Scientists have discovered the real reason a cold beer tastes so good

Cracking open a cold lager is one of life’s great pleasures.

And now scientists have discovered why chilled beer tastes so good — and it is all to do with how alcohol behaves at different temperatures.

Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences mixed different strengths of ethanol with water, and kept them at different temperatures.

When solutions with 5 per cent ethanol — a similar strength to beer — were chilled at 5C, the particles rearranged to form more “chain-like” structures than they did at room temperature.

The scientists said this would explain why there is more of an “ethanol-like” taste — described as being bitter and slightly sweet — in cold beer.

Lead author Lei Jiang said this was why people liked drinking it.

The team added that the findings, published in the journal Matter, could be used to make drinks with low alcohol levels and a strong ethanol taste.