Girlfriend Drinks Budweiser *Yuck*

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efreem01

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Hey All, i'm writing because i have a dilemma on my hands. Since we've been dating my girlfriend has always drank budweiser (with a brief change to Bud Light). She's not into any beer that has flavor. :eek:

Anyways, now that i'm brewing my own beer I'm trying to get her to change beers. Her Budweiser comes in twist-off bottles which are useless for bottling. I figure i can at least try to get some reusable bottles out of her.

What is the best way to get my girlfriend into beer with taste?

I switched to Amstel for now. I always loved Heineken, but i just can't picture using green bottles for my brew.
 
From your signature:

"Primary: Sanitized and waiting
Secondary: Sanitized and waiting
Bottling: AHS English Ale
Drinking: Store-bought for now. Damnit!@!#

On Deck: AHS Nut Brown Ale
Planning: Blueberry Ale
Planning #2: Budweiser Clone"

First of all, I wouldn't encourage her by making more of her favorite swill. You can buy Bud cheaper than you can brew it, don't waste your time making a batch of crap.
 
At least she is drinking something that is remotely related to beer. If you were dating one of those "Oh, I don't drink beer, just liquor" girls you might have a tougher road ahead of you.

Having said that, I have found that girls tend to take to hefeweizens pretty well. Try picking up some Blue Moon and see how she does, maybe even pop a lemon or orange wedge in there too. Also, try some "real" pilsners as they may be more inline with her taste preference.

Just my 0.02. Good luck!
 
Now if you manage then she will drink YOUR beer.:eek:

My SWMBO can not stand the "bitter" taste. But she does have a good pallete and can tell the difference between good pils and crap lager. She does like a good cider and drinks Westons and the like.

So a few options.

  • Have a couple of fun evenings and have a beer tasting fest. The Bonus of this is you get a boost to the bottle fund. You get to drink anything she doesn't like. You may find a style she may like.
  • Try Ciders/Pilsners
  • Brew wine for her, she'll figure good things come from homebrewing and let you do it. When the wine is running dry she'll start being nice to you so you'll brew again.
 
SWMBO used to not really care for beer, and then I introduced her to Guinness. Now her taste has turned (slightly) to Oatmeal Stouts, and that's all she ever wants me to brew.

Incidentally, have you considered a cider? I hear EdWort's Apfelwein is pretty damned good.

Edit: I see Orfy already suggested this. Worth a shot!
 
It's true, some women do seem to like hefe's and wheat beers and fruit beers. I can't stand them, but I think some women do.

I'd try something totally different- a brown ale. I know that it's darker, so the color might turn her off, but darker beers tend to not be hoppy- the "bitter" that some women don't like. Lots of women like sweeter, maltier beers just fine if they can get past the color. Maybe try Newcastle, for example. Then gradually introduce hoppier beers.
 
Yooper Chick said:
I'd try something totally different- a brown ale. I know that it's darker, so the color might turn her off, but darker beers tend to not be hoppy- the "bitter" that some women don't like. Lots of women like sweeter, maltier beers just fine if they can get past the color. Maybe try Newcastle, for example. Then gradually introduce hoppier beers.

I completely agree with this. I think alot of people who say they don't like dark beers don't really mean it. What they don't like are bitter, intense flavors. Maltier, richer/sweeter beers are actually more likely to be darker colored.
 
I would just get a new one, girlfriend that is.

Think of it like trying a different flavor of beer. Who knows, the next one may like bud as well, then you can decide on which "flavor of beer you like" and decide on whether to try to go back to the original or not.
 
cwb124 said:
First of all, I wouldn't encourage her by making more of her favorite swill. You can buy Bud cheaper than you can brew it, don't waste your time making a batch of crap.

Gotta do something for her to justify all the time i spend with my beer :cross:
 
efreem01 said:
Gotta do something for her to justify all the time i spend with my beer :cross:

I still wouldn't brew a budweiser clone...

As mentioned, you are goin to pay $30+ for ingredients for 2 cases, when you can just go buy it for the same price. Not to mention you are going to be using your bottles up, wasting time racking, waiting it out, etc.

You can brew something 'light' without brewing a Bud-Clone!!! Brew an American Blonde, Kolsch, or some other 'Lawnmower beer', but not a Bud-Clone...

EDIT: Hell, brew one of these latter type beers and tell her its a Bud-Clone even if its not. She probably won't be able to tell at all by looking at the color. Then, when she says it doesnt taste like Bud, tell her you screwed up the recipe. I'm sure she'll still like it anyway and you'll save yourself from brewing Budweiser that is more economical to just buy...
 
First thing is to encourage her to drink anything that you can re-use. Get her away from the twist offs.

There is sooooooo much beer in the world I find it hard to believe that there is only one type of beer that someone would like encourage her to try more. I imagine that she associates bud with something that she likes. Bud was my mom b-friends beer but coors light was my dads. I would drink coors (along time ago) and grew up hating bud for clear reasons. (Also there was a time when here in America espially in a small town there were 3 beers).

She may not really like the taste of beer. My dad didn't thats why he drank coors light. Approach beer like wine or anything known for having a variety. Beer is not 1 thing it is a way of life.
 
Fish said:
First thing is to encourage her to drink anything that you can re-use. Get her away from the twist offs.

There is sooooooo much beer in the world I find it hard to believe that there is only one type of beer that someone would like encourage her to try more. I imagine that she associates bud with something that she likes. Bud was my mom b-friends beer but coors light was my dads. I would drink coors (along time ago) and grew up hating bud for clear reasons. (Also there was a time when here in America espially in a small town there were 3 beers).

