The development of the world's major beer styles has happened over several centuries and each has a fascinating history, affected by geography, politics, socio-economics, industry and agriculture. There are over 100 different styles of beer, spanning a huge flavour & colour spectrum.

This part of the course takes a top level look at what we consider to be the major beer styles, those encountered in everyday life. It is of course possible to go much deeper into all of the styles covered here, plus many other more minor styles, which we will cover in future courses.

Before we dive into individual styles, it is important to understand the 'Beer Family' overall. Sitting underneath that catch all term of 'beer' is a family tree of styles, which themselves have family trees beneath them.

There are 3 main families, defined by the yeast type used:

• Ales - use top fermenting yeast
• Lagers - use bottom fermenting yeast
• Wild fermented - use non-cultivated, spontaneous wild yeast

The chart below illustrates the different families including a non-exhaustive list of the styles that sit beneath them.