The Impact of the Appearance of Beer on its Perception

Abstract

The appearance of beer influences the perception of its flavour. Three separate studies were performed. Two studies using United States residents comparing beers ranked for different attributes showed that differences in colour, head and levels of lacing impacted the perception of a number of other attributes. Rankings for best to worst poured, best to worst handled, best to worst brewed, best to worst head, most to least stable foam, highest to lowest quality foam, best to worst overall flavour, best to worst overall appearance, and most to least likely to buy all showed significant differences in rankings for both colour and levels of head and lacing. A third study using Scottish participants, comparing beers differing only in levels of head and lacing complements the American findings, suggesting that the appearance of a beer greatly influences consumer perception.