I CERTIFY THAT I AM 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER

BEER CLUB

BLIND TASTING

The ambassador of the Lielvārdes beer brand

INGEMĀRS DZENIS

I am a beer enthusiast, and I believe that the beer world is full of nuances. All that is left is to give in.

Chef and taste connoisseur

DZINTARS KRISTOVSKIS

Let’s learn to distinguish grains from husk – beer is a very versatile drink.

Chef and taste connoisseur

Ēriks Dreibants

Everyday, more and more attention is paid to the diversity of beer tastes; it is more
than just a beer that we enjoy while watching sports, beer is an integral part even
when eating gourmet meals.

Chef and taste connoisseur

ŽANIS RAIVO BEHMANIS

Beer culture is like a knowledge store, it is time to open it.

BEER CLUB

TASTING TRICKS

Lielvārde beer offers to participate in a blind tasting of food and beer. We have some suggestions on how to “learn” to recognize the flavors of beer and food.

CHOOSE YOUR TECHNIQUE

To make it easier to achieve the result, it is good to think of your beer tasting technique. You can learn to recognize only one taste in one go or choose between two or more flavors all the time. For comparison, the so-called “cuppings” are used in coffee tastings. Coffee is poured in three cups, two of them have identical tastes and one is slightly different.

SMELL IT AND TASTE IT

There is no ready-made formula for unmistakably learning to remember the taste of a particular beer. Generally, one should try to combine visual information with smell and taste. During the tasting of Lielvārde Beer Culture Club, your eyes will be blindfolded. That’s why, in my opinion, when learning the taste, it would be wise to follow the same tasting sequence – in the beginning, you smell the drink and then you taste it.

POUR THE GLASS HALF FULL

It is recommended to pour the glass half-full because it is important to taste the foam hat. It should also be remembered that beer, unlike wine in a glass, does not need to be shaken.

DON’T OVERWHELM YOUR TASTE BUDS

The principle of remembering the taste is simple – the more you taste, the sooner you will learn, but you must take into account that tasting is necessary with moderation and pauses. Too much beer will dull your taste buds. You can drink carbonated water to neutralize the sensations between beer tastings.

BEER MUST BE SWALLOWED

Unlike wine tasting, in which the drink after swishing around is spat out, beer must be swallowed. The tongue receptors for bitterness are located at the very back of the tongue, so simply swishing the drink in the mouth will not be able to taste all the nuances of bitterness.

ALWAYS TWO SIPS

It is recommended to taste the beer in two sips. The first sip washes away the excess of previous tastes in the mouth, and the second sip is then the right one to focus on.

ENJOY THE TRUE TASTE OF FOOD

There is a saying that food is eaten with the eyes. To a large extent, our eyes give us some idea of what tastes we might expect. Being blindfolded, this system becomes confused. When tasting food close your eyes, you have to rely only on taste receptors. This experience can be amazing because the moment you wait for some salt, you can be given something sweet. When you expect something sour, you can get something bitter, and so on. In a blind tasting, it is important to focus on the taste and texture of the particular mouthful. To better guess, you have to accumulate flavors. This cannot be done if everything is eaten with various intense sauces and spices.