103 replies to this topic

[Cunningham]

Any beer drinkers on this board? Anyone with a favorite?

In the US, I really enjoy Michelob Honey Lager, Ace Apple Cider, and Shiner Bock. When I did a summer study in France, I greatly enjoyed a Belgian beer called Leffe. Here in Nigeria it's not really culturally approprate for Christians to drink, but when opportunity knocks, there's an excellent Nigerian beer called Gulder (the only good beer made in country in fact).

I absolutely cannot stand the yellow filth known as "domestic light" beer.

[MattPage]

Tetleys or Pedigree, or my favourite - Theakston's Old Peculiar

Matt

Edited by MattPage, 22 April 2005 - 03:33 AM.

[Greg P]

Nothing all that exotic or exciting... although I tend to enjoy the darker brews best... Favorites: Killian's Red, Red Stripe, Michelob's Amber Bock

[Mark]

Pretty low-rent beer taste here, but my best is Dos Equis. So smooth. Also enjoy Killian's Red.

[Cunningham]

Pretty low-rent beer taste here, but my best is Dos Equis. So smooth. Also enjoy Killian's Red.

No Tex-Mex meal is complete without a Dos Equis. Killians is great on tap, but I enjoy it less from the supermarket. Still better than average though.

[Greg P]

Killians is great on tap, but I enjoy it less from the supermarket.

Ya! This is true with most beers, but especially with Killian's, i find.

[Darrel Manson]

I usually get one of the beers from Mendicino Brewing Company. Favorite of the bunch is Red Tail Ale, currently i have some White Hawk IPA.

[Jason Bortz]

Welllll,

*cracks knuckles*

I think my favorite beer to recollect is still Pike Place Pale Ale from Seattle--but I haven't had that in forever. It's followed closely by a near-barleywine powerhouse called Bigfoot, brewed by the Sierra Nevada Brewing Company. When available, I'll go for Harp Lager, a subsidiary of the Guinness Group in Ireland. I used to drink Guinness solely, but it wasn't condusive to any of my fitness plans.

Rogue Dead Guy ale is good, but I think I'm partial just because of the name.

[smith_chip]

As I get older, I drink less and less beer. (I never used to worry about a beer belly!) Anyway, when I lived in Pittsburgh, my house was at the top of the hill overlooking the Penn Brewery. I really miss their Penn Dark and St. Nick's Bock. They are both Münchener Dunkel style beers. These days, if I have a beer, it's whatever is on nitro at the bar.

[Crow]

I like Killian's Red also, along with New Belgium 1554 Black Ale, Boulevard Wheat, Blue Moon, and when I'm in the mood, a Guiness. I agree that beer from the tap tends to be much better than bottled beer. However, two beers I really like from the bottle are McEwan's Scotch Ale and Theakson's Old Peculiar.

[Jeff Kolb]

Mmmm...let's see...

Overall favourite: Chimay: Grande Reserve. It's heaven in a (corked!) bottle. And expensive!

Favourite NW micro (tie): Anderson Valley Brewing: Winter Solstice Seasonal Ale/ Big Sky Brewing: Powder Hound Winter Ale

Favourite come-home-to beer: Deschutes: Mirror Pond Pale

And honourable mentions go to: New Belgium (Abbey, Biere de Mars, Trippel), Guinness (and Harp), Beamish or Murphy's Irish Stout, Boddington's, Anderson Valley (Boont Amber), Alaska (Winter, Amber, Porter), etc, etc, etc...

[Nick Alexander]

This may not count for some folks, but I'm a fan of non-alcoholic brews. (Not O'Douls!! BLECCH!!). But Clausthaler, St. Pauli Girl's N/A, and Beck's Haaken whatever, those suit me just fine.

Nick

[Jason Bortz]

I just had a Clausthaler the other day. Not too bad. But are they truly alcohol free, you ask?

No, in spite of or because of, all our knowledge and all our technical proficiency, we know that a minimal quantity of alcohol must be produced to create a good tasting non-alcoholic malt beverage. The alcohol content of Clausthaler is 0.45 (or 0.25 for Clausthaler Radler Lemon) % vol, which lies below the 0.5 % vol maximum alcohol content specified in the statutes as the definition of "non-alcoholic", "dealcoholized", or "alcohol-removed". In Great Britain, the term "alcohol-free" may only be used for products with not more than 0.05 % vol detectable alcohol content.

In the United States, the term "alcohol-free" may only be used for products with no detectable alcohol content. 0.45 (or 0.25*) % vol is such a small quantity that many other food products contain similar alcohol quantities. Nearly all fruit juices all have traces of alcohol. In Germany, grape juice is officially allowed to contain up to 1.0 % vol alcohol and soft drinks may contain up to 0.3 % vol alcohol.

Such low alcohol concentrations have no effect on the body organism. Scientific research carried out in the Institute for Medical Law at the University of Frankfurt am Main has confirmed that the consumption of Clausthaler has no effect on one's BAC (blood alcohol content) or on one's ability to react. The conclusion of the expert opinion was that even the consumption of 1.5 Clausthaler within one hour would not raise the natural BAC(blood alcohol content).

Drink fifty!

[Rich Kennedy]

I used to drink Guinness solely, but it wasn't condusive to any of my fitness plans.

Ahh, I remember the Sunday afternoon brunches well, so long ago. Two Guinnesses, an omelet and hashbrowns, and the NY Times Sunday edition. It's what drove me to bourbon. That was the early '80's.

But to beer, sparingly. So many brew pubs around here, but I like Tecate, various Samuel Adams seasonal brews without fruit flavors, (dare I say) Amstel Light, Haacker*Pschorr heffe-weisse.