She may not really like the taste of beer. My dad didn't thats why he drank coors light. Approach beer like wine or anything known for having a variety. Beer is not 1 thing it is a way of life.
Women and beer are just a complete mystery to me. My wife will ONLY drinking rolling rock light, or natural light/ICE. It's horrid. She just plain doesn't like beer and won't drink it unless she's hammered already.
 
here's more suggestions If you can get Sweetwater Blue or Pete's Wicked Strawberry Blonde she might like those, another is Duvel it has a light taste 8.5% alcohol although it's expensive, all are in dark brown bottles. Another but unfortunately in clear bottles is New Castle ale
 
There are a few beers that I consider transitional and one of them was already mentioned. Sam Adams Light is pretty close to bud in body but you can actually pick out the distinct flavor of malt and hops. With Bud, it's all lost. Another trick is to force them to drink their BMC out of a cup. This actually brings on more nose to the beer and sets them up to tolerate more interesting flavors. If you use a colored cup, you can slip them the SA Light and they may not even notice.

In my wine drinking days, I tried similar tactics with the jug/box wine inlaws. "But I like Arbor Mist"... "Blarg!@$#".
 
Why not take her to a beer festival? She can sample all kinds of different beers, you can both get drunk, and well......maybe she'll find something she wants. Ah-hem.... Beer that is.

Seriously Beer festivals are a sort of gateway drug for beer drinkers who have had little exposure to the good stuff. worse case scenario she doesn't like anything, and then yo have a designated driver.
 
While I agree that you should try to introduce her to good beer, if all else fails and she won't go for anything but the swill there is an option. I'm not sure if they sell them where you are but around me you can buy cases of "bar bottles", they come in the old heavy duty cardboard cases(great for storing and transporting your own stuff too) and the bottles tend to be older and previously used but they are all pop tops and the liquor store near me sells all the normal crap brands from PBR to bud to natty. I usually only see them in larger stores but they're also usually cheaper than buying 2 12pks of the regular brand new twist off bottles
 
I would say get her to try many different beers until you find something she likes. My SO didn't begin to appreciate beer until she tried Samuel Smith's Oatmeal Stout, now she likes several others and will tolerate almost anything. I think blue moon with a little lemon wedge or magic hat #9 are also good ideas.
 
Milds have turned more than one Bud-lover. Low bitterness, moderate ABV, pale gold. Use floral/citrus aroma & flavor hops.

5 lbs. light LME
2.5 lbs Amber LME

1 oz. Fuggles @ 60 min.
0.5 oz. Fuggles @ 15 min.

Any moderate attenuation dry yeast like safale-04 or Windsor.
 
just be happy your girlfriend drinks beer at all. could you imagine having one that doesn't?
 
Madvillain said:
I would say get her to try many different beers until you find something she likes. My SO didn't begin to appreciate beer until she tried Samuel Smith's Oatmeal Stout, now she likes several others and will tolerate almost anything. I think blue moon with a little lemon wedge or magic hat #9 are also good ideas.

Hey

What do you think about Brew Moon and Sam Choy's beers out there in Paradise,
We have Gordon Birsch here in Hotlanta although I've never been to it. Just not the same as sitting on honolulu bay.
 
nkonkie :off:

I haven't been to Sam Choy's since I've been old enough to drink (I'm 24 now) so I don't know much about it, now that you remind me I'll have to make a "research" trip sometime soon! :) I work right down the road from it, and across the street from Gordon Biersch.

GB is a great place to sit out near the water and have a few, the food is great and the beer is pretty good. Beautiful spot tho.

I've only been to Brew Moon once, and I was not very impressed with the beer. The food was good (but pricey), though our group of 10 people got kicked out because they turn it into a booty club at night time . :mad: We just wanted to stay and have another round, they told us it'll cost us ten bucks each, we said "See ya".

Cheers!
 
My SWMBO doesn't like beer in the least bit. Doesn't like the smell (especially when fermenting), doesn't like the taste, etc... But at least she doesn't complain too much and I think she is actually secretly happy that I have found a hobby. And, she has already promised me a good portion of the garage for brewing when we move.
 
My wife doesn't like beer and won't even try my most excellent homebrews. I'm gonna look past it though since she is supportive of my brewing. She doesn't even complain when I fill the house with that amazing aroma. ...and I always leave the kitchen cleaner than I found it! We call those beer points.
 
homebrewer_99 said:
In opposition to several posts already I would recommend making her a Czech Budvar Clone. It's much better than an American-style Buttwiper...;)

MMMM Budvar, quite possibly the best beer on the planet. Yes, really. Sooooo drinkable, so good.mmmmmmm!!!!!!!!!!!
 
My GF or SWMBO wasn't a big beer fan at first. I was able to get her into beers like Red Stripe, Blue Moon, and Sierra Nevada. They all have qualities she likes and never really expected to find in beer after drinking BMC occasionally. She was even deadset against IPA's (she still hates Harpoon IPA) but I got her to try some fruity ones and won her over! I even take her to Harpoon tastings at the Brewery every once and a while. She really likes the UFO.

It takes a lot of beer, in my experience, to win over people who don't drink beer. Usually, their tastes just aren't ready for it. You need to get past that bitter threshold before you find the amazing flavors on the other side! Try getting her into some lighter Belgian Whites or something really really fruity. Best of luck!

-Ben
 
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