Beer and acquired tastes

[Maister]

Americans until a relatively few years ago had very little in the way of variety to choose from in the beer department. Miller, Bud, Stroh's, Pabst, Coors all emulated the same style which is now known as an 'American lager' (light body, light gold color, low alcohol, medium bitter,). In the last decade or so the availability of microbrews and popularity of imports of various different styles of other beers (porters, stouts, amber ales, IPA's, etc) has expanded our taste repertoire considerably.
I think beer is my favorite adult beverage. It was not always so, though......I remember as a lad of 17 staggering around the beach on Holland, Michigan with my friends after imbibing several tepid cans of Goebels (a particularly poor example of an American lager) stolen from my friends fridge while his parents were gone for the weekend. I remember choking down the first few gulps and thinking just how awful it tasted. Hell, the only reason we were drinking it was because it would get us drunk.......the years pass and while I cannot pinpoint a particular place or time I somehow came to LIKE the taste of beer. I'm sure that expanding my horizons from Goebels was a help, but even now if I drank a Goebels it would not evoke the physical revulsion I experienced in my youth. What changed? Why is it the body can say 'no' at one point and 'yes' later on? Or does the mind exert such control that it overrides the bodies 'yuck' signals and tells you 'no, this is yummy'?

 

[The One]

Consider This One....

My favorite Beer of all time is KENYA Tusker Lager
It seems that every 7 or so years, this beer is available for 1 year then off the North American Market for another 7 years. If you get a chance, try it.....

 

[GeogPlanner]

What changed? Why is it the body can say 'no' at one point and 'yes' later on? Or does the mind exert such control that it overrides the bodies 'yuck' signals and tells you 'no, this is yummy'?

I think that your tastes begin to change as you age. Maybe the body and mind's reaction to the bitter taste in your youth is a natural instinct to keep poisons out of the body? But as you get older, your able to decide between poison and just a bad taste?

Killian's Irish Red since 11th grade is my beer. I'm also a Samuel Adams and Magic Hat fan.

 

[Big Easy King]

When I began drinking beer as a teenager, I remember thinking, "Damn, this tastes horrible." However, that didn't stop me from continuing my beer consumption. I think that the taste buds eventually become immune and subsequently enjoy the flavor.

I'm a fan of microbrewed beer, particularly Abita Amber. The Abita Brewery, which is located in Abita Springs, Louisiana (approximately 30 miles north of New Orleans) produces a variety of beer from 100% Abita spring water. It's great beer. Damn, I wish that I had a pint now! :b: :-D

 

[NHPlanner]

Always had "expensive" tases in beer. Had tried the typical US mass market beers as a teen, didn't like them....moved on to stouts and porters, and the rest is history.

 

[Budgie]

I have always liked the taste of beer, I acquired a taste for John Smith Bitter when I was 16 and Guiness when I was 18. Excluding beer I would say that my preferred tastes have gravitated away from things that are sweet. I prefer blue cheese over ranch, I prefer mayo over miracle whip, I prefer dry wine over sweet wine, etc.. etc.. etc.. Having said this, there are very few things I won't eat, so I'm not a picky person to begin with.

 

[Maister]

When I began drinking beer as a teenager, I remember thinking, "Damn, this tastes horrible." However, that didn't stop me from continuing my beer consumption. I think that the taste buds eventually become immune and subsequently enjoy the flavor.

I'm a fan of microbrewed beer, particularly Abita Amber. The Abita Brewery, which is located in Abita Springs, Louisiana (approximately 30 miles north of New Orleans) produces a variety of beer from 100% Abita spring water. It's great beer. Damn, I wish that I had a pint now! :b: :-D

Big Easy, I was meaning to ask you two things about your local beer consumption - 1. Is there a popular 'commercial' brand enjoyed locally that you can buy in party stores or supermarkets? (kinda like what Pearl and Lone Star were to Texas). 2. How is the availability of hot pepper beers? (In Michigan I can get 'Cave Creek Chili beer' with some difficulty, but that's about it unless I make a trek to Chicago or Ann Arbor)

 

[boiker]

I never was a big sweet fan.. I was probably the only kid that put 3/4 cup of sugar into a pitcher of kool-aid instead of the suggested 1 cup.

As for beer. I'm a big, big budweiser fan. Also enjoy Sam Smith's oatmeal stout, guiness, Beck's, and sample all kinds of microbrews.

