Google "beer terminology" and the results will pull hundreds of beer dictionaries associated with beer flavors.
Two well-known beer flavors are "light" and "dark."
Ask a frequent beer drinker which one they prefer and they will likely answer right away.
Ben Clayton, junior in psychology, prefers light beer.
"I like India pale ales," Clayton said. "They aren't as bitter as plain pale ales."
Clayton said he likes the hoppy flavor of the pale ales and the slightly fruity taste.
"I like my beer to taste really hoppy," said Caroline Huffman, senior in economics.
Huffman said her friend's family owns Schlafly Brewery in St. Louis.
"I'd have to say it's probably the best beer in the world," Huffman said. "I'll drink any of their beer, light or dark."
Schlafly Beer brews a variety beers, drawing an interesting crowd.
"When I turned 21, I started trying every beer I could," Clayton said. "I learned that I don't like the heaviness of dark beers."
Clayton said his favorite beer drinking situation is watching a basketball game and drinking a pale ale on draught.
"My favorite beer of all time would have to be Bell's Two Hearted Ale," Clayton said. "It's perfect, it's smooth and it's wonderful."
Dan Horn, an employee of The Bank Vault, a bar in downtown Auburn, prefers dark beers. "If you can't shine a light through it," Horn said, "that's the way I like it."
Horn said the dark beers have a better taste spectrum. "You don't have to put fruit in it to make it taste better," Horn said. "It also reminds me of coffee, which I like."
Dan recalled his first discovery of the flavor of dark beers back in the summer of 2006.
"I was living with a roommate who knew a lot about beer," Horn said. "We'd go to Georgia to buy a bunch of bottles of different kinds of beer and we'd all sit around having a beer tasting and that's when I decided I liked dark beers."
Horn worked for Mellow Mushroom in Auburn and learned more about beers while working there.
"They have well over a hundred beers including what's on tap," Horn said. "Darks are by far my favorite."
Casey Carrigan, manager of Momma Goldberg's Deli on Magnolia, noticed patterns in their beer sales.
"We sell more light beer during the summer," Carrigan said. "When it's hot people want something refreshing and light."
Carrigan said in the winter they generally sell more dark beers.
"People want something more filling," Carrigan said. "They want to feel warm."
Carrigan also noticed patterns in who was buying beer.
"The young kids buy the light beers because it's cheaper," Carrigan said. "Older customers appreciate the taste more and will buy the dark beers."
Huffman said she prefers light beer for vacations and dark beer when she's in pub like atmospheres, which she said is rare.
Beer drinkers can choose light or dark beers for their own reasons, but can they all agree on which music to listen to while drinking?
"Backstreet Boys," Huffman said. "With a little air guitar."
Cheers.
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