<p><a href="http://beeradvocate.com/beer/101/taste/">Beer Advocate's Guide</a> is a decent one.  The abridged version is:</p>

<ol>
<li>Look at the beer.  How's the color and head?</li>
<li>Swirl it a little bit to pull out the aroma</li>
<li>Smell it.  Swirl again if need be.  I recommend taking a 20 second break after smelling, then smelling again, since if you smell too long, your nose gets used to it and it becomes harder to pick up the notes.</li>
<li>Sip it.  Don't swallow immediately, but keep it on your tongue for a moment.  Breath out with it still in your mouth and pay attention to the resulting smell (unless you just ate a bunch of garlic before the beer).</li>
<li>Taste again as the beer warms up a bit.</li>
</ol>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-02-04T14:13:08.033Z
Re: number 3, smelling the back of one's hand is a common method of "cleansing" the olfactory palette to avoid fatigue. It works surprisingly well, IMO!
metasequoia
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-01-26T22:15:25.757Z
2014-01-27T03:52:04.613Z
2014-01-27T03:52:04.613Z
Fishtoaster
<p>According to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oz_Clarke" rel="nofollow">Oz Clarke</a>, you should burp the beer (to judge the hops).</p>

<p>See this clip from Oz &amp; James Drink to Britain (episode 1, starting at about 2:28):<br>
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1FH076U4Lk&amp;t=2m28s" rel="nofollow">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1FH076U4Lk&amp;t=2m28s</a></p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-01-27T13:50:54.550Z
Totally true. Though this may be frowned upon in many situations.
darwhen
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-01-27T14:56:30.820Z
Totally agree - never really tried it myself, but the question doesn't really set a context. That said, Fishtoaster's answer is excellent.
JDB
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-01-26T21:33:08.903Z
2014-01-27T16:31:00.187Z
2014-01-27T16:31:00.187Z
JDB
<p>If I want to fully appreciate what a beer is offering, how do I properly taste the beer to reveal all the nuances in the aroma, flavor and aftertaste?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-01-28T16:09:17.127Z
I disagree with the close votes that the question is broad - there are only a few generally accepted ways of sampling a beer.
mdma
<taste><cicerone>
How do you properly taste a beer?
mdma
# How do you properly taste a beer?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2014-01-26)

If I want to fully appreciate what a beer is offering, how do I properly taste the beer to reveal all the nuances in the aroma, flavor and aftertaste?

**Tags:** taste, cicerone

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: I disagree with the close votes that the question is broad - there are only a few generally accepted ways of sampling a beer.  

---

## 2 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2014-01-26. Score: 14

[Beer Advocate's Guide](http://beeradvocate.com/beer/101/taste/) is a decent one. The abridged version is:

1. Look at the beer. How's the color and head?
2. Swirl it a little bit to pull out the aroma
3. Smell it. Swirl again if need be. I recommend taking a 20 second break after smelling, then smelling again, since if you smell too long, your nose gets used to it and it becomes harder to pick up the notes.
4. Sip it. Don't swallow immediately, but keep it on your tongue for a moment. Breath out with it still in your mouth and pay attention to the resulting smell (unless you just ate a bunch of garlic before the beer).
5. Taste again as the beer warms up a bit.

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: Re: number 3, smelling the back of one's hand is a common method of "cleansing" the olfactory palette to avoid fatigue. It works surprisingly well, IMO!  

---

### Answer by username_3 on 2014-01-26. Score: 3

According to [Oz Clarke](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oz_Clarke), you should burp the beer (to judge the hops).

See this clip from Oz & James Drink to Britain (episode 1, starting at about 2:28):  
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1FH076U4Lk&t=2m28s>

> **Comments:**
> **username_4**: Totally true. Though this may be frowned upon in many situations.  
> **username_3**: Totally agree - never really tried it myself, but the question doesn't really set a context. That said, username_1's answer is excellent.  

---

