Beer is bitter: Yes and no.
All beer has some bitterness. That is one reason for the hops: their herbal, resiny dryness balances the sweetness of the barley malt. Many beer-lovers enjoy the appetising bitterness of very hoppy brews: the bitterness arouses the gastric juices. Some would argue for balance, as exemplified by English classics such as Fuller's London Pride or Marston's Pedigree. Others like sweeter malt-accented brews such as the classic Scottish ales from Caledonian, Belhaven or Maclay's. Both the malt and the hops should be detectable: what's the point of beer that tastes of nothing?
