What store bought "session" beer do you drink

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LarryC

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I'm new to brewing and relatively new to the world of craft beers (4+ years). I have developed a taste for IPA's and the more flavorful beers. However, I find that I'm not the young buck I used to be and if I drink a few too many high ABV beers it takes a toll on me. So since I'm still getting started in home brewing my inventory is low and I supplement with store bought beer (love Green Flash, Ballast Point & Stone to name a few of the locals here).

However, Id like to get some lower ABV beer that still tastes like beer so I could have a few more throughout the day without being trashed by sundown.

What are your favorite store bought session beers?
 
I'm not sure how many of these you'll be able to find in your area, but at least some of them will be available I'm sure. Most of these beers are pretty affordable, and the breweries all have variety packs so you can have make your own decisions without buying way too much. These are in no particular order btw, off the top of my head.

Philadelphia Brewing Co.'s Kenzinger. 4.5% and a go to beer for a lot of people on otherwise BMC menu's (although more and more restaurants are stocking the myriad of products from Philadelphia area breweries) Walt Wit and Rowhouse Red are pretty good as well.

Victory Brewing Co. - everything these guys make I seem to like. A lot of them are powerful, but among the weaker there is the Uncle Teddy's Bitter (4%), Whirlwind Witbier (5%), Prima Pils (5.3% - Definitely try this one if you can), Victory Lager,

Lancaster Brewery has some real drinkable stuff in the 5% range. I like their Milk Stout (5.3%) and Amish 4-Grain Ale (5.6%).

Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA has pretty good flavor and only 6% (Although you'll be doing yourself a favor by drinking the 90 Minute...mmmm)

Yards Brewing Co.'s Ben Franklin Special Ale (5.5%), Yards Saison (6.5%), India Pale Ale (7%, maybe a little high but hey it could be a lot higher). Fun Fact: Yards Brewery is 100% wind powered and very locally/environmentally active with their ingredients and materials.

Flying Fish makes a decent ESB, and a pretty good Summer Ale, Coffee Porter

Flying Dog's Doggie Style APA, Woody Creek White, American Porter, Dogtoberfes and Old Scratch Amber Lager are all in the 5% area.

and of course there are several Sam Adams brews that are worth drinking in that range. The seasonals are generally pretty good (Summer Ale, Winter Lager). Irish Red and Cream Stout aint bad either.

Happy drinking.
 
I drank Stone Levitation Ale last night during our Fantasy Football draft. It was pretty decent, and only 4.4% abv. Not sure if that's your definition of a "session beer" but it's far lower than the 6%+ of most IPA's. Levitation is sort of an Amber/Red ale, about 45 IBU's.
 
The newly revived Burger Beer is my go-to blue can. Fizzy, yellow, and actually tastes like something! $6 a 12 pack doesn't hurt either.

If I'm feeling a little less sleazy, Sammie's Boston Lager is easy to find, pay for, and drink, while being delicious. It might not gain you any 'craft cred,' but if you're not in high school it really shouldn't matter.
 
Levitation is definitely tasty stuff. It's a bit light in the body, but it's hopped more like an IPA.

As a summertime brew, I've enjoyed Dogfish Head's Festina Peche, but it's a very sour beer that's unlike anything else I've had, so it's not for everyone. It's amazing how refreshing a sour can be on a hot day, though.
 
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Levitation is definitely tasty stuff. It's a bit light in the body, but it's hopped more like an IPA.

Yeah, exactly. That's why I thought it'd be a good choice for the OP, since he indicated a bias towards IPA's. Funny, a name like "Levitation" from a brewery like Stone conjures up the expectation of some huge bad-ass beer. But it's obviously not.

I'd be interested in trying to clone that beer as well. Like the OP there are times when I want to have 2 or 3 pints and still be fully functional. I tried brewing a Mild once (around 4%) but it didn't have a fraction of the flavor of the Levitation (4.4%). I wonder how they do it?
 
What are your favorite store bought session beers?

Start a batch of Orfy's Mild Mannered Mild or similar and see what you think. Session beers are easy to make, inexpensive, and are drinkable quite young.
 
Oh hell, if it's a session beer then I go for the cheap PBR. But I have to tell ya, if you haven't had a PBR lately, you may want to spend some quality time with it. I noticed they have changed the yeast. It has a fantastic fruity after taste. At first I thought I bought an old batch, bought some more and the same taste. It actually is a really good lager beer. I was pleasantly surprised. I love my homebrew but, occasionally I have to pull a good drunk with the stuff my Grandpa pulled his drunk with!!
 