That being said, I've never ever liked Miller Lite. I hate it. It the most flavorless, watery, non-beer ever.

I've never had an aversion to beer.. maybe it's my upbringing. I was always around beer and adults drinking beer, but never got "drunk" until the last week of my senior year of high school. The taste is surprisingly quenching. Like lemon water. It must be bitterness that stimulates saliva production. I'd drink beer with or without alcohol in it. It's purely about flavor...at least it is now.

 

[Gedunker]

Americans until a relatively few years ago had very little in the way of variety to choose from in the beer department. Miller, Bud, Stroh's, Pabst, Coors all emulated the same style which is now known as an 'American lager' (light body, light gold color, low alcohol, medium bitter,).

[History Professor Hat] Factually untrue. America had a vast and diverse brewing history until the Prohibitionists fudged it all up. Post-prohibition, there were still quite a variety of boutique brewers until they could no longer compete with the major brewers, who by the way, created the distribution model largely used by that discount retailer we all know and love so. My dad's brew of choice was a Jersey brew by the name of Horlacher, and I assure you it did not taste like Bud ;-) Only recently have Americans come to appreciate their beer heritage and sought out new and different alternatives to that offered by the mass brewers.[/History Professor Hat]

Being of danish heritage -- where the taverns open at 5:00am so workers can have a cold one on the way to the factory 8-! -- I love beer. As it is now getting very hot in these parts, I'm looking for a new weiss beer for outdoor times. I think dinckel acher (sp?) has a raspberry weiss that is nice and light with a sweet after-taste. Later, I like guiness, or bass, or a black-and-tan. As I said: I love beer:b::b::b:

 

[donk]

I have always liked the taste of beer. The first beers I ever drank were in the field during hay season though, when anything liquid would taste good.

My tastes range from Labbatt 50 to microbrew, as long as teh microbrew does not taste like home brew. New favourite is teh Mill Street Organic, Iam sure they'll be some of it consumed at the laefest. Not so fussy for their ale though (home brewy)

As for aquired tastes, scotch has defintely been one of them as has other hard liquors. I like some blue cheeses, but keep the goat cheese away from me.

 

[mendelman]

American beer is like having sex in a canoe.

It's f***king close to water!

___________

I still have an aversion to beer. My body doesn't like it.

 

[Big Easy King]

Big Easy, I was meaning to ask you two things about your local beer consumption - 1. Is there a popular 'commercial' brand enjoyed locally that you can buy in party stores or supermarkets? (kinda like what Pearl and Lone Star were to Texas). 2. How is the availability of hot pepper beers? (In Michigan I can get 'Cave Creek Chili beer' with some difficulty, but that's about it unless I make a trek to Chicago or Ann Arbor)

Abita Beer has become so popular that it can be purchased in certain local supermarkets. A true local favorite, which has been brewed in New Orleans for years and is sold in supermarkets and party stores, is Dixie Beer.

Hot pepper beer is very scarce here. :-\

 

[Duke Of Dystopia]

I choked down beer in the US to get drunk after highschool. Never liked american Macro brew and I still don't.

I learned to like beer in Germany in the late 80's. It was wonderful, and it taught me there are not just many different types but that there are reasons why to have a certain beer at a certain time, in certain places. Taste is everything in beer.

The gransdsons of Adolphus Bush just do not understand they should fear my beer making ability as of yet, but they someday will learn. Reject the swill that is american Macro brew, revolt while you still have taste buds!

Here is a thing to ponder. You can tell the demographics by only looking at the taps. If you see that they have only the normal american dregs on tap, you will be lucky if the bartender has half a clue what a Sam Adams or a Linenkugel's is.

Even more interesting, is the age demographics than can be seen. If the bar caters to the under 30 crowd, you will find good beer from all over. It the crowd is 30 plus, taste is not an issue as they think there is a difference between Miller and Bud products. Sucks to be trapped in a place like this when with friends (who usually have no real appreciation for beer).

Here is another interesting thing I have noticed. Sports bars, Gay bars, and bars for the elderly (over 30), all have the same crap on tap to drink, the same stupid bartenders with no clue, and knotheads who look fondly at the days they could get PBR on tap with thier dad at the pub (As if PBR is different from the usual suspects).

