Fortunately, beer enthusiasts no longer need to search long if they’re looking for something truly exciting and unique. Thanks to the centuries-long development of beer across nations, numerous unique and groundbreaking beer styles have emerged, offering an intriguingly vast selection for adventurous beer drinkers to explore. The selection is immense, and with a little appreciation, you can easily discover your own treasures within it. In our article, we not only explore these special aspects but also sample selections from Élesztő’s subjective beer collection.

Beer-drinking is often surrounded by the stereotype that beer is a boring genre with narrow boundaries, offering little surprise beyond hop bitterness. However, this is easily refuted, as there are few alcoholic beverages that encompass such a diverse array of brewing methods, ingredients, and spices.

What Makes a Beer Special?

Well, the answer is as complex and multifaceted as the question itself. 🙂 Our article on the intricacies of brewing provides excellent insights, showing that a beer can be made special not just by its fermentation method, ingredients, or characteristic aromas, but also by features such as its color.

Beyond individual categories, another key question is: compared to what is a beer or one of its characteristics considered special?

The Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP)  often referred to as the “bible” of beer tasting, systematically compiles the most important style characteristics for various types of beer. If a beer is special or has unique characteristics in any way, it will likely be mentioned in the general description of the beer style. In addition, the objective comparison of beers is aided by internationally used methods such as the International Bitterness Units (IBU) for determining bitterness, or the EBC, or SRM scales  (Standard Reference Method) for expressing color shades. Besides the percentage of alcohol content, the Balling degree which indicates the dry matter content of a beer, is also an informative metric.

And now for the best part! 😊

There is no shortage of metrics and scales, so let’s focus practically on which beers we consider to be truly groundbreaking in some way.

Unique Flavored Beers

The most straightforward aspect is, of course, the taste—what else would be the main subject of evaluation? For many, the distinction still lies in whether a beer is hop-forward or malt-forward. While this is significant for the flavor profile, it is by no means decisive. When it comes to flavors, it’s equally important to consider the fermentation method used and the additional ingredients included in the beer. Examples of the magic of hops can be found in New England IPAs (NEIPAs). New-wave hops like Citra, with its tropical and citrus notes, or Sabro , with its vanilla and coconut aromas, create incredibly exquisite flavors in the beers brewed with them.

• The Hoptop Brewery ‘s lineup includes their elgian Wheat, which is a prime example of how a standard top-fermented wheat beer can be ingeniously enhanced. Spiced with bitter orange peel and coriander, this brew brings to life incredibly fresh and exciting aromas.

• The Szent András Sörfőzde  Barackos NEIPA is also a true flavor adventure, where apricot and basil enhance an already rich aroma profile provided by four types of hops.

Special Ingredients or Origin

Every beer enthusiast likely knows that malt, hops, yeast, and water are the essential core of any beer. But what happens when other ingredients are added during production? The result is the creation of extraordinary beers like the gose-beer—a salty, coriander-infused German masterpiece. For those craving sweeter flavors, mead beer can be a perfect choice, offering a unique twist compared to the usual profiles..

• The local scene holds its own when it comes to unique flavors and special ingredients. Mad Scientist’s Rákóczi Túrós, despite its name suggesting a culinary delight, is actually a true beer masterpiece. Their Imperial pastry sour made with apricots and vanilla is as astounding as their Tropical Space Muffin 2024 – a sour braggot brewed with lime, pineapple, banana, passion fruit, coconut, blue spirulina algae, and a double dose of vanilla.

• If you thought that beers aren’t influenced by the trend toward a conscious lifestyle, we can provide a counterexample: Fehér Nyúl’s Carrot Factory could even be seen as the reimagined, beer-infused version of wellness. Luckily, it’s anything but that, with flavors reminiscent of carrot cake and fascinating ingredients harmonizing with the malt grains’ biscuity notes, such as cookie crumbs.

Specially Colored Beers

An average beer’s color typically falls somewhere between golden yellow and dark brown. However, there are some exceptionally exciting beers, like the Red Ale, with its reddish hues adding intrigue to the spectrum, much like the Easter Green Beer. Would you have guessed that the latter owes its unusual green color to intriguing ingredients like nettles, additional herbs, or even chlorella algae, known for its health benefits?

While brewing green beers is traditionally more common among Czech breweries, for those eager to try one, we heartily recommend the extraordinary Bohemia Regent Spring or the Rohozec Velikonicni Green Beer.

The Deceptiveness of Alcohol Content

It’s common to think of beer as merely a refreshing beverage since a good portion of beers typically have a low alcohol content, averaging around 3-5%. However, caution is advised, as these refreshing flavors can sometimes be paired with deceptively high alcohol content. For example, it’s not uncommon to find Belgian beers with an alcohol content of around 10%. However, the leader of the pack was undoubtedly BrewDog’s The End of History from Scotland, with a modest 55% alcohol content.

• Similarly, in the domestic scene, Hoptop‘s premium beers include offerings that, despite their excellent flavors enticing prolonged tasting sessions, require caution to ensure moderation. It’s particularly wise to heed this advice with their Eisbock 13% delicacy, with its 13% alcohol content, as well as their Eisbockjuk concentrated using freezing technology, which boasts a 15.5% alcohol content.

As you can see, there is no shortage of special beers, whether on the international stage or on domestic shelves. With their exciting ingredients and an experimental mindset, local breweries consistently create new and previously unknown flavor profiles.

The abundance at  Élesztő is anything but overwhelming, as we not only provide the finest beers but also offer expert recommendations to ensure you make the most of your time spent with us.