Favorite beer?

[Silo]

I'm an Icehouse man myself. But Coors and Michelob are good. Don't care too much for Miller beer. As always...bottles beat out aluminum cans.

[Jo3sh]

There are just SO MANY good beers out there, it's impossible to narrow it down to one favorite. I'm fond of anything Sierra Nevada makes, though. I also like anything Anchor makes. North Coast brewing is good, too. Damnit, I can't even decide on a favorite BREWERY, much less a favorite BEER.

[radar ralf]

I know this will sound like heresy to beer lovers everywhere, but I prefer Miller High Life. I used to drink lots of Coors, but the Coors I get here in Alaska doesn't taste the same as the Coors I got back in Kansas.

I know, I know - both of those beers are like sex in a canoe...

[MysterEcks]

Coors is good, as is Keystone (Coors in a different can). I like the occasional Iron City, too, though I don't know whether that's anywhere outside of Western Pennsylvania and Eastern Ohio.

I used to really enjoy Michelob Dry, before it went away.

[Kilgore Trout]

http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=19256

http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=18558

http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=24897

[Kat]

Root.

[Kallessa]

John Courage or Bass. I'm a snob, and I know it.

[Typo Negative]

It's been many a year since I sampled a brew, but if memory serves, it would be 'Little Kings cream ale' out of Cincinati, Ohio.

[Motorgirl]

Tremont Ale (prefer on tap)
Harpoon IPA
Smutty Nose Old Brown Dog Ale
Pete's ESB - on hot days
Caffrey's

In that order, probably

[Pizzle Boy]

Moosehead...I just love it. It's brewed in Halifax, NS. It's my personal fav. that I can actually get on a regualr basis.

The ultimate beer (which I can only get once every year or two) is Alpine. Also brewed by Moosehead brewries...but now shipped to Ontario yet...If you ever go to New Bruswick/Nova Scotia I highly recommend picking some up.

Have a nice day.

Oh yeah...give micro brewries a try...they'll suprise you.

[Daniel]

Bass.

[missbunny]

Guinness. It's good for you.

Afligem Tripel (I'm sure that's spelled wrong). The Champagne of beers.

[Cogitoergosum]

Hmmm...I'm a Sam Adams man myself, but I have to say I tend more to the microbreweries. Of course, being in highschool, I usually get stuck with monkey piss

[Coldfire]

Afligem Tripel (I'm sure that's spelled wrong). The Champagne of beers.


missbunny, fine taste in beers you got there. It's Affligem, BTW. Pretty close eh ;)

Anyway, if you like Affligem Triple, you'll LOVE the following:
* Kasteelbier Triple
* Leffe Triple
* Westmalle Triple
* Orval Triple


My personal favourites are various and depending on category:

Lager/Pilsner: Grolsch (www.grolsch.nl), Warsteiner (www.warsteiner.de) and Hertog Jan (http://www.hertogjan.nl/)
Stout: Murphy's (http://www.murphysbeers.com/) Irish Stout (smoother, silkier than Guinness)
Belgian Trappist: Westvleteren Abt (http://speth08.wu-wien.ac.at/usr/marketing/salzberg/impress/vrede2.html) (a 12% beer, possibly my overall fave)
Belgian "Sweet": Oerbier (http://beer.tcm.hut.fi/Kuvat/Etiketit/oerbier.gif), by the Dolle Brouwers ("Insane Brewers") Brewery. It's so sweet your teeth will fall right out, yet it has a very captivating taste (and I'm not a sweet beer man, usually!)

Damn, I'm a man of good taste :p

[Coldfire]

I mocked up two links. Being the swell guy I am, I decided to fix them right here and now:

Go here (http://www.grolsch.com/) for Grolsch and go here (http://www.warsteiner.de/) for Warsteiner. The rest work fine in the post above.

[JimmyNipples]

Canadian beer is wonderful.....American beer... horse piss

Kokanee is a good one, of course there's Canadaian as well.....very tastey.

My absolute fav is Tin Whistle Beer out of Penticton BC.