Sorry about the beer snob in me coming out, but somebody has to lead the beer revolution to a new dawn! :-D

 

[Tom R]

beer

I "learned" to drink/like beer in the Army. At that time it was the major pastime of a lot of us. When I got out I used to hang out at a "club" [read- speakeasy]. The drinks were expensive and I knew that I would go broke quick if I drank beer. So, I decided to drink something I didn't like - scotch. The strategy worked (for a while) till fate would have it, I started to like it. Scotch has been my favorite hard liquor ever since.

 

[mgk920]

I choked down beer in the US to get drunk after highschool. Never liked american Macro brew and I still don't.

I learned to like beer in Germany in the late 80's. It was wonderful, and it taught me there are not just many different types but that there are reasons why to have a certain beer at a certain time, in certain places. Taste is everything in beer.

The gransdsons of Adolphus Bush just do not understand they should fear my beer making ability as of yet, but they someday will learn. Reject the swill that is american Macro brew, revolt while you still have taste buds!

Here is a thing to ponder. You can tell the demographics by only looking at the taps. If you see that they have only the normal american dregs on tap, you will be lucky if the bartender has half a clue what a Sam Adams or a Linenkugel's is.

Even more interesting, is the age demographics than can be seen. If the bar caters to the under 30 crowd, you will find good beer from all over. It the crowd is 30 plus, taste is not an issue as they think there is a difference between Miller and Bud products. Sucks to be trapped in a place like this when with friends (who usually have no real appreciation for beer).

Here is another interesting thing I have noticed. Sports bars, Gay bars, and bars for the elderly (over 30), all have the same crap on tap to drink, the same stupid bartenders with no clue, and knotheads who look fondly at the days they could get PBR on tap with thier dad at the pub (As if PBR is different from the usual suspects).

Sorry about the beer snob in me coming out, but somebody has to lead the beer revolution to a new dawn! :-D

That is one reason why I feel so fortunate to have grown up here in eastern Wisconsin, a place where beer has been a part of the culture since the first major European immigration, even the blue-collar 'shot and a beer' dives now have at least one or two decent beers on their taps. At least half of the taps at my favorite area sports bars are decent micros and imports, too, including some GREAT seasonal stuff.



Mike

 

[PlannerByDay]

When I was a sophmore in High School, my brother had graduated from college and move home. Before he had move home we had a "buyer" who would buy us things like Wine Cooler 2 Liters, Boones Farm wine, you know the stuff fruity and easy to drink.

One time the summer between Sophmore and Junior year I asked my brother to buy me an some buddies Wine Coolers, He laughed at us and said he would only buy us beer. He said that is all anyone drinks in college and I needed to get to like it. And that was enough for me to start drinking and enjoying beer.

By the end of football season my Junior year, I was drinking Colt 45 and Old English 64oz bottles like it was going outta style.

No, I am not drinking beer I probably drinking water or coffee.

 

[Rumpy Tunanator]

[History Professor Hat] Factually untrue. America had a vast and diverse brewing history until the Prohibitionists fudged it all up. Post-prohibition, there were still quite a variety of boutique brewers until they could no longer compete with the major brewers, who by the way, created the distribution model largely used by that discount retailer we all know and love so. My dad's brew of choice was a Jersey brew by the name of Horlacher, and I assure you it did not taste like Bud ;-) Only recently have Americans come to appreciate their beer heritage and sought out new and different alternatives to that offered by the mass brewers.[/History Professor Hat]

Those damn Prohibitionists and the Temperance (sp?) Movement killed the industry here. Some of the old breweries buildings still exisit. The local brew, Flying Bison is actually growing and the company is going to start selling bottled beer to stores. They already sell jugs, and at the store down the street you can take your pick and fill up the jug.

http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial/20040528/1053531.asp

As a kid, I liked beer up untill some bad experiences like NYE when I was 15 and the time a couple of friends and I stole a 6 pack of Genny Cream Ale out of someone's car. That was barfolisious good :-#

I guess somewhere around 20 I started drinking beer again and gave up the whiskey.

 

[boiker]

... taste is not an issue as they think there is a difference between Miller and Bud products.

But there is a difference.. One sucks more! :-D

As for the rest of what you posted, I've yet to take a "beer tour" and tantalize my tastebuds with good beer.

 

[Duke Of Dystopia]

But there is a difference.. One sucks more! :-D

As for the rest of what you posted, I've yet to take a "beer tour" and tantalize my tastebuds with good beer.

