Beer jargon thrown around on social media and forums can leave even the most passionate craft-beer fans scratching their heads. From the first ten issues of Craft Beer & Brewing Magazine®, we’ve collected this humorous key to deciphering some of the slang terms thrown around in the world of Beer Geekdom.
Barrel-aged
adjective
In simplest terms, “barrel-aged” means aged in a barrel. Barrel-aged beers have seen a dramatic increase in popularity in recent years with both homebrewers and professional brewers. Recently, “barrel-aged” has also come to mean that something is better than average, great, or downright fantastic. “The new album by Blitzen Trapper is so barrel-aged.”
Beached Whale
noun
Typically the result of someone suggesting, “Let’s open just one more” the night before, a beached whale is the super-special beer you regret opening the next day when you wake up and realize that you left half of it in the bottle. Beer geeks have occasionally been known to drink these warm in the morning so they don’t have to throw them away. “I found two beached whales on my patio this morning. Nothing like having to pour out warm Fuzzy and 3F while you have a hangover.”