Celebrate National Cask Ale Week by learning how to taste beer like a brewer

National Cask Ale Week is a celebration of Britain’s real ale tradition and a chance to appreciate the care and craft that goes into every pint. We’re incredibly passionate about cask ale at Greene King and have been brewing it for centuries, as well as supporting the craft ale industry through our rotating selection of guest beers. 

We think National Cask Ale Week is the perfect time to taste something new and really learn how to taste your beer. What a journey you could go on. Here we’ll walk you through how to taste beer like a pro, but without any confusing jargon. Cask ale, let’s go. 

Why is cask ale worth celebrating? 

If you ask us, cask ale is always worth celebrating. So, what makes cask ale so special? 

The first thing to know is that it’s a true craft beer. The term “craft beer” is thrown around easily these days, but when it comes to cask ale, it’s rightly used. 

Cask ale is essentially an unfiltered, unpasteurised ‘live’ product. After the brewing process, it’s stored in a cask container where it gently matures by secondary fermentation. It’s then served directly from this cask container. 

As the ale ferments in the cask, it needs to be conditioned and managed correctly. During this process, the yeast in the cask settles to the bottom, and leaves a clear, bright and full-flavoured beer that’s naturally carbonated. It’s then ready to be served directly from the handpump. 

As you can tell, cask ale is a carefully crafted product. It’s the love, care, attention and skill that goes into it that makes it something truly worth celebrating. Brewers have been brewing it in the UK since the Middle Ages, with many of the techniques we know and use today being developed in the early 19th century. It’s a key part of British culture, and something that should always be celebrated.

As is a trip to the pub. Pubs are part of the fabric of our society and the history of our country, so what better way to celebrate both when Cask Ale Week rolls around in 2025? 

How to taste beer like a pro: Our quick beer tasting guide  

Now, we know you’ve tasted plenty of beer before. But how much thought have you really put into it? You likely judge a pint by its frothy head, how cold it is, its bitterness and a few other factors. But are you tasting it like a pro? Let’s take a look at what professional brewers look for, so you can swill with the best of them this National Cask Ale Week. 

Start by taking a good look at your pint before you dive in. Really look closely. 

• Consider things like its colour and clarity. How dark or light is it? How clear is it? Good cask ale will usually be clear unless it is of a specific style.
• You’ll want to check for a decent foamy head about 10mm deep. 
• Consider how it clings to the glass and what the bubbles look like.

The next step is to assess the beer’s aroma. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to do it: 

1. Start by swirling your glass, as it encourages aromatic compounds out of the ale. 
2. Slowly bring the beer up to your nose, and waft it back and forth under your nose as you take short sniffs. 
3. Put your nose into the glass and sniff for around a second, then two seconds. 
4. Cover the glass with your hand and swirl again for five seconds, then sniff again for two seconds. 

While smelling your beer might seem a little strange at first, and might feel like it places you into the category of beer snob, it actually helps boost the taste when you take that first sip. 

We taste with our noses too, so giving your senses an initial hit of smell will enhance the flavours. You’ll get stronger vanilla undertones with your porter. The hops will hit even harder when you sip your IPA, and those caramel notes in your darker ales will be even smoother. 

So, let’s get onto taste. Take a sip of the beer and swish it around in your mouth to warm it up. Swallow, then exhale through your nose. When tasting, you’ll want to look for the following: 

• Bitterness 
• Sourness 
• Saltiness 
• Sweetness

When you taste the beer, list each one out in your head and identify its presence and intensity. After your first sip, take another, then swish the beer in your mouth for around ten seconds. Swallow, then take another five to ten seconds to make your judgement on how bitter it is. Bitter tastes can take a while to register on your palate, so you need to give it time. 

Look for how balanced the beer is, taking into account everything we’ve mentioned. Also think about the aftertaste, and how this differs from your initial sip. 

Take a final sip and consider the mouthfeel. This is exactly what you’d expect it to be – the feel of the beer in your mouth. Here you’ll want to pay attention to: 

• Carbonation: How fizzy it is 
• Body: Its thickness and the complexity of flavour 
• Smoothness: How it feels in the mouth and how easily it flows down 

We’ll let you into a little secret. There’s no right way to taste beer. Yes, you can follow our process, but really it’s a personal thing. How something tastes and the flavours and features you like in your cask ales and craft beers is down to you. 

