Beer Carbonation Chart by Beer Style
Beer: few other beverage varieties offer such a wide cornucopia of flavors. Today, you might be serving the soft sweetness of a dry Kölsch. Tomorrow, you’re drawing out the full-bodied malt of an imperial brown ale. Thus, it’s wise to learn the chemistry belying the complex flavor profile of each drink. One key to the puzzle? Carbonation.
Consumer surveys show 51% of young adults in the US drink carbonated beverages every day! Moreover, carbonated soft drinks are the third most popular type of beverage worldwide.
No wonder so many craft brewers spend time and money to create that precise carbonation for a great drinking experience for their consumers! Nobody likes the idea of their drink being described as ‘flat or no fizz drink’.
A beer’s head is a can’t-miss part of the experience of several iconic styles. And when brewing up something new, it’s worth taking some inspiration from soda, fizzy drinks, and even flavored and carbonated water. Not only is the market bursting with these varieties, customers increasingly demand barkeeps have these drinks on tap.
Discover the optimal carbonation for 12 world-renowned styles of beer—including the recommended range of CO2 volume, the carbonation’s impact on the drink’s texture and taste, and vital factors affecting optimal beer carbonation in unique circumstances.
Beer Style | Notable Varieties | Typical Carbonation Level Vol. CO2 Range | Flavor Profile | Body & Texture |
Ales | Pale Ale
| 2.0 - 2.4 | Intense hops lead, with fruit, citrus, and earthy pine harmonies. Sweet, occasional butter accent notes | Ale textures range, though many have a full mouthfeel and a sharp finish. |
Barleywines | Scotch Ale
| 1.3 - 1.9 | Barleywines are aromatic, with strong Malt, caramel or toffee elements. Bread and molasses are often centered in their complex | Rich, full-bodied velvety mouthfeel |
Belgian Ales | Oud bruin (Brown Beer / Belgian Brown Ale)
| 2.4 - 3.0 | Aromatic, fresh baked / toasted croissant flavor. Malt undertones, grassy hop notes. | Medium-light bodied beer with silky-smooth mouthfeel |
Lagers | Marzen (Oktoberfest beers [European Amber])
| 2.4 - 2.7 | Lagers are balanced, hops and malt flavors at the forefront.
| Range from light to full bodied, with Schwarzbier holding the middle.
|
Saisons | Sorachi Ace Saison
| 3.0 - 3.5 | Bright, complex flavors, layers of bread, fruit, spice, with citrus and pepper gracenotes | Light, almost “fluffy,” with a thick creamy texture |
Stouts & Porters | English Porter
| 1.7 - 2.3 | The roasted barley of a stout is unmalted, drawing out coffee-like flavors, while the malted barley of a porter brings rich chocolate notes forward. | Porters are lighter-bodied than stouts, while stouts have a full-bodied, creamy texture. |
Sours | Lambic
| 2.8 - 3.5 | Complex flavors of fruit, acidity, cider, and sour yeast. Few to no malt or hop notes. Lambics tend to mild sweetness, offsetting the sour. Gueuzes are generally tart, while American wild ales mix smoky and fruity flavors. | Light or Medium-light body. Tend to be dry, light on palette. Smooth texture.
|
Wheat Beers | Berliner Weisse
(Roggenbier) | 3.0 - 3.5 | Wheat beers have strong grain, earth, and black pepper notes. Zero bitterness.
| Light— almost cloudlike.
|
Brewing Notes
“Do you ever drink wine?’ people ask me, as though beer were a prison rather than a playground […] Whatever is argued about other pleasures, it is not necessary to be monogamous in the choice of drink. Beer is by far the more extensively consumed, but less adequately honored. In a small way, I want to help put right that injustice.”
—Michael James Jackson, writer and cicerone
The art of beer is at once a science, an act of honor, and creative play. In that spirit, let the carbonation chart be a guide—not a prison.
Carbonation to Complement Flavor
We know that different beer styles have varying levels of carbonation that complement their specific flavor profiles. Pilsners typically have a higher level of carbonation to accentuate their crisp and refreshing nature.
British ales often feature lower carbonation levels to create a smoother mouthfeel and enhance their malt characteristics. If your beer has fruity and spicy notes, you may want to enhance that with higher carbonation!
Finding the optimal level of carbonation for each beer style is an art form all its own. Thankfully brewers have figured out over time via experimentation and creativity how they can enhance the inherent characteristics of a certain beer style by tweaking the level of carbonation.
Get Creative!
The chart here provides a list of popular beer styles and their typical carbonation levels. You are by no means limited to doing what has always been done.
Go ahead and play around. See how increasing or decreasing carbonation in these different styles impacts a beer texture and flavor. Homebrewers are practically called to create something unique, complex, flavorful and bodied in a way nobody else is expected! They are some of the most creative folks who are willing to always try something new!
Want to learn how to bring precision micro carbonation to those you serve? Contact our team by calling (602) 903-2158. We’ve got your questions covered.
