Now I must admit before I began hanging around here my knowledge of US beer was basically Bud and Miller, and I'd bet the stuff we get here is just branded stuff brewed in a silo in Luton like an awful lot of mass produced stuff in the UK. I try not to be a snob, after all it has its place well chilled, in a beer garden or at a music festival, on one of the few summery days we get here.
But what are the expectations generally of what US readers think a quality brew should be?
There frequently seems to be threads around that slag off beers that are too flat or don't have any hoppiness that come from recipes that seem pretty close to what I'd call a damn fine ale! Conversely there are lauded recipes that seem to me to be insanely hop heavy, so much so that I'd be wary of attempting them cos I'd have to leave them 18 months to mellow out.
I tried a Sierra Nevada pale ale a while ago and found it literally a bitter and somehow hollow experience. No accounting for taste obviously There is though a specialist beer importer in Edinburgh with a pretty good range. So, my question I suppose is what US brews would you recommend to me to explore these American takes on beer styles and I'll look out for them?
(Incidentally there are a few beers now here that seem to be trying to latch on to the whole American tart and citrussy hops thing I read about on HBT, which is interesting.)
But what are the expectations generally of what US readers think a quality brew should be?
There frequently seems to be threads around that slag off beers that are too flat or don't have any hoppiness that come from recipes that seem pretty close to what I'd call a damn fine ale! Conversely there are lauded recipes that seem to me to be insanely hop heavy, so much so that I'd be wary of attempting them cos I'd have to leave them 18 months to mellow out.
I tried a Sierra Nevada pale ale a while ago and found it literally a bitter and somehow hollow experience. No accounting for taste obviously There is though a specialist beer importer in Edinburgh with a pretty good range. So, my question I suppose is what US brews would you recommend to me to explore these American takes on beer styles and I'll look out for them?
(Incidentally there are a few beers now here that seem to be trying to latch on to the whole American tart and citrussy hops thing I read about on HBT, which is interesting.)