Craft Beer Trivia

Craft beer turned a commodity drink into a hobby — thousands of small breweries chasing new hop varieties, barrel-aged experiments, and styles that barely existed a generation ago.

This quiz covers the ingredients, terminology, and history behind the pint in your hand.

What's Actually in the Glass

Beer comes down to four core ingredients: water, malted grain, hops, and yeast. Yeast is the real workhorse, fermenting sugars into alcohol and carbon dioxide, while hops contribute the bitterness and aroma that define so many modern styles.

Styles Worth Knowing

Ales use top-fermenting yeast at warmer temperatures, distinguishing them from lagers, and one ale style in particular, the IPA (India Pale Ale), has become practically synonymous with American craft brewing. Pilsners trace back to the Czech city of Pilsen, which lent the style its name.

Brewery Culture

A mash tun is where crushed grains steep in hot water early in the brewing process, and a growler is the large jug many taprooms use to send draft beer home with customers. Through it all, a 'craft brewery' generally means something small and independent, more interested in traditional or inventive brewing methods than mass output.