beer zythology, study and tasting

Zythology is the tasting and study of beer. Its specialists are zythologists, beer sommeliers. “People don’t necessarily imagine that beer can contain 85 different styles in the world”, explains Vincent Beaumont, zythologist at Houblon Gourmand (Lille). During the tasting workshops he organises, participants detect the aromas of a beer, its hop content and its spices.

In Liège (Belgium), a zythology training center welcomes students. For a year and a half, fifteen students are trained. “I take the main characteristics that we will find in all beers (…) I make a table so that they identify the different characteristics”, says Michel Florkin, trainer in zythology at IFAPME in Liège (Belgium). Some gourmet restaurateurs do not hesitate to pair beers with dishes, like a food and wine pairing.