Hugh bottles, the most refreshing beer on the planet.

American beer is substandard by comparison. Then again, Canadian beer pales in comparison to English and some European beers.


Yours beerly,

Graeme

[ReservoirDog]

Corona or Harp.

[missbunny]

Why, thank you, Coldfire. Re the Affligem Triple: a few years ago I bought a case for a serious beer-o-phile as a wedding gift. I had never had it before, so I also bought a single bottle to try out before I gave a case of something that might be horrible. My taste buds haven't been the same since.

By the way, my friend said it was by far the best wedding present he received.

[billyt123]

Moose Drool, its by Big Sky Brewing co. from Montana

[Fleetwood]

My favorite is usually whatever you put in my hand as I walk in the door (actually hands, as I am ambeerdexterous - I can drink with either hand).

[DoctorJ]

Sierra Nevada makes the best beers in America, IMO. My favorite is the Celebration Ale, but the Pale Ale keeps me going through the year. The Bigfoot Barleywine is great if you don't have anywhere to be for about three days.

I think Killian's and, to a lesser extent, Amber Bock are both very drinkable. They're usually the "mid-priced" selections around here between the expensive imports/micros and the cheapo Wonder Bread domestics, and they're what I'll usually order if I'm out and planning to drink more than a few.

There is very little in the world better than a perfectly poured pint of Guinness. Fortunately, I live just across the street from a pub that produces just such a thing for a mere $3.50. But what do they sell more of than anything? Bud Light. Boggles the mind.

And, at the risk of pissing off a few folks--what's the freaking big deal with Corona? How, exactly, does it differ from the standard American domestic? (Other than price, that is.) Is it the lime? I mean, they'll put a lime in a bottle of Old Milwaukee for you if you ask. I guarantee you wouldn't know the difference. (A friend of mine left about six bottles of Corona Light in my refrigerator about two months ago. In my refrigerator they will stay, too, until I need the room for some actual beer.) Now, Dos Equis Amber, with a lime and plenty of hot salsa and chips--now we're talking.

Dr. J

[Czarcasm]

Favorite brand of beer? Hair Of The Dog Brewery.
Favorite Beer? Hair Of The Dog's Fred.

[johnson]

Glad to see someone mention Celebration--fantastic stuff. Stunned that nobody mentioned Pilsener Urquell. The best lager by far (never been able to get a hold of the real Budweiser). Guinness, of course, and I'm also a big fan of Wild Goose IPA. Fresh Sam Adams is good, as is their Scotch Ale (and Boston Ale, for that matter).

I guess the better question is what beers are bad beers?

[Jo3sh]

Canadian beer is wonderful.....American beer... horse piss


Hold on there...

I don't think the distinction is all that clear. All three of the breweries I mentioned in my earlier post to this thread are American, and they're all fine breweries. Fritz Maytag, owner of Anchor, is credited with single-handedly revivng craft beer in America. Sierra Nevada has a stunning range of beers, and EVERY ONE of them is top-notch.

And, having travelled in Canada, I can say that not all Canadian beer is the nectar of the Gods, either. Yes, I have had quite a number of excellent pints in a variety of styles, but I've also had some pretty miserable swill.

Slythe, sorry if this tips over the edge into Great Debates territory, but a guy gets passionate about his beer. I'd mail you one as an apology if I could figure out how to upload it.

[capybara]

Doh! Just posted in the Bock thread, but to recap:
Lately I've fallen in love with hops. Lots of hops. Hops, hops, hops. IPA, ESB or more. There's something out here on the west coast called Anderson Valley Brewing's Hop Ottin IPA, which does the trick.

I am also very partial to strange Belgian things-- not so much the lambics as the difficult to describe, estery, coriander-hinted but not technically a witbier beers. The nice people who make the Guillotine and Delerium Tremens (from some suburb of Ghent) have a glorious new one out called Delerium Nocturne that I encountered in San Francisco . Yum yum.