So sip away and consider the taste, texture and smell. But remember, if you like something you like it. And that’s all down to you. 

A closer look at cask ale vs keg

Cask ale is a little different to keg beer. Once the ale goes into the cask, it’s a live product which hasn’t been pasteurised or filtered. It still contains yeast and no external carbon dioxide has been added. 

To help the beer settle and clear more quickly, a fining agent is often added, encouraging heavier particles to drop to the bottom of the cask and leaving a bright, clear pint above. Fining isn’t usually used for hazier or naturally cloudy ales.

When the ale leaves the brewery in a cask, it’s not done. The conditioning process continues in the cask. This doesn’t happen with keg beers – the process is already complete once they’re kegged up and ready to go. When the cask ale is in the cask, the yeast works its way through the remaining sugars. This alters the alcohol levels and produces a natural carbonation. It’s at this stage that the beer matures and develops its subtle flavours. 

The cask then needs to be properly positioned in the pub cellar and ideally requires a full 72-hour preparation before serving.

Normal keg beer on the other hand, is filtered and carbonated to 2.4 volumes of carbon dioxide. It’s then usually pushed out of the keg with 100% carbon dioxide or carbon dioxide and nitrogen mixed gas. Cask ale is dispensed with a hand pump that pumps it out of the cask, without using carbon dioxide. 

Air enters the cask as the ale is dispensed, meaning it needs to be drunk quickly to avoid it going flat and being spoiled. Keg beer stores for much longer once the keg is first opened. 

Explore flavour like a brewer 

When brewers taste ales, they’re looking for an overall taste profile made up of colours, flavours and scents. These all combine to make different cask ale styles. Let’s look at some of the most popular and their taste profiles: 

• Pale Mild: Lightly hopped with a light fruit character.  
• Dark Mild: Sweet with a light bitterness. Look for roasted notes of chocolate, coffee and liquorice.  
• Bitter: Noticeable hops with earthy, spicy and peppery taste notes but may also be floral, piney or citrus. Butterscotch or toffee may also be present. 
• British IPA: Hoppier than bitter, often with honeyed/biscuit malt aroma and flavours with pepper, spicy, earthy, piney or floral resins from the hops. 
• New World IPA: Noticeably fruitier than British IPAs. Look for citrus and tropical flavours with floral notes. 
• Porter: Roasted notes of coffee, vanilla or chocolate that are balanced by a hoppy character with some fruit.
• Pale Ales: Fruitier than a premium bitter, with a light malt character and noticeable hop flavours. 

Try something new this National Cask Ale Week 

We’ve already mentioned that cask ales are unique. And with so much on offer from regional and national brewers, Cask Ale Week is the ideal time to try something new and support your local brewers at the same time. 

If you’re a lager drinker, why not try an IPA or session ale this Cask Ale Week? If your usual tipple is a golden ale, why not broaden your tastes and try a porter? Or if you like to mix it up, there are sessionable ales to try, new world IPAs to get your mitts on and golden ales to sample that lovely light fruit character. 

At Greene King, we’ll have seasonal ales every day throughout National Cask Ale Week, so there’s never been a better time to come on down and try something new.

Cask ale at Greene King pubs 

Here at Greene King, we’ve been brewing cask ale for centuries and are committed to a quality brewing process that creates wonderful beers that our customers know and love. Step into the doors of one of our pubs and settle in at the bar, while we pour you a pint of our Abbot Ale, Greene King IPA or one of the many guest beers on offer – we’ll have plenty of ales ready and waiting for National Cask Ale Week. 

Our team takes great pride in brewing high-quality Greene King cask ales. Come on in and have a chat, and our team will recommend the best cask ales to suit your tastebuds. Just remember to look at the colour, swill, sniff, taste and enjoy. 

Raise a pint to National Cask Ale Week 

There’s no better time than National Cask Ale Week to celebrate the best of British brewing. And we’ll be throwing open our doors in celebration with a fantastic line-up of cask ales to sample. Get ready to taste new flavours, expand your ale horizons and simply enjoy a great pint with good friends. 

Use the pub finder below to find a Greene King pub near you, serving up some of the best cask ales you’ll taste all National Cask Ale Week. 

Find a pub for National Cask Ale Week