Alrighty here we go…
First we’ll start with American beers, or more precisely American breweries. Not all of these will be easy to get if you live too far away from American Beer Nirvana (ie the West Coast) Any beer from the below breweries is worth a try if you don’t see the ones listed.
**Alakan Brewing Company: ** Juneau, Alaska
Alaskan Amber is a good, well balanced, medium bodied beer. Drinkable in large quantities.
Alaskan Smoked Porter, a dark beer made with smoked grains, a very interesting experience, worth a try. It’s dark, full bodied with a strong smokey flavor. Very good in small quantities, only available in winter.
Alaskan Oatmeal Stout. Probably too dark for the OP’s tastes, but a nice smooth, easy drinking stout nonetheless.
** Deshutes ** Bend, Oregon
Black Butte Porter. Perhaps the finest porter ever brewed. Dark brown in color, rich and full bodied with a slightly chocolately finish. A superior beer for all seasons!
Jubal Ale. A winter seasonal, big on flavor, big on alchohol. If you see it next winter, give it a try, you’ll be glad you did.
**Sierra Nevada ** California
Their Pale Ale, IPA (India Pale Ale, very hoppy style, mucho bitterness) and Porter are all superior beers, their porter being a close second to Black Butte IMO. Plus you can actually find them on the east coast.
Other misc American beers worth drinking:
Pyramid Hefe-wiezen. Wheat beer, drink with a lemon wedge.
RedHook ESB - Extra Special Bitter, hoppy but not as much as an IPA.
Anchor Steam Beer - a lager brewed at ale temps, from San Francisco.
New Belguim Brewing Fat Tire Amber Ale
Thomas Kemper Happy Cow - dark, strong winter seasonal.
I’m missing a lot of good beers from that list but you get the idea of what’s available. IMO though the best beers are usually found on draught at brewpubs, which is good if you live on the west coast, and less good if you don’t. If you ever find yourself in Anchorage AK I recomend checking out the Moose’s Tooth Brewpub, the Glacier Brewhouse and the Snow Goose, sample everything on tap.
For imports here’s a few of my favorites, some of which have already been listed:
Guiness - Ireland. Mother of all stouts.
Newcastle Brown - Newcastle, England.
Bass Ale - England
McEwan’s - Scottland.
Anything by Spaten (with Oktoberfest and Optimator being my favorites) - Munich, Germany. Spaten is also one of the oldest breweries in the world, they’ve been brewing since 1397.
Err there are actually more good beers from Europe then I can count or list here so I’ll stop trying…
Negro Modella is the best Mexican beer I’ve ever had, enjoy it with a lime wedge.
Kirin Ichiban is a good Japanese (a lager I think)
Red Stripe - Jamica
Belikin - Belize, they make a yummy stout.
Oh and for the record a Black and Tan is Guiness and Bass Ale, not Harp Lager, that’s a half and half.
I see I’m also not the only homebrewer in this thread, yay homebrewing! If you ever find yourself in my living room I suggest you try the Brown Ale, the Coffee Stout, the Spiced Holiday Beer and my very own winter seasonal: Darth Porter (9% abv)