What category is most important when rating a beer?

I secretly don’t like alcohol-free beer because I don’t get the beer buzz

 

I really like the look of beer in a nice glass, that being said, I think hazy and milkshake IPAs look gross, also fruit beers.
I really like the slime slimy feel of many Imperial Stouts

bottom line, though - it’s taste

 

I think Heady’s drink from a can is mainly a marketing strategy

that being said, I once poured an older Heady into a glass and there were a lot of chunks in the bottom of the glass —— which might explain their slogan

 

Wow!
When I used to home brew and didn’t filter, I ended up with sludge at the bottom of the glass - but I didn’t equate it with or describe it as snot and loogies…

 

Whether or not Heady’s appearance has improved over the years (and I suspect it has), many beer enthusiasts rightly rejected the look of hazies in those photo-NEIPA days. I know there are other stories about “drink from the can’s” origin, but I think it’s just cuz their beer was so mugly.

 

First time I had Heady, I had managed to get 2 cans, from 2 different BAs, in the same week. So, I did my my review with one poured into a glass, and one from the can. I did not get an appreciable difference, so I agree with your marketing view.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/46317/16814/?ba=BBThunderbolt#review

 

Pretty much came in to say this.

If anything, looks may sway my overall score more than any other category. I don’t mean that it’s more important but it’s usually a good distinguishing feature among beers. I’ve had many beers that nailed everything but looks and it’s a shame.

I want the beer I’m drinking to look good before every sip, I want to think “gosh that beer look good,” the whole time. It just makes the experience so much better for me personally.

I don’t know this is true or just made up in my mind but I also think it just shows a higher level of attention to detail from the brewery.

 

I don't get the need to describe "mouthfeel". I see people describing mouthfeel as dry, thick, thin, smooth, sticky, low carbonation, etc. Mouthfeel? It's wet.

 

There are a number of aspects to mouthfeel but I would suggest to you a 'simple' aspect which you could (should?) relate to is the body of a beer. A beer such as Budweiser will have a thin/light body which some folks would describe as being watery. In contrast a beer such as a Robust Porter will have a thicker body which some folks might describe as being chewy (or similar verbiage).

FWIW I tend to not enjoy beers that are watery in nature but that is just my palate's preference.

Cheers!

 

What about carbonation levels? Ie, over-carbonated, flat. Those impact the experience a lot to me. (Body appropriate to the style can also take a good beer to a wow beer, but that's a whole other component.)

 

Great questions.

I tend to (almost) balance both style guidelines and my overall enjoyment of the beer (yes, even when it maybe steps away from guidelines a bit). But truthfully, a little more leaning on my enjoyment.

The strongest part of the enjoyment for me(most of the time) is the flavor.

 

Of course taste is everything, but I have specialized glassware for a reason. Most beers look ok, and I think I pour well. A good looking beer is setting me up for a great experience. In the same vein if something smells excellent I start expecting a great flavor. If the flavor does not live up to the expectation, or is more nuanced than the aroma would give, my score is heavily influenced. If the mouthfeel is exceptional, I can add some points even if the taste is good but one dimensional. I feel like I weigh aroma heavily in my high scores overall, but it doesn't bring down my taste score unless the taste is very underwhelming, which it can be.

I think the best example of this would be my review of the DIPA Idonteverwant2BU by the Veil. For everyone without the chance to try it, it's a 0 IBU 9.2% hazy IPA that has a really pleasant melon and orange juice flavor and is exceptionally smooth and creamy. That beer had a pretty standard, if not extremely enjoyable but one dimensional flavor, but the taste lived up to the great aroma and the feel was mind blowing.

Of course, my highest scores weigh all the factors in advance, but definitely each one has a big impact on subsequent categories. I'm also a huge mouthfeel reviewer too almost over most thibgs

 

It seems like some people are not aware of the fact that "taste" has multiple definitions. A couple that make sense in the context of rating on this site (from Merriam-Webster) are:

And

That last one especially fits since the nomenclature BA uses really read like commands. Look at the beer and describe it, Smell the beer and describe it, Taste the beer and describe it, Feel the beer and describe, Overall the beer and...oh, wait

And to people questioning the impact of Feel on the beer experience I really wonder if you've never had a beer that was way off in terms of body and made the overall experience worse. I'm thinking of Stouts that are weirdly watery and thin or any beers that are syrupy to an extreme. And of course there is over and under carbonation.

Most commercial beers are within the realm of adequate or better, but ive encountered more than enough examples that straight up ruined the ruined the beer to know it's a possibility.

 

Interesting, I'll give your approach a stab.

I think I'd be at:
Taste 50%
Aroma 25%
Feel 15%
Appearance 5%
Random 5% to be applied based on a whim.

But I might change my mind tomorrow.

 

If you and Snoothy are present the beer is a 0/5

 

It to be a jerk but is this a serious question?

 

I clicked 'taste,' but 'overall' was not an option in survey. I used to think the latter was for me to do an average of the other 4, but now I see it as overall impression, like summary. Not really sure if it's need tho, as BA calc will average the other 4.
For me:
Taste 50%
Aroma 20%
Appearance 20%
Mouthfeel 10%
Overall impression ?

 

"Overall" is a bit of a mystery category for me?