West Coast Brewer Home Brewing Blog

Tag: mouth feel

Mouthfeel

Mouthfeel, or the mouth feel of a beer, is the mouth’s perception of the body of a beer and is typically described as light, medium, or full. A beer’s body is formed from the residual proteins, minerals, salts’ and unfermented sugars that remain in the finished beer. The body of a beer is perceived as viscosity or thickness by the mouth. Each style of beer has a coinciding expectation for mouthfeel, and beers are rated on that expectation. For instance, a lager or pilsner should have a light body, and an imperial stout should have a full body if brewed correctly.

Body

Body in brewing terms is often described as the thickness or viscosity of a beer as judged by your mouth. The body of a beer is typically described as thin, medium or full. Different varieties of beer are assumed to have a specific body profile; for instance a light lager or pilsner would be expected to have a thin body profile, whereas a stout would have a full body. The term mouthfeel is oftentimes used synonymously with body.

 

Determining factors in defining and making up a beer’s body include proteins, carbonation level, unfermentable sugars such as maltodextrin, water profile, and alcohol level.