Describe your tast profile you want, and I can guide you to the right style. :-D

 

[mike gurnee]

My parents couldn't wait until spring in the 40s to get a few cases of bock beer. Their store would hang the sign of the goat for a great brew.

 

[Maister]

[History Professor Hat] Factually untrue. America had a vast and diverse brewing history until the Prohibitionists fudged it all up. Post-prohibition, there were still quite a variety of boutique brewers until they could no longer compete with the major brewers, who by the way, created the distribution model largely used by that discount retailer we all know and love so.

You are of course right on this point and I was aware of the situation prohibition caused. I just figured that these events did not occur within 99% of Cyburbians lifetime - what beer history nut would be lurking out there privy to this little known fact? ;-) Boy, was I wrong!

 

[Duke Of Dystopia]

You are of course right on this point and I was aware of the situation prohibition caused. I just figured that these events did not occur within 99% of Cyburbians lifetime - what beer history nut would be lurking out there privy to this little known fact? ;-) Boy, was I wrong!

I will raise you on this one. The history of Western Europe and a large part of the middle east, can be told in the history of beer.

There is a reason why German beers are difficult to make by style than English style beers. There are a whole host of trade issues that have been faught over and changed with mass markets, even from the 1100's on. Its amazing.

Wine is simple, 205 elements in the soil that create the profile for that years wine. In beer, you have at least that many elements times the number of different ingredients added, modified by the amounts of each item used. It is much more difficult to make a good beer than a good wine.

Test question for you: Whats the difference between an "India Pale Ale's" and a british bitter? and why? :-D

 

[Budgie]

Once you learn to stomach Mad Dog (M/D 20 20), you can drink anything.

 

[Big Easy King]

Once you learn to stomach Mad Dog (M/D 20 20), you can drink anything.

The truth has been spoken. Thunderbird also.

 

[Chet]

My favorite Beer of all time is KENYA Tusker Lager
It seems that every 7 or so years, this beer is available for 1 year then off the North American Market for another 7 years. If you get a chance, try it.....

That is a great beer! Every once in a while I'll get a hankerin' for a good skunky beer.

 

[Maister]

The gransdsons of Adolphus Bush just do not understand they should fear my beer making ability as of yet, but they someday will learn. Reject the swill that is american Macro brew, revolt while you still have taste buds!

I know what you mean when it comes to consumption of macro brew in mainstream American culture. Yes, there is very little difference in flavor from one major to the next, but I want to tell you a story which I hope will encourage you to moderate your view on this matter somewhat; I know it did mine.

When the newly wedded Mr. & Mrs. Maister went on their honeymoon back in '93 where did they go? Paris...Niagra Falls....Vegas? No, they went on a coast to coast tour of microbreweries and camprgrounds!!! We had some tasty brew along the way I can tell you. Anyways, we were looking for a place to fill up our camping water conatinainers while driving near LaCrosse, WI. I happened to see a sign which said "world's purest drinking water ahead". We get downtown and lo and behold the place where this pure water is at is the Heilman Brewery. Just for grins and giggles the wife and I decide to take the brewery tour. At the end of the tour we got offered the traditional free tasting. I tried the Old Style. My God, it actually tasted good! Without thinking I said aloud "man, how come this doesn't taste like the SH*T you get in the bar or at the store at all!" the tourguide who couldn't help but overhear said quietly 'You know why don't you - it's because the stuff you're drinking now is freshly brewed and is unpasteurized the stuff that leaves the factory isn't"

Now the beer connoisseuers out there I'm sure have heard that pasteurization affects the flavor of beer. I had heard it before that time and understood it intellectually but I did not realize on an experiential level just how profoundly it had a detrimental effect (believe it or not it tasted like a lighter-bodied Honker's Ale!). I encourage all beer snobs out there to take the 'Pepsi challenge' with a macro brew sometime. You might be surprised.

 

[Tom R]

wine

The truth has been spoken. Thunderbird also.

In the Army we used to drink a vin rose that was cheaper than T bird.

 

[Maister]

Test question for you: Whats the difference between an "India Pale Ale's" and a british bitter? and why? :-D

I could cheat and Google this one but I will resist. I don't really know the answer but will make an educated guess.

