Just like people, there are only two kinds of beer...

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There's no shortage of unusual beer names and obscure beer styles, but knowing some of the major style differences can help you to pick an unfamiliar beer from a list while having a pretty good idea of how its going to taste, and by trying something new, you might find a beer that you really, really like. 

So where can the casual beer drinker begin? Here are some basics.

It's not Ewe, it's Brie.

Brie (BREE) is a soft cow's milk cheese, originally made in an area once called Brie. This area is now part of the Paris urban sprawl, and is now called Seine-et-Marne.

There are two types of Brie, Brie de Melun (BREE deuh meh-LOON) and Brie de Meaux (BREE deuh MOH) whose names are protected by the French government, but the word Brie, however, is not protected. 

In common use, the word Brie is often mistakenly used as a generic term for any soft, bloomy rind cheese, and Brie often gets confused with Camembert (KAM-uhm-behr).