Oh hell, if it's a session beer then I go for the cheap PBR. But I have to tell ya, if you haven't had a PBR lately, you may want to spend some quality time with it.

Three words...

PABST

BLUE

RIBBON

I wholeheartedly agree with these gentlemen.

I love craft beer and homebrew as much as the next guy on HBT, but dollar for dollar, for pure refreshment, low ABV, AND flavor, a tall boy of America's finest macrolager cannot be beat. In my always evolving/changing list of Top-5-All-Time-Desert-Island-Beers, PBR is always #5. Phillip Best didn't give his beer a blue ribbon at the 1893 World's Fair for nothing... :D
 
To the OP, any hefeweizen is always a good option. I'm as much a hop head as the next guy (I have a double IPA that has 14.5 oz hops for 5 gal batch going now), but love a good hefe. I don't knw what thw distribution is like, but Troeg's Dreamweaver Wheat is a personal favorite. If you can't find it, Weinstephaner is the go to import. Someone mention SA products. They've fot some decent ones. I like the stock ale myself. Newcastle clocks in at the low 4. something, I think, and won't break the bank. And of course, if you're looking toss back a bunch, there's always PBR!
 
I drink Michelob products a lot. I mostly get their porter but I also get Amberboch and Dunkelweizel from time to time. For $6 per 6 pack its not a bad deal and they taste good. The range between 5 and 6 percent abv. I also save the pry off bottles for my homebrew.
 
PBR, Sierra Nevada (when its on sale), Sam adams BL ... I dont drink much session brew though, mostly homebrew and trying new commercial beers. Lately Ive been brewing stronger so my kegs last longer. My favorite commercials are pliny, Green Flash IIPA, Westmalle Tripel, Sam smith oat stout, and plenty of others.
 
Since when did a session beer mean what can I get drunk off of? PBR really? Just get some rot gut and go to town.
 
Boy, tell the truth around here and get crucified. To the OP I say: Go to the store and buy what you like. If it is a session, and last time I checked a session wasn't just 3 or 4 beers and it usually included some slurring of words hence the word session because it's easy to say when slurring (lol), I like to keep it on the economical side. I'd rather not blow out the last half of my keg of ESB or drop $20 on a 12 of Pilsner Urquell (my favorite of all time) or the like. My brew buddies and I prefer the Pabst, Bud American Ale, or even a Schlitz if we can find it for a good night of session drinking away from the house kegs. That way, when we dip into that keg we have been lovingly caring for over the past couple of months, we appreciate our hard work even more. And we throw a bone to the breweries who gave us our first taste of beer. Just my opinion OP. Just an honest answer. And I still say you should drop the $3.69 for a sixer of Pabst and give it a chance in your next store bought session and don't let other's opinions sway your taste bud's decision. Just cause it's cheap doesn't mean it's not good.
Oh, and someone mentioned rot gut...got some good stuff in a mason jar that will grow hair between your toes and it tastes like Frosted Corn Flakes.
 
Boy, tell the truth around here and get crucified...

I don't know that you got crucified. :) Perhaps it's merely a different interpretation of what constitutes a "session" beer. Apparently to some it's just cheap beer that one can drink a lot of for not much money. But I didn't get the impression from the OP that he was necessarily looking for that. Considering that he mentioned Green Flash, Stone, and Ballast Point I think he was looking for quality lower ABV craft beers that offered the same sort of quality experience at lower alcohol. He never suggested that he wanted "cheap" necessarily.

So I guess with that in mind I'm not sure PBR was exactly what he was angling for, though I'm prepared to be wrong.
 
Boy, tell the truth around here and get crucified. To the OP I say: Go to the store and buy what you like. If it is a session, and last time I checked a session wasn't just 3 or 4 beers and it usually included some slurring of words hence the word session because it's easy to say when slurring (lol), I like to keep it on the economical side. I'd rather not blow out the last half of my keg of ESB or drop $20 on a 12 of Pilsner Urquell (my favorite of all time) or the like. My brew buddies and I prefer the Pabst, Bud American Ale, or even a Schlitz if we can find it for a good night of session drinking away from the house kegs. That way, when we dip into that keg we have been lovingly caring for over the past couple of months, we appreciate our hard work even more. And we throw a bone to the breweries who gave us our first taste of beer. Just my opinion OP. Just an honest answer. And I still say you should drop the $3.69 for a sixer of Pabst and give it a chance in your next store bought session and don't let other's opinions sway your taste bud's decision. Just cause it's cheap doesn't mean it's not good.
Oh, and someone mentioned rot gut...got some good stuff in a mason jar that will grow hair between your toes and it tastes like Frosted Corn Flakes.