I know that IPA's, as their name implies, were designed to last a voyage on an Indiaman cargo ship. Hops were not only used as a flavor agent but also as a preservative. IPA's were lighter bodied and were heavily hopped with lots of different combinations of lower alpha acid hops (saaz, fuggles and the like). A british bitter is also a lighter bodied ale using lower acid hops but not being intended for export does/did not need as much hops and also did not use as many varieties for finishing.

How'd I do?

 

[donk]

In the Army we used to drink a vin rose that was cheaper than T bird.

Or the canadian equivalents alcools or hermits wine.

Alcools cocktail, use alcools instead of water to make grape koolaid.

Hermits, a NB tradition. yech

 

[Budgie]

The truth has been spoken. Thunderbird also.

I love sulfates.

 

[H]

What changed?

Nothing. I remember Dad & Grampy giving me sips out of their Bud can (followed by a hollering from momma or gramma)when I was like 8 or so and I LOVED it

MMMMMMMMMM, MMMMMMMMMMMMMMM, beer :b:

Now I like all beers. Strohs, PBR, Presidente, High Life, & Bud are some you might find in my fridge.

However, I do limit my beer intake because I am not a big fan of the gut.

Well, it is 4 pm on the Friday before Memorial Day weekend, I left work early and I have company on the way......yep, it looks like it is in fact beer thirty. :-D :b:

 

[Repo Man]

That being said, I've never ever liked Miller Lite. I hate it. It the most flavorless, watery, non-beer ever.

Apparently you have never had Bud Light. :-0

My dad drank Andeker, Coors, and Michelob. Every once in a while I would take a sip and to be honest I think that I instantly liked it. When I was older and more brave I would swipe one just for myself. When I first started drinking beer it was the typical CHEAP American lager, like Jacob's Best (Pabst's budget brand), Milwaukees Best, Bush Light Draft. Every once in a while we would splurge and get some Pabst, Miller Genuine Draft or High Life.

Then my Freshman year my roommate in the dorms took me to this liquor store and there were single bottles of imports and a few microbrews (the mircobrewery craze would come a couple years later). We bought all kinds of stuff, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, Guinness, Hacker Pschorr , Newcastle, etc. From that point on I have loved imports and microbrews. In college my budget made "good" beer a rare treat but once I was out in the real world I almost exclusivly begain drinking microbrews. Every once in a while I will still grab a case of Pabst or MGD, but usually I stick with New Glarus and Lakefront Brewery Micros and try to sample any other microbrew that catches my eye. I tend to gravitate towards bold, flavroful brews like Porter, Stouts, IPAs and high gravity double and triple bocks. I haven't found to many beers that I don't like.


"When I was seventeen...I had some very good beer...
I had some very good beer I purchased with a fake I.D...
My name was Brian McGee...I stayed up listening to Queen...
When I was seventeen..."

 

[Maister]

usually I stick with New Glarus and Lakefront Brewery Micros and try to sample any other microbrew that catches my eye. I tend to gravitate towards bold, flavroful brews like Porter, Stouts, IPAs and high gravity double and triple bocks. I haven't found to many beers that I don't like.


[/I]

I bought a 6 of Uff Da (brewed by New Glarus) about maybe 7 years ago. It was good enough that I remember it to this day.

 

[nuovorecord]

I've gotta give Molson Canadian my pick for a good, "everyday" lager. Unlike Bud, Miller, other US macrobrews, it actually has flavor.

The Northwest is a haven for microbrews. Bridgeport makes a number of excellent beers as does Red Hook and Pyramid. Red Hook ESB is excellent, as is Blue Heron by Bridgeport. Can't wait to get home and pop open a couple!

 

[Duke Of Dystopia]

I could cheat and Google this one but I will resist. I don't really .......How'd I do?

WOOOHWOOOOO! You pass with flying colors! :-D


Check out the Spoted Cow from New Glarus Brewing if you get a shot.

 

[martini]

Check out the Spoted Cow from New Glarus Brewing if you get a shot.

oh...my...god I'm so hooked on New Glarus right now that I could easily go into withdrawl symptoms. You 'sconni bastards won't ship it over to us freindly Minneosodans, so I only get it when I'm over that-a way. Actually, its one of the reasons I'm moving there. I need the regular fix! :-D

Anyways, I've always loved beer, ever since me and a buddy would run around stealing it from coolers at the racetracks our dads were at. We'd sneak up and grab as many as we could and run off to the woods and drink it. Most of it was cheap crap, but I had no idea then. Ah, the mis-spent days of youth. Wait, they weren't mis-spent! Those were GOOD days!

