American beer has been a running joke for a long time (Why is American beer like sex in a canoe? It’s fucking close to water) and for good reason, the trinity of Anheiser Busch, Miller, and Coors which inundates the store shelves with their various concoctions is quite honestly awful beer and clearly has given the US a partially deserved rep for horrible piss water.
But I contend that the USA also makes the best beer. The Craft Brewing industry is growing and making some pretty incredible beers. Like North Coast Brewery’s Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout, Pliny the Elder from Russian River, Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA, Sierra Nevada Kellerweis, Allagash Quad, Rogue’s Hazelnut Brown Nectar, Three Floyds Dark Lord, Deschuttes The Abyss, and literally hundreds more from these and other breweries. Some are strictly local, some have a national footprint. Some beers are made year round, others are special occasion brews you need to be on the look out for. But the variety is undeniable. What is amazing is the amount of creativity that is going into this beer revolution, with breweries experimenting with everything from coffee and chocolate to bacon and pomegranate. The thing is, even if you don’t think you like beer, think again, because beer actually is a very wide range of drinks, from super hoppy, to super malty, to balanced to sour, or fruity or smokey. So celebrate the American beer revival and tell me about your discoveries.
Yesterday I had a Highwater Aphotic Baltic Porter that was just great. It was just a very drinkable porter, which is dangerous because it clocks in at 9.3% abv. It was actually like a Guinness with a bit broader array of flavor. I really enjoyed it.
I have nothing to say except that Old Rasputin is delicious. I also like their Old #38 Stout; I have the better part of a case of it in my fridge and am trying to make it last since I don’t go to Fort Bragg much. I guess I could probably get it locally–I haven’t really looked very hard.
And just how many Belgian, German, Dutch etc beers have you tasted before you came to this rather remarkable conclusion? Europe has had “craft brewers” which have had hundreds of years to perfect their art, many of them happen to be located in Monasteries.
I dare you to go to the “Gollem” beer cafe in Amsterdam where you can sample over 200 types of beer from very small breweries around the Benelux region and Germany and then tell me if you still agree that “USA makes the best beer”.
With some reservations, I would generally agree with the OP. If you’re a beer lover, there really is no better place to be than in the US right now–at least in a large urban area or elsewhere with a large beer selection. There simply is just so much going on right now, so much experimentation, so much fun, and so many choices. Now, there are plenty of beer styles of which I think non-American beers are the best. Belgians excel at their craft; I love the lagers, weissbiers, alts, kolschs, etc., of Germany. The UK rocks at bitters, ales, and session beers. But for the sheer breadth and depth of what is available and what is going on, I honestly do think the US offers the widest selection of domestically brewed beers and styles. And, yes, I’ve drunk around the Benelux region, Germany, the UK, Czech Republic, etc., and lived in Europe for over five years, and am not particularly known for any sort of American exceptionalist attitudes. As a beer lover, I honestly do think this is the best place to be. I mean, the brewpub (Goose Island) I was at for lunch today had twenty five of their own beers on tap, encompassing styles ranging from American wheat ales to English bitters to Belgian sours, to a German alt beer, to a barrel-aged maibock, etc. And this is just one brewery in one city in the US. And they, in my opinion, created successful and faithful versions of these styles.
Before we get into a full-tilt snob war, I think that it’s probably best to agree that the best European and American beers are of equivalent quality. Not necessarily in the same styles; I don’t know of any European breweries that make something like an Imperial IPA, but it’s absurd to make the claim that say, a Pliny the Elder gives up anything in taste or craftsmanship or quality to any European beer.
I’ll concede that many times, American versions of European beers aren’t always up to par with the originals, but that’s also true of European clones of other European beer styles. Nastro Azzuro isn’t a bad beer, but it’s no Pilsner Urquell either. Some American versions are very, very good in their category; North Coast’s Brother Thelonious is right up there with the other Belgian ales I’ve had.
Ultimately, there are excellent (and crappy) brewers on both sides of the Atlantic.
I think the US makes artisan beers as good as any in the world. I’ll add to that the Delirium Tremens Café in Brussels to coremelt’s suggestion in Amsterdam. Two thousand different beers on offer, grouped on a vast menu by country, including US ones.
I’d say that, unless you’re a professional beer taster, there are simply too many beers available in the world ever to be able to taste them all and make a judgement about which country’s beers are ‘best’ - a judgement that is largely subjective anyway.
But I will agree that, just like the tired ‘British food’ meme, the old ‘American beers are piss’ cliché needs to die.
Agreed on the “British food” count, too. I lived in the UK in the mid-90s and was floored by the food culture there. I ate as well in the UK as I have anywhere else in the world, and am constantly surprised at how local pubs would offer inventive and interesting food options that I would more expect to find in more fine dining type of establishments. The whole “gastropub” type culture has certainly been finding a foothold in the US the last decade, but, in my opinion, it’s still well behind the British dining scene.
Why would we agree on that when the European “craft beer” tradition is hundreds of years old while in the US it at most 30 or 40 years old? Whiskey brewers take hundreds of years to perfect a craft and Beer brewing seems to have just as much room for nuances. For the range and variety, I’d assert that across the entire EU there is as much or more varieties to choose from as in the US.
Look I’m willing to agree I’ve had some great craft beers in the US, but the OP’s assertion that they make the “best” is pretty strong.
You might want to look into the Scandinavian craft brewing scene. Mikeller, in Denmark, is particularly what I’m thinking of. I also seem to remember having some Scottish beers that were doing hopped-up IPAs, as well. The name of the brewery escapes me at the moment, but it’s one that is known for doing extreme styles of beer that are more associated with the American scene.
The US easily makes the best beer, if “best” is defined by what I like. Particularly the Pacific coast (including Canada here as well). England and Germany both make objectively good beer, but I personally prefer American styles.
Somewhat similarly, I agree that the US makes the worst beer that’s available here in the US. I suspect, though, there’s nasty beer available overseas that never makes it here.
Interestingly Chicago has seen a small explosion of English (and to some extent Irish) gastropubs. I had lunch the other day at Elephant and Castle and everything was fantastic! While it may not be up to snuff for a born and raised Londoner I hope the trend continues.
As ZenBeam suggests, US beers are preferred for my tastes. We’ve got, in addition to about a dozen craft breweries in our town of a little over 100K people, an excellent bar specializing in European ales (here’s one of their taps from one floor of one of their locations for reference). I’ve drunk plenty of European ales, and while I’m sure they’re mighty fine, they’re just not to my tastes the way local brews are. Give me a Shiva IPA, or a Green Man Golden Ale, or a Highland Farms Black Mocha Stout brewed within ten miles of the bar and poured fresh, and I’m a happy boy.
Of course, best is suybjective, and this is aimed more at the "American beer is piss’ concept. But I honestly believe that the American Craft Beet industry has surpassed…in general terms…the European beers, especialy in terms of the breadth and depth of choices. Now don’t get me wrong, I love me some Westmalle, Delirium, Orval, etc. They are all fantastic beers, of course. BUt the variety and qualtiy in the USA at this point in time, IMO, is second to none.