Missbunny and Coldfire-- exactly. You know what I mean. Coldie-- last summer when I was in town I had some brews made by Het Ij Brewery and they were lovely. Why is the town run by Heineken when there are truly brilliant things around? When I'm in Belgium I drink a lot of De Koninck-- it's not too spendy.

Slythe-- where you live do they sell the magnums of Fred? That's a goodie for a celebration.

Oh, God. I just realized I could go on and on about beer. . . do I have a problem, do you think?

[Eo Echo]

My favorite beer is from old Latrobe, Rolling Rock, preferably in cans, as for some reason I love really carbonated beer. So if American beer is horsepiss, than this is quarter horse piss, with Budweiser obviously being Clydesdale piss.

[Coldfire]

M.K. wrote:


Missbunny and Coldfire-- exactly. You know what I mean. Coldie-- last summer when I was in town I had some brews made by Het Ij Brewery and they were lovely. Why is the town run by Heineken when there are truly brilliant things around? When I'm in Belgium I drink a lot of De Koninck-- it's not too spendy.


Ah, another man of good taste! Did you visit Brouwerij het IJ ? For those not in the know, it is a relatively new brewery (founded in the 60's or 70's, I think) that is located in a beautiful old wooden windmill (early 19th or late 18th century) in the old (commercially unused) Amsterdam harbour. Their beers are very nice indeed, and -as I'm sure MK will agree- very tricky as well ;)

The town is run by Heineken because:
a) Heineken has its head office in Amsterdam (and its original brewery, which is more of a museum these days);
b) Heineken is the second largest brewery in the world and can dominate any town if they want to :D

De Koninck is pretty good, but rather mainstream. There's an endless variety of obscure Belgian breweries that produce some wonderful beers in any category. As an alternative for De Koninck ("The King", old spelling), I'd suggest a Houten Kop ("Wooden Head") or a Bink ("cool guy", sort of). Most Belgian bars with a more than average beer list will have them.

[bj0rn]

bear beer, corona extra, giraf strong, becks and krone.

bj0rn - skál

[Motorgirl]

Sierra Nevada makes the best beers in America

I forgot about Sierra Nevada. It was one of the first truly great beers I ever tasted. One of the reasons I decided I didn't actually hate beer, I just did not care for the likes of Old Milwaukee, Piels and Black Label.

I tend to only drink SN on tap, though, since you can easily get a pint for $3, but for some reason the local liquor stores want upwards of $10 a six-pack for SN in bottles.

[Czarcasm]

M.K., they most certainly DO sell magnums of Fred, the most delectable beer in the world! Do you think I would still live in Portland if they didn't? :)

[capybara]

Slythe,
Of course, I didn't know you were in Portland (I used to be there, in Eugene now, sigh). We are members of the secret special devotional confraternity of Hair of the Dog.
As you're a Portlander, two other words: The Horsebrass. Yay.

Coldie-- I'm a girl, but that's ok. No, I didn't visit the brewery-- wasn't sure how to get out there. I will be sure to look for those others on my next stint.

[Czarcasm]

The Horsebrass? Damnstraight! Want to meet up some time for some bangers and shepherd's pie? :) I've got to go back and replenish my supply of jellybabies, anyway.

[GLWasteful]

If I may be so bold as to get in a word for a local (well, local to me anyway) beer.

Boulevard Brewing of Kansas City, MO makes a Pale Ale that I am very much a fan of. They also do an unfiltered wheat that makes for a very refreshing summertime beverage with a slice of lemon. Lessee...Bob's '47, Nutcracker, Porter, and I'm told that they're going to try a weissbier. I've also tried most of the others mentioned here, but I'll still buy a six of Bully Pale over any of them.

Waste
Flick Lives!

[Munch]

Oh, I'm not so much a fan of the IPAs. Too "tart". But I will second GLWasteful on Boulevard. Great "little" brewery. I think their best is the 10 penny, which is hard to find. They once had it on tap at Boardroom Barbeque. It could be seasonal, but unfortunately I don't remember the season...<sigh>

[Czarcasm]

I am vindicated! In the new (June) issue of Maxim magazine, Hair Of The Dog's Fred beer is their "Buzz of the Month". At 11.5% alcohol, it's one of the strongest ales out there. Goes down like a velvet twenty-pound sledgehammer!