These days, I usually gravitate to the 'heavier' beers that have more flavor. Porters, Stouts, etc. Especailly in winter. During the warmer months, I like a nice, lighter lager. The last decasde or so has seen my fair share of Premium go down my throat.

 

[Richmond Jake]

I love sulfates.

What he said. Good red wine is the cure for many ailments (but my first drink of alcohol, when I was in junior high school, was Colt 45--mean stuff).

 

[Dan]

At the end of the tour we got offered the traditional free tasting. I tried the Old Style. My God, it actually tasted good! Without thinking I said aloud "man, how come this doesn't taste like the SH*T you get in the bar or at the store at all!" the tourguide who couldn't help but overhear said quietly 'You know why don't you - it's because the stuff you're drinking now is freshly brewed and is unpasteurized the stuff that leaves the factory isn't".

I had a similar experience several years ago, during a VIP "off the beaten track" tour of the massive Coors brewery in Golden, Colorado. The tour guide took us to the cold filtering room, a place that's normally off-limits during normal tours. At the end of a 40' long filter is a small spigot. The tour guide turned on the spigot, poured us samples, and let us quaff.

"Oh my god! This is great! What is this?"
"Coors Light."

I have no idea what happens to Coors Light between the end of the cold filter, where the beer is as fresh as it will ever be, and the c-store down the street.

Coors actually makes some decent custom beers, like their Winterfest varieties, and the micros brewed at a small brewpub they own in Coors Field.

Rumpy brought up Genesee Cream Ale. Genny is one of those beers that, when you're growing up in Buffalo, you think of as an "old man beer," something that your retired steelworker grandfather drank while listening to Sunday morning polkas on the radio, and mainly to feel "regular.". However, when you leave the area, you suddenly start to crave the stuff, like it's the nectar of the gods. I bought a case of Screamers down to New Mexico with me once, and took some to a party. I was surrounded ... "Were did you get that?" "Oh my god ... Can I have a sip? Pleeeeeease?

 

[Gedunker]

Rumpy brought up Genesee Cream Ale. Genny is one of those beers that, when you're growing up in Buffalo, you think of as an "old man beer," something that your retired steelworker grandfather drank while listening to Sunday morning polkas on the radio, and mainly to feel "regular.". However, when you leave the area, you suddenly start to crave the stuff, like it's the nectar of the gods. I bought a case of Screamers down to New Mexico with me once, and took some to a party. I was surrounded ... "Were did you get that?" "Oh my god ... Can I have a sip? Pleeeeeease?

Having spent 4+ years ('79-'83) in and near Scranton, PA, I consumed some Gennies. For some reason, it never resonated with me, preferring the Pennsy brand of Rolling Rock (before it was a nationally marketed brand).

I did enjoy Genesee's clever ad campaigns, including "I Dream of Genny" and "Gennies from Heaven" :-D

Edit: We can't buy packie beer, wine or liquor in Indiana on Sundays (you can get it by the drink if the restaurant makes more than 50% of its income from food sales) so we all schlepp over to Louisville if we need beer or wine. I just got back a little while ago with Weihenstephaner Hefe Weissbier. Thier label refers to the bewery as the "oldest brewery in the world". First time I've had this brand and it's pretty good, with a cereal base and a nice fruity bouquet. $7.99 for a cold six :-}

 

[michaelskis]

Maister can agree that Beer is a sensitive subject for me. Mainly because I have been spoiled with having the opportunity to have some higher quality beers. Here is what I have learned about beer...

Beer should NEVER be in a can that does not need a Tap.
Many *but not all* American beers are to close to watered down camel pi$$
Killian’s is a great beer, from Colorado and Harp is a great beer from Canada (yes that is right... check the bottle) but Guinness is the real thing.
Do not try to buy nor drink Bells Oberon in winter, and don’t drink Winter Wheat in summer. Nor do you drink Pumpkin Beer in the Spring, or Blue Berry Ale in the late fall.
You can tell a real Irish Pub from a fake one from the Shamrock in the foam of the Guinness. (The shamrock should sink into the foam from creative pouring, if it is raised.... it is a stamp and a fake, if there is no shamrock, your bartender sucks and it is not a “real” Irish pub!)
Yuengling Lager is just like Killian’s with a smooth taste, less bite, and not after taste. (Oh and much is made in the same building since 1829 in America’s Oldest Brewery)

Finally... Cheep Beer is not an excuse for anything.