Any fans of malt liquor? Molson Brador (only available in Canada, made me notice this), of American brews, Schlitz is still my favorite if I can find it. Here, it is sadly marketed as a cheap high in poor neighborhoods, but is still a pleasant quaff.

Edited by Rich Kennedy, 22 April 2005 - 06:12 PM.

[Andrew]

Ah, so many beers, so little time. I'm partial to stouts and very dark brews myself, so Guinness will always do in a pinch if I can't find something a bit more exotic. I love a well-made Belgian ale, with the interesting fruit and spice flavors mixed in subtly. Ommegang Brewery in Cooperstown, NY, makes some good Belgian brews - I'd love to get my hands on their well-nigh impossible to find Cave Aged Ale. Then there's Otter Creek, a terrific microbrewery in Middlebury, Vermont - their variations are consistently excellent. If I want something lighter, I enjoy Tsingtao - a beer made in Qingdao, China, a city formerly colonized by Germany. For sentimentality's sake, I enjoy Kronenborg 1664, an Alsatian beer that I fondly remember drinking at a creperie in Annecy, a lovely Alpine town near the Swiss border; or, 333, a Vietnamese ale that I quaffed in the world's best seafood joint, on China Beach.

[MattPage]

However, two beers I really like from the bottle are McEwan's Scotch Ale and Theakson's Old Peculiar.

Crow you should try it from the pump - even better it goes down far too easily for something that's so alcoholic

Guinness (and Harp), Beamish or Murphy's Irish Stout, Boddington's,

Has anyone had the chance to compare these beers (particularly in Guiness) in Ireland, Britain and America. Guiness doesn't travel particularly well ( a bit like tetleys which you haven't really had until you've had it in Leeds), not East at any rate, so I wonder how good it would be in America. Strangely the best pint of Guiness I ever had was in Northern Ireland rather than Eire. The best pint I had in Eire was the Murphy's which was fantastic.

But the pint I most long to sample again is actually a Scottish Stout - Gillespie's only had it twice it;'s been good both times, but the first, in Aberavon rugby club bar was amazing.

Matt

[Darren H]

I'm no beer connoisseur, but I know that I prefer darker beers to light. Lately, my standard, stock-the-fridge-with-at-least-one-six-pack beer has been Sierra Nevada's Porter. When I go out, my favorite beer from the tap is Newcastle. Though I rarely drink more than one beer at a sitting, I'm guessing my in-take will increase significantly next month.

It's what drove me to bourbon.

Rich, what bourbon do you drink? Ever since a beach trip last summer, I've been drinking a lot of Maker's Mark.

[Buckeye Jones]

Now in its proper thread (thanks Darrel for finding! ):

So here's a quick rundown of a few of my favorites. But I'm not a beer reviewer--I struggle to articulate the nuances of why I like what I like. But here's hoping that you all can help me out.

Everyday beers:

Samuel Adams Boston Lager--the best of the mass marketed brews, a Vienna lager with an easy drinkability, pours a nice amber, with a nice lacey head that dissipates too quickly. Nice balance and robust finish. Better from tap vs. bottle, but still good to have at home.

Great Lakes Eliot Ness--an amber lager, with a rich red color. Spicier than the Sam Adams, I think it pairs best with richer foods. Only available in the Midwest. Not pasteurized, so if you buy some, make sure its been refrigerated.

Special Occasions (dictated by price )

Coniston Brewery Bluebird Bitter--the best ESB I've ever had. Clean, rich taste, smooth. A light lacing of head, but almost no carbonation. With a low ABV, this is a classic session ale. At 2.99/pint here in Cincinnati, I don't have it often, but when I do I wish I was related to the importer.

Old Rasputin Imperial Stout--wow! I'd given up on stouts after a falling out with Guinness (brown water), but this spicy, fiery, rich, bold stout brought me back to the fold. Expensive, but well worth it. A perfect winter brew, but beware its near 10% ABV.

My absolute favorite:

Westmalle Tripel--the original Trappist tripel. A few years ago, my local independent grocery told me that the importer had lost the contract and they didn't know if they'd be getting any more of this stuff, so I bought a case of it. That case lasted me four years, and this beer got better with each year. A golden tripel, with a rich, fruity, complex taste. Absolutely needs a goblet, but its cloudy goldeness holds a special taste and aroma thats as easy on the eyes as it is on the palate. Brewed by monks, I submit this is the beer that will be served in heaven. You can see a picture of it on my Flickr stream.

Edited by Buckeye Jones, 27 March 2006 - 02:45 PM.

[Russ]

Has anyone here had Magic Hat? It's from Vermont, and not available in western Pennsylvania. I thought it was spectacular.

[Overstreet]

I'm with Darren. Newcastle from the tap is my favorite.

But I don't find it that often, so Guinness is the faithful standby. Delivers almost every time (so long as it's on tap, and they know not to chill it.) If that's not available, Beamish is a satisfying (if slightly sweeter) substitute.

From bottles, my favorites are Black Butte Porter, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale (the best bottled pale ale), and any of the New Belgium beers, which are just amazing considering that they're bottled. I especially like the Belgian Black Ale called 1554, and their popular Fat Tire never disappoints either. Once, I had their Bier de Mars from the tap, and that was extraordinary.

For a change of pace, I occasionally those cool, small, chubby bottles of Duvel.

On hot summer evenings, my wife has drawn me into her nostalgia for Corona with slices of lime, to accompany a bowl of tortilla chips and salsa.

Edited by Jeffrey Overstreet, 27 March 2006 - 02:35 PM.