[Silo]

I am vindicated! In the new (June) issue of Maxim magazine, Hair Of The Dog's Fred beer is their "Buzz of the Month". At 11.5% alcohol, it's one of the strongest ales out there. Goes down like a velvet twenty-pound sledgehammer!

Wow, 11.5%, I gotta go find some and try it out...I turn 21 on June 3...just one more day...whooopeee!

[Emperor Penguin]

I have to go with Guinness Stout. It has ruined me for all other beers, except for maybe Blanche De Chamblis, which is a white beer (meaning that has sediment floating around in it due to the fact that it is refermented in the bottle). Very, very good. I am also partial to Warstiener or Tuborg, but first and formost I like my stout. (I've always wondered about those bubbles.)

[Eo Echo]

11.5%, eh? And to think I was impressed by 211 (a malt liquor, alas). A shame I haven't seen Fred's at the seedy package store where they call me by name.

[Coldfire]

except for maybe Blanche De Chamblis, which is a white beer (meaning that has sediment floating around in it due to the fact that it is refermented in the bottle).


This is not true. While this IS an excellent white beer, the term "white beer" is a mistranslation from the German word "Weizen", meaning "wheat". The mistake is of course that it resembles the word "Weiß", meaning "White". It is mistranslated in every single language I know of ("Witbier" in Dutch, "Bière Blanche" in French, etc.), which is a little known fact outside Germany. So basically, it is wheat beer rather than "white" beer. The fact that it referments in the bottle is true for most "white" beers, but it is not a unique characteristic. Also, not only white beers have refermentation in the bottle.

On a side note: the word "wisdom tooth" is a mistranslation of the Dutch term "verstandskies". Literally, it means "wisdom tooth", at first glance. However, the term is actually "ver-standskies" (italics meaning emphasis), which would mean "molar positioned far back in the mouth", or words to that effect. It is mistranslated into every language known to man (the reason being that when the term was first used [16th century], the Dutch were best in the world when it came to dental care), and most Dutch people don't know the true meaning of the term either, thus mispronouncing it all the time. Wisdom tooth, dent de sagesse... funny when you realise it ;)

Can you tell I love language trivia? Not as much as I love beer though :D

[Pizzle Boy]

11.5% eh?

Does it come with a knife and fork to eat it with?

[TwistofFate]

ah, beer, one of my favourite topics....

Dough... the stuff that buys me beer
Ray...... the guy who brings me beer
me........the guy thats drinking beer
Far.......the distance to my beer
So......... I think I'll have a beer
La......... la la la la la beer
Tea........ no thanks, Im having beer
which brings me back to....

etc etc etc


Personally, I love Bulmers Cider http://www.bulmers.ie
And, of course, A nice, Creamy, off-cold Guinness with a bishops Collar...... aaahhh

[Minxsmom]

Guinness is my #1 choice.

If I'm not in the mood for such a heavy, dark beer, I go with Harp.

If there is a worst case scenario, and the pub I'm at doesn't have either (unlikely that I'd frequent a place like that :)) I'll go for a Murphy's or Sam Adams.


To be perfectly honest, I'm not a big drinker. 95% of the time I'll end up drinking seltzer or Diet Coke. But, when I'm in the mood those are my choices.

[capybara]

Larrigan, I've been desperately trying to remember the words to that. Yay!

Doh!
A deer!
A FEMALE deer. . .

[oldscratch]

To quote from that great american scribe, Homer Simpson. "I like my beer cold, my T.V. loud, and my homosexuals flaming!"
Coldfire, glad to see someone else who loves Grolsh. When I lived in Amsterdam it was my drink of choice.
For all of you SN fans out there, kudos. I too am quite the fan.
Lagunitas makes, IMHO, the best IPA. Even better than Anderson Valley's. Although they have an excellent Oatmeal stout and an excellent Amber.