 

[JNL]

I think beer is my favorite adult beverage. It was not always so, though......[snip] I remember choking down the first few gulps and thinking just how awful it tasted. Hell, the only reason we were drinking it was because it would get us drunk.......the years pass and while I cannot pinpoint a particular place or time I somehow came to LIKE the taste of beer.

Ditto here. I gave up on beer for a few years, then 2 summers ago, it was a hot sunny afternoon and my male flatmate of the time had some (male) friends over and they all had their shirts off, drinking beer outside.. what was a girl to do, but join in? 8-!

So that got me back into it :-D and since then I have developed a taste for lagers.

I have heard something about how our palate changes as we get older, but I don't know why.

 

[Duke Of Dystopia]

.......Here is what I have learned about beer...

......You can tell a real Irish Pub from a fake one from the Shamrock in the foam of the Guinness.....

Don't know about that, but I think you should visit McAeters Pub on North Milwaukee Ave in CHI if you ever visit on the weekend. Fri & Sat are live, and Sunday night Eddie and his band REALLY let loose.

I am sure I have donated to the IRA on numerous occasions through my purchase of one pint after another. Its not really a bar for americans. Worth the effort to experience it*.

*NOTE:
This is a dingy little dive that is ALIVE, not the yupified creation devoted to making you feel comfortable. If you can't handle Boby Sands and others on the wall "in a real sense" try something safe. 8-!

** I have a talent for finding these places. :-D

 

[SlaveToTheGrind]

The truth has been spoken. Thunderbird also.

"....I fell in love down in Mexico, Thunderbird wine's the only way to go...."

ZZ Top - Give It Up

..they all had their shirts off, drinking beer outside.. what was a girl to do, but join in? 8-!

The beer or the shirts, or both? :-D

 

[Budgie]

Do not try to buy nor drink Bells Oberon in winter, and don’t drink Winter Wheat in summer. Nor do you drink Pumpkin Beer in the Spring, or Blue Berry Ale in the late fall.

I hate fruity beers. The High Noon Saloon in Leavenworth just finished a batch of whiskey stout that is aged in old whiskey barrels. Talk about a stout that'll put you on your backside. They also make a coffee stout, which is smooth as a cheerleader's thigh.

I'm still waiting for the beer flavored wine cooler.

 

[Duke Of Dystopia]

.....

I'm still waiting for the beer flavored wine cooler.

They are called Lambics, the name of the style is Lambic, and they have been around for at least a couple hundred years! :-D

Skip any american version of them, as they are just fruit flavored beer. A real Lambic is a fermented fruit beer, that then has about 80 different types of bacteria innoculated into the beer over a 2 to 3 year period.

Those silly Bellgians do all KINDS of crazy stuff to beer! :-D

 

[otterpop]

I too didn't like the taste of beer when I first started drinking. But I liked the taste of wine even less. In my youth I liked Pearl because it has a very miled taste (watery, I guess would be the way to describe it). Drank a lot of generic beer, too (which I think was Falstaff). Got into the microbrew phase early and my taste in beer improved. Now I've tasted many different kinds of beer.

I like the local microbrews whereever I am living. Henry Weinhard's Ale is a favorite of mine when I want a good tasting beer that is not as pricey. Corona is decent. I can really drink about any beer except Budweiser.

 

[boiker]

They also make a coffee stout, which is smooth as a cheerleader's thigh.

MMMM.. coffee.

There's a microbrew here in Peoria that has a very good chocolate stout. wow.

 

[JNL]

The beer or the shirts, or both? :-D

The beer, Wise Guy!

 

[Downtown]

Good question - Since entering adulthood, I've learned to drink coffee and alcohol, and re-set my position on broccoli, tomatos and asperagas. I think your tastes do evolve as you mature.

And I'm a Bass and Harp girl, myself, but wouldn't kick a Magic Hat out of bed for eating crackers.

 

[Bear Up North]

This Bear drinks Rolling Rock and Bud. The Bud is when I'm being a straight-a## at the local establishment. The Rock is for sitting by the campfire and howling at the moon.

Never was much of a fan for micros, darks, etc. Sheltered life, you know.

Bear In The Shelter