I agree with you, there is nothing wrong with drinking some PBR or Shlitz, I do the same thing when I wanna drink a few beers and not get loaded. I don't understand or like the stigma our community has put on mass produced pilsners. I say its just being snooty to tell you the truth......
 
When I first saw this thread I was thinking mega-swill beer. I think session beers as something you can drink all day or night w/o breaking the bank or get rip-roaring drunk.

Fishing comes to mind... out at the cabin in the middle of nowhere.

My recent favorite mega-swill is Rolling Rock. Seem to like it best with BBQ.

If we are talking craftbeer sessions... need to think..

.......damn I am brain dead this morning! :drunk:

I don't usually session any craft beer. Maybe something like Goose Island 312
 
Boy, tell the truth around here and get crucified. To the OP I say: Go to the store and buy what you like. If it is a session, and last time I checked a session wasn't just 3 or 4 beers and it usually included some slurring of words hence the word session because it's easy to say when slurring (lol), I like to keep it on the economical side. I'd rather not blow out the last half of my keg of ESB or drop $20 on a 12 of Pilsner Urquell (my favorite of all time) or the like. My brew buddies and I prefer the Pabst, Bud American Ale, or even a Schlitz if we can find it for a good night of session drinking away from the house kegs. That way, when we dip into that keg we have been lovingly caring for over the past couple of months, we appreciate our hard work even more. And we throw a bone to the breweries who gave us our first taste of beer. Just my opinion OP. Just an honest answer. And I still say you should drop the $3.69 for a sixer of Pabst and give it a chance in your next store bought session and don't let other's opinions sway your taste bud's decision. Just cause it's cheap doesn't mean it's not good.
Oh, and someone mentioned rot gut...got some good stuff in a mason jar that will grow hair between your toes and it tastes like Frosted Corn Flakes.

Actually your definition is the antithesis of a session beer int he craft world. A session beer, is one which you can consume a lot of without getting drunk at all. You should be able to drink them at the public house for at least a few hours and still hold your head high and talk with authority about topics of the day. You can define a session beer as whatever you want, but like then I can call rose by any other name as well.

Session Beers, Defined - BeerAdvocate - Just an example for the BA hater Joes. The definition is smattered across the interwebs if you care to look.

Some session beers I really enjoy:

Fuller's Londorn Pride, St. Peters English ale (sometimes called Organic ale) or any other original bitter you can get your hands on
Guinness, although IMO it is not work drinking off tap
Berliner Weiss - Normally Berliner Kindl, but lately I can still fond New Glarus' Unplugger Berliner Weiss
Whittekirk belgian white
Hobgoblin
Newcastle

There are an infinite number of good session beers, but it is tough to think off the top of my head. Honestly, I don't really pay attention to ABV unless it is really high, like over 8%.
 
My favorite Session Beer is:

Guinness out of the KEG...

For my favorite (for now) bottled session brew:

Stone IPA

Always looking for something to knock them off the podium...but for now, nothing is rockin' the boat.
 
I agree with you, there is nothing wrong with drinking some PBR or Shlitz, I do the same thing when I wanna drink a few beers and not get loaded. I don't understand or like the stigma our community has put on mass produced pilsners. I say its just being snooty to tell you the truth......

Wrap a turd in rose pedals and what do you have:D

Like it or not, the big macro lagers are the cheapest made beers on the planet. You may like them and say so. That is fine. I can also say I think they are God aweful. IMO the best out there right now are PBR, Schlitz, and High Life. I refuse to spend money on them but do imbibe them occasionally at functions.

May craft brewers and drinker hate them because they are the Walmart of the brewing world. I don't like chain restaurants either. I just support big corporations when I have other options.

.........................

The session ale thing reminds me of being taught about poetry when you are a kid and your teacher tells you that poetry means whatever you want it to. No idiot teacher! It means what the poet intended you to gather from the poem!

Words hold and carry meaning; misconstruing those meanings only perpetuates misinformation and ignorance.
 
Wrap a turd in rose pedals and what do you have:D

Like it or not, the big macro lagers are the cheapest made beers on the planet. You may like them and say so. That is fine. I can also say I think they are God aweful. IMO the best out there right now are PBR, Schlitz, and High Life. I refuse to spend money on them but do imbibe them occasionally at functions.

