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Bitters and Pale Ales
It certainly isn't my place to try to define the subtle
differences between a Bitter and a Pale Ale. Suffice it to say that they are
extremely close cousins, perhaps even siblings. In fact, they are such close
relatives that many breweries in the UK actually mislabel their products calling
what analytically should be a Bitter a Pale Ale, and vice-versa. "Pale
Ale" derives its name not because it is light in colour in and of itself,
but because it is more pale than a Brown Ale, which
has been around for quite a bit longer. These beers are copper coloured, and
very firmly trace their roots to the UK. Original gravity can range from 1.040
to as high as 1.065 or arguably even higher. Oddly enough, the so-called bitter
is more lowly hopped than a Pale Ale, making it contain less actual bitterness.
Perhaps perceptually, however, it seems more bitter because these beers are
generally of lower gravity than Pale Ales. A third sibling to them is the India
Pale Ale, which derives its name from having been shipped to the British troops
in India in the early 19th century. The India Pale Ale is even more highly
hopped, and of an even higher gravity than both of the others.
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