Ale vs Beer: What's the Difference?
What's the Difference?
Every ale is a beer, but not every beer is an ale. "Beer" is the whole category: a drink brewed from malted grain, flavored with hops and fermented by yeast. Ale is one of the two big families inside it, and lager is the other. What puts a beer in one family or the other is the yeast and the temperature it ferments at.
So "ale vs beer" is a bit like "oak vs tree." The useful question is ale vs lager, and that one has a real answer.
Quick facts
- Beer: any fermented drink made mostly from malted grain, usually with hops. Ales and lagers are both beer.
- Ale: fermented with top-fermenting ale yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) at warmer temperatures, roughly 60 to 72°F.
- Lager: fermented with bottom-fermenting lager yeast (Saccharomyces pastorianus) at cooler temperatures, roughly 45 to 55°F, then aged cold.
- What you taste: ales tend to show fruity, spicy yeast character; lagers tend to taste cleaner and crisper, so the malt and hops stand out.
- Hybrids: some beers sit in between, like kölsch, which uses ale yeast but is cold-conditioned like a lager.
Where the confusion comes from
Centuries ago in England, the two words did mean different drinks. "Ale" was brewed from malt without hops, and "beer" was the hopped version that arrived from the Low Countries. Once nearly everything was brewed with hops, the line blurred, and ale came to mean beer made with ale yeast.
The other source of confusion is the label. Brewers often put "ale" on the can to tell you the family, and "beer" is just the general word. Neither one tells you whether a beer is light or dark, strong or mild, bitter or sweet. That's what the style is for.
How ale yeast changes the beer
Ale yeast works fast and warm. At those temperatures it makes more esters and phenols, the compounds behind the banana and clove in a hefeweizen, the stone fruit in many English ales and the spice in Belgian beers. Ales are often ready in a couple of weeks.
Lager yeast works slowly in the cold and leaves fewer of those flavors behind. Add weeks of cold aging (lager comes from the German word for "to store") and you get the clean, crisp profile of a pilsner or a Mexican-style lager.
Color and strength have nothing to do with it. There are pale ales and black lagers, light ales and strong lagers.
Ales and lagers in the Lonerider lineup
Most of the lineup is ale, which is why the cans say "Ales for Outlaws":
- Ales: Sweet Josie (American brown ale), Shotgun Betty (hefeweizen), Hoppy Ki Yay and IPA for Outlaws (India pale ales) and Peacemaker (juicy IPA).
- Hybrid: Kolsch for Outlaws, a German-style ale that's cold-conditioned like a lager.
- Lagers: Cerveza para los Bandidos (Mexican-style lager) and Imperial Light.
With lagers in the mix, the brand line is "Beers & Spirits for Outlaws."
Keep reading
For the full family tree, start with beer styles explained. For the science of the yeast itself, read ale vs lager.
FAQ
Is ale a type of beer?
Yes. Ale is one of the two main families of beer. The other is lager.
What's the difference between ale and lager?
The yeast and the temperature. Ales use top-fermenting yeast at warmer temperatures and tend to be fruitier. Lagers use bottom-fermenting yeast in the cold and tend to taste cleaner.
Is ale stronger than beer?
No. Strength depends on the style and the recipe, not on whether it's an ale. There are light ales and strong lagers.
Is IPA an ale or a lager?
IPA stands for India pale ale, so it's an ale.
Is Guinness an ale?
Yes. Stout is a dark style of ale.