May craft brewers and drinker hate them because they are the Walmart of the brewing world. I don't like chain restaurants either. I just support big corporations when I have other options.
.

At the end of the day its all about personal taste and having a good time so who cares....
 
At the end of the day its all about personal taste and having a good time so who cares....


True. Its just opinion. I'm surprised that I didn't get ridiculed for liking RR.

Can't tell you how many people scoff at my making of Miller Light Clones.

What they don't realize its got taste, because I hopped the pi$$ out of it with late & dry hopping. Pun intended!!! :D

Had a friend over yesterday. Prez of my brew club. He loved it, said its great session, balanced bitterness, but lot of hop flavor.
 
What I buy by the case is local. Mark over at Golden Valley makes some great beers in the 4-4.5% range. Lots of stouts, brown, porters and APAs under 5%. Some of the Trader Joe's brews are good, but I don't get up there too often.

Some other brewers are waking up to the idea of making session beers. Lot tougher than mega-hopping, though.
 
Usually the only time I think about session beers is on the hot days of summer. Seem to drink more then.

I like
Alaskan Summer Ale (Kolsch)
Alaskan White Ale (Belgian Wit)

Red Hook ESB is a decent one for cooler days.
 
Hands down: Lost Coast Great White Beer

It's kind of a witbier with corriander and orange peel but I hear they use a Kolsch yeast. It is like a better version of Blue Moon, without the over-the-top orange flavor. It's super-smooth and you can literally drink 4 without feeling too buzzed...somewhere around 8-9 of them and you're feeling good! It's been a while since I had that many in one sitting, but they go down smooth and don't mess you up too fast. Perfect for a block party, day at the water, or all day BBQ in the hot sun.
 
What I buy by the case is local. Mark over at Golden Valley makes some great beers in the 4-4.5% range. Lots of stouts, brown, porters and APAs under 5%. Some of the Trader Joe's brews are good, but I don't get up there too often.

Some other brewers are waking up to the idea of making session beers. Lot tougher than mega-hopping, though.

Its not that hard. I made a whole slew of summer session beers. Started with Biermunchers 3-Crop, Tropical Pale Ale, and several Miller Lites (Tri-hop) All of which were below 1.040 OG. The ML's were 1.030 OG.

I think the use of software helps a good deal to get the hopping right. A 6# grain bill doesn't leave room for error if you want to hit an IBU target. Not to mention variations in alpha acids for each specific hop type.
 
My go to session "bought" beers when I want to have a few and not feel it
Yuengling Lager
Yards Brawler

My wife when not drinking wine goes for Yuengling Lager and Dundee Honey Brown
 
Belgian wit, how could I forget about those! Excellent session brews. I just wish that the Lost Abbey Witch's Wit weren't so expensive for a single bottle.

I also agree that in a certain mood, a good hefeweizen really hits the spot. Lately, my favorite in that department is probably the new Sierra Nevada Kellerweis.
 
Wow! I didn't expect this topic to generate this much interest. There was a lot of discussion here about whether I was looking for cheap beer to swill or low ABV "good" beer. I'm well removed from my college swilling days so cheap beer doesn't have quite the same appeal as it did then (scrounging for coins to by a sixer). On the other hand, paying $6 for a six pack instead of $9 isn't a bad thing. Boerderij_Kabouter summed up what I was looking for - a beer you can drink for hours without getting sloshed - a socializing beer.

I will admit that I have become somewhat snobbish in my beer buying and haven't bought any of the big macro brew varieties in quite a while. Having drank many PBR's in days gone by, I guess I may have to grab a six pack and see if is any different than I remember. Maybe I'll even give the Kings new fancy beers a shot.

I'll definitely be looking for some of the beers listed in this thread. I do like Stone's Levitation but I admit I hadn't ever looked to see what the ABV was - surprised me. I also find myself going for the Sam Adams & Sierra Nevada seasonal ales when I want something quick & easy (most grocery stores carry them)

Thanks all :mug:
 
Guinness is my favorite session beer. Easy to drink while still being tasty, and usually a tad cheaper then microbrews. And because it's dark and imported you won't lose too much street cred with the beer snobs. Well maybe just the younger beer snobs who don't know any better.

Newcastle is also another favorite if it happens to be on sale.

I think these two beers are a good choice when you don't want spend over $10 for a 6 pack, but also don't want to resort to drinking flavorless piss-water.
 
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