, they are often served not cold, perhaps even close to room temperature. When serving a high gravity beer, act as if you are serving someone a snifter of brandy.
• Experiment: While these are good general guidelines, each beer is different, which means that you should feel free to experiment with what tastes good to you. The more familiar you can become with the beers you serve, the more confident in your selection your customers will become.

For more advice about beer chilling, please get in touch with American Refrigeration Inc, your trusted source for restaurant equipment repair in Eugene, OR, including coolers and freezers.