What makes the head on a beer?
Beer is the only drink that forms a nice, thick foam on top that can last for up to five minutes. The head of a beer is formed by carbon dioxide which is dissolved in the liquid, as well as by valuable proteins in the barley malt. Light beers have white foam, while porters and dark beers produce cream-colored foam. Connoisseurs know that the finer the foam, the nobler the beer.

Are hops an ingredient of beer?
Hops are often mistakenly considered to be one of the main ingredients of beer, but are, in fact, only a seasoning. About 200 grams of hops are needed to season 100 litres of beer. This small quantity of hops greatly enhances a beer’s bouquet; within the hops rhizome, over 200 different aromatic substances have been found which contribute to the beer’s aroma.

What are the ingredients of beer?
The apparently simple answer—water, malt, and hops—is not exhaustive. World-wide, beers are produced using the strangest ingredients and methods. There are beers produced using spontaneous fermentation (a process which can last about 2 years); others add fruit cider (wild strawberries, strawberries, raspberries, etc.); there are also beers which use bananas, rice, or sorghum, and some that use oysters (for example the oyster stout), and many other ingredients too numerous to list here. Beers are so diverse that it is difficult to answer the question.

What does the “bouquet” of a beer refer to?
The term “bouquet” is used to describe the olfactory characteristics of a beer. The quality of the bouquet depends upon a variety of factors including: the alcohol content, carbon dioxide levels, and the presence of malt extracts. The bouquet also depends upon the chemical composition of the beer, which includes aromatic compounds which can be flowery or fruity, and the presence of higher alcohols: esters and aldehydes. 

At what temperature should beer be served?
Beer should be served within the range of 8 to 16 degrees centigrade. The basic rule is simple: the thicker and stronger the beer, the closer its serving temperature should be to the ambient surroundings. Pilsners, for example, should be served at 8 degrees, while top-fermented amber beers require a serving temperature around 12 degrees. Warm beer doesn’t taste very good, but ice should never be added because it makes the beer vapid. Cooling the beer below 8 degrees centigrade, however, may also spoil the taste.

Why should beer be stored in a dark place?
Light, and sunlight in particular, causes beer to oxidize and spoils its taste and colour. That is why beer is stored in such a way as to limit exposure to ultraviolet rays: in barrels, cans, or dark bottles. In Poland, as elsewhere in the world, green and brown bottles are used.

How should beer be poured?
Beer should be poured into a clean glass or a stein which has been rinsed with cold water so bubbles will not stick to the glass and the beer will retain its ideal amber colour. Beer dispensed from a keg should be poured with one pull on the tap. Beer decanted into a glass from a can or bottle should be poured in two stages. The first 2/3 should be poured along the walls of the glass, while the final 1/3 should be poured from a certain height to form the head of the beer. The foam should be two thumb-widths thick for best results.
 
Does beer make you fat? 
Hops contain certain substances which can increase one’s appetite. Hence, there is a popular belief that beer has a high-calorie content. The stereotypical image of a “true” beer lover with a beer belly did little to dispel this belief. However, an examination of a beer drinker’s diet would reveal that he or she consumes many products which have a far greater impact on health, in comparison to which beer would be just an innocent supplement. On its own, beer does not influence one’s body weight. The calorie content of a low-fermented light beer, such as Lech Pils, is around 430 kcal/litre, which is much lower than the calorie content of milk, fruit juice, or sweetened drinks such as cola.

How long does it take to make beer?
In a modern brewery the average time of production is about 3 weeks: brewing—10 hours, fermentation—10 days, aging—10 days, filtering and packaging—1 day.

What brewing method does Kompania Piwowarska use to produce its beers?
All KP S.A. beers are brewed using the low fermentation process.

How many different aromas are evaluated in beer tasting?
There are 44 flavour profiles used in the appraisal of beer, and those are further divided into 97 subcategories. Next to the common hop and malt aromas, we can also find aldehyde, almond, grassy, and many other more or less exotic flavours. Just as a point of comparison, only 64 aromas—including fruity, flowery, peppery, nutty, and others—are considered in wine tasting.