Commercial suggestions (and recipies)

OK, I'm looking to expand my horizons a bit (hence the homebrewing)

I never liked IPAs much but think my palate has progressed some. Whats worth trying on the commercial side?

Also other commercial versions of styles typical of a newbie home brewer. (I know thats a loaded question and uber vast in scope) My local market is pretty good and near my LHBS is a store with a great selection.

But here are my typical beers I buy (some laughable, but hey I like 'em) Becks, Bass, Sweetwater's 420 pale ale, Widmere Heff, Corona (stop laughing!) Also like the Paulnauer (but don't see it much), Labbats Blue and others that escape me atm.
(if I've had 5 BCMs in the last 10 years, its a lot)

I travel a lot and try to get a local draft when I can.

Yeah I like 'em a bit lighter/smaller then the most of you guys; so go slow/easy with bigger suggestions.

(oh, and please type slow. I can't read that fast )

The Sweetwater IPA is pretty good -- I have never been a fan of IPA until recently. I was at their brewery (2nd time in a week there) and had one, and it for whatever reason tasted great to me. Since then, I've liked em.

Hop Devil is good -- dunno if is an "IPA" ? Youngs Double Chocolate Stout is def not an IPA but super tasty I was loving mine last night smoking a nice cigar

start with more pale ale's rather than IPA's. Flying Dog Doggie Style is my go to beer for just relaxing. Its nothing special, but I think its a decent beer for the buck.

I also recommend checking out any of the summer session beers you can find. Otter Creek makes a good one that I think would be a good transition from "lighter" beers. Also, Troeg's makes a summer pilsner. Its got the hoppiness of a pale ale, but the backbone of a pilsner.

Thanks guys. Will try 'em out

(I tried the Sweeteater at ATL both the brew pub and the Sky Club have it)

Stout. hmmm kinda scared to try 'em from some reason. But then ordered a Becks once and got Becks dark. Wasn't expecting it, but it was ddaanngg smooth.

I'm not big on stouts at all, well, thats changing - but TRADITIONALLY, I dont care for them. This one is incredible

choke down a couple of stouts, and you will begin to appreciate them. Remember how it was for you the first time you had a beer? all styles grow on you over time.

Some will grow into favorites, and some will grow into something you will never want again... Personally, I avoid Hefe's like a plague.

Point taken. Heffs grew on me.

Holycrepe said:

choke down a couple of stouts, and you will begin to appreciate them. Remember how it was for you the first time you had a beer? all styles grow on you over time.

Some will grow into favorites, and some will grow into something you will never want again... Personally, I avoid Hefe's like a plague.

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Alesmith IPA, Dreadnaught by Three Floyd's Brewing, Imperial IPA (I2PA) by Rogue. I have some recipes in my brewing book in the study, lemme know if you want some (all extract).

Some of the best "normal" IPAs I think are Lagunitas and Stone, but not sure if they make it all the way over to the east coast there.

+1 on the stouts and especially porters, you won't find as many porters typically but there's some good ones out there. Some can be bitter and heavy but others are a smooth dream to sip down. I had a mocha porter a few months back that I wish I could remember the brewer, it was fantastic.

Oh and I forgot to mention, if Big Sky's beers get out that far east I'm a big fan of their Trout Slayer Ale as well as their Moose Drool brown ale.

I wasn't a big IPA fan until recently, try Brooklyn East Indian Pale Ale or Harpoon IPA.

If you're looking for IPA's Stone (as Mentioned) is a good extreme example. Most of their beers are very Hoppy.
Lagunitas, Green Flash are other great examples. Lagunitas make "Hop Stoopid" which uses hop extract and is a personal favorite for Hop bombs.

But if you can get it, run don't walk, to you store and get a sixer of Balast Point Big Eye IPA. You can thank me later.

why would you "choke down" anything? if you don't care for something, don't drink it. I don't care for most IPA's and it doesn't bother me. Drink what you like. If your taste evolves over time, so be it, but when someone says force down something down that you don't care for, why not do it with keystone and save some money.

I had my first Sour beer the other night. I wasn't crazy about it, but I could see it growing on me.

I told my wife it was more of a tart cider. After tasting it she said it was more of a "fart" cider.

She wasn't impressed.

Try a Bell's Two Hearted Ale. Its not overly aggressive and drinks really, really well.

I would think BierMuncher's SWMBO Slayer - Belgian Blonde would be automatic appreciation.

Tastes do change. I quit brewing for years many moons ago because as much as I liked making beer, I never found a beer that I really liked. Not just my own brews. ANY beer.

and then I got old. and my taste changed. I still don't really love any IPA that I've tried so far.... but I had my first Rogue I2PA yesterday, and I swooned. Really. Swooned. (maybe it was the 9% alcohol!)

I GOTTA make that!!!

Harpoon is a good way to transition into IPA's. It leans more on the malty side, but has some nice hop bitterness and aroma. Stone makes a pretty good IPA, but it's very west-coast: dry, high alcohol, hoppy.

businesstime said:

Harpoon is a good way to transition into IPA's. It leans more on the malty side, but has some nice hop bitterness and aroma. Stone makes a pretty good IPA, but it's very west-coast: dry, high alcohol, hoppy.

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I think the Stone Pale ale is very well balanced. I'm not a hop head by any means either. Although I dont think its really an IPA, I always have some on hand. For an IPA I agree with the Harpoon.

dunnright00 said:

I had my first Sour beer the other night.

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Last night I had a trio of sour ales with my GF. She's a big fan of Russian River Consecration, so her palate is not timid.

Monk's Cafe Flemish Sour Ale was ok, kinda like a more boring version of Duchesse.
Rodenbach Grand Cru was fantastic. Tart, complex, a little cidery yet pleasing.
New Belgium La Folie had a ton of dusty brett character on top of the sour. Nice, but ultimately not as delicious as Rodenbach.

Damn, I have GOT to brew a sour ale RSN...:rockin::rockin:

jdp said:

why would you "choke down" anything? if you don't care for something, don't drink it. I don't care for most IPA's and it doesn't bother me. Drink what you like. If your taste evolves over time, so be it, but when someone says force down something down that you don't care for, why not do it with keystone and save some money.

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I would bet that 95% of people on this board had to "choke down" the first beers they ever drank, and the same goes for alot of the darker, heavier styles for the first time... you need to acquire the taste, learn to understand them, and sometimes to do that you need to force yourself to drink a couple...

I beleive its the same thing that Ed Wort says about his Apfelwein too, you need to have a couple to begin to appreciate them.