My favorite bottled beer has to be Delirium Triemens (sp?). A beer that can trully kick you on your ass and leave you begging for more.

For best brewery? I have to say it's a toss up between New Glarus brewery in Wisconsin. And the good ol Medocino Brewing Company (http://mendobrew.com/). Every one of their 5 main brews is trully in a class by itself. If anyone has a chance I urge you to check out any one of their beers.

[oldscratch]

I just read this and had to share. It's the best description of the differences betweens ales and lagers I have yet read. It's from the Lagunitas Brewing Company (http://www.lagunitas.com/)

"In The beginning, there were ales. As far as anyone knows, the first beers made were 'top-fermented', which is longhand for 'Ale'. Sometime long before the 1860's, beers became popular that were made in Northern Europe with a bottom fermenting yeast strain that liked the colder temperatures. Because they had to spend weeks aging before they tasted their best, they were known as 'Lager' beer. Lager is the German word for 'storage'. Since they had to sit a while, they took up more time and space and as such were harder and more expensive to make. Where ales are meaty, lagers are sinewy. Where ales are stree, lagers are 'haute couture'. Where an ale might hit you over the head and take your wallet, lagers donate to charity and adopt stray cats. While an ale might steal your car or try to date your daughter and keep her out all night for who-knows-what purpose, a well bred lager would offer to clean your house while you're on vacation and leave fresh scones and coffee for you when you return. Now, don't get us wrong, ales can be a lot of fun to hang out with when you're in the right mood, and if you have bail money on you. But what's wrong with livin' uptown from time to time, on a nice street, where the doormen all wear those little uniforms, the air smells of flowers, and lagers rule the Earth. Cheers!"

[Kricket]

My beer knowledge came from a man that I call Big Pappa. He was a bartender at the bar that I worked at who I lost a game of pool to hence the title.
I worked at Fox and Hound where we served over 100 different beers, and I got to try them all except guiness. Sorry guys, but if it doesn't move when I serve it I won't drink it! How many of you get it served right with the shamrock in the head? Do you people know what it takes to pour that let alone get it right? Any fans of black and tans?

Anybody out there like Newcastle? Makes a great cheese soup.

For you Bass lovers have you tried Bass and Harp together? Had a group of guys who swore by it.

For the people who like hoppy beers I think the one I want to let you know about is called three kings. There is another one out there and I have to get back to you on that one.

As for me I like Hornsbys Draft Cider, Leiney Honey weiss, Boulevard Pale Ale, Petes Strawberry Blonde, Blue Moon Belgium White, Two Dogs either orange or lemon, and a local one Bent River Pale Ale.
Yep, I like em' lite and sweet.

[Kricket]

As soon as I hit Reply, I remembered that it is Three Floyds.

BTW John, funny stuff! If you like ciders try the Hornsbys, better on tap, but good in the bottle if you get the stuff with the blue lable. There is also one called Woodchuck Granny Smiths cider.

[Czarcasm]

Look, if you want to talk about apple juice, go start your own thread. We're talking beer here, dear. :)

[Kricket]

Hey, that's not fair! John started it!;)

[untateve]

I naively wallowed in manufactured piss water until I went to England in the early 90's with my brother. He had some friends there who took us out and ordered each of us a Guiness.

My brother and I each took our 1st sip, looked at each other, and wondered what was this black stuff. Being troopers, we continued to drink until we finished it. A funny thing happened on the way to the bottom of the glass. A warm light from the heavens opened up and bathed us in its glow. Then the true meaning of beer came through and we immediately ordered another Guiness. I've never looked back.

The first night I met my wife, we ended up in an Irish Pub in Boston. She was unsure what to order. I recommended a Guiness with one caveat--Do not form an opinion of it until you reach the bottom of your glass. She finished it and ordered another. That was when I knew I had to have her.

Others I enjoy include Newcastle Brown, Bass, Harp.

[Soupy]

Carlsburg