What turned you on to the good stuff?

[samuelzero]

Just curious.

Given that most of us cut our teeth on Bud Lite or Coors, (I even shamefully drank Zima for a short time- don't tell anyone) what brew made you see the light on how good beer can really be?

Sam Adams Honey Porter back in the day was the gateway for me, though my first Pilsner Urquell on draft at Bohemian Hall in Queens is what really got me. I've never been the same since.

From there Sierra Nevada Pale Ale led to Magic Hat to Otter Creek to Stone to Smuttynose to Victory to Rogue to...

There's so much good stuff out there these days.

What got all of you guys hooked?

 

[Baron von BeeGee]

Would have to have been Pete's Wicked Ale which was the first ale I drank in any great quantities (and frequently on special at my local poolhall back in those days). I eventually became a big fan of microbrews and various styles of ale.

To be honest though, I had a relatively narrow scope until ~5 years ago when some friends I decided to get 'plates' at the Flying Saucer and drank 200 different beers. I definitely broadened my horizons that summer.

 

[Chairman Cheyco]

When I was about 10, my father and a partner opened up an english pub called The Point and Feather. At roughly the same time a local micro called Bigrock was opening and they were specializing in ales of all types. It was a perfect match so we had all the Bigrocks on tap. I was allowed the odd sip and was totally entranced by the porter. The rest is history.

I love my dad, but he sold the pub before me and mine were old enough to drink.

 

[Dude]

Didn't we just have a thread on this like a week ago?

 

[Baron von BeeGee]

Didn't we just have a thread on this like a week ago?

Seems like we did...and perhaps before that? Not sure why the spirit moved me to participate today?

 

[Walker]

Didn't we just have a thread on this like a week ago?

maybe, but I think that's true for almost EVERY thread we have on here.

 

[Dude]

My subtle (and lame) attempt to get people to search.....

 

[samuelzero]

Sorry if this is a redundant discussion. The question popped into my head and I typed it. Next time I'll search first.

 

[BootYtRappeR]

my departure from p|$$ beer went someting like this

pete's wicked > spanish peaks honey raspberry > newcastle > sn pale ale > low down brown > downtown brown > guinness > the door opened up WIDE from here on!

 

[BootYtRappeR]

might be hard to search for something without a concrete subject.

 

[samuelzero]

True Enough.

 

[autoferret]

I think that i have always drank plenty of beer. I've always drank good beer, Favorite is still newcastle.

 

[SkewedBrewing]

I think that i have always drank plenty of beer. I've always drank good beer, Favorite is still newcastle.

My dad loves New Castle...

I agree, I'm 21 but I've been drinking beer for a while. My dad always drank good beer, not the cheap stuff. The first time I really knew I loved beer was when I had a Guiness when I was probably 15 or 16. Cliche, yes, but still Good stuff...

 

[Desert_Sky]

mine was a little shop called "The Plaza" up in Tucson. when you first walk in they have discarded 6 pack boxes you pick up. then you can walk the store and make a 6 pack of your own. they have 400+ varieties which allowed me to try a little of everything.

 

[Kevin K]

Sounds a little like heaven.

 

[todd_k]

Saranac Black Forest did it for me.

 

[rewster451]

I didn't really like beer when I was younger. I was a fan of red wine, and I didn't really know much about that either. But the first time I had Guiness I realized there was something going on besides american piss. From there I tried Newcastle, and then I don't know what else, but by four or five years ago I found I could find something to like even in Bud and Coors. I still prefer Guiness above all other beers when it comes to drinking four or five at a sitting. Some of my favorite beers just start to get a little heavy on the tongue after two or three.

 

[drengel]

corsendonk brown ale and guiness. hows that for a combo? had the corsendonk when i was 14 or 15 at thanksgiving. it was an eye-opener for a young man who thought beers only purpose was to get you drunk. but the corsnedonk was not easily stolen from the beer frig, so at around 16 i had gotten in the habit of stealing a guinness every once in a while to go drink by the lake by myself. that was about the time i stopped drinking for purely imbibing purposes.


sidenote: why don't you tell someone whos asking how to make a yeast starter to do a search rather than a thread thats interesting like this?

 

[McCall St. Brewer]

I like this thread even if I started one like it awhile back. What the heck-- I remember drinking a Beck's back in college and then a lot of different German lagers, both light and dark.

 

[budbo]

Road trip to Denver stopped in a store for beer decided to try "Boulder Beer" thought it was nasty, my buddy told me not to drink it from the bottle and let the sediment settle.. second bottle (in a glass) got me hooked.

 

[flingdingo]

On my 21st B-Day I walked into the liquor store to proudly (legally) buy my first six-pack of Bud. The guy carded me, and upon realizing it was my B-day, said...

"You don't want that ****." and went back to the cooler and filled a sixpack with Pilsner Urquell, Guiness, Pete's Wicked Ale, and a couple other microbrews I can't remember, and sent me on my way. He didn't charge me either, just said happy b-day and waved me out of the store.

 

[Brewsmith]

That's awesome! That guy's my hero.

 

[Desert_Sky]

On my 21st B-Day I walked into the liquor store to proudly (legally) buy my first six-pack of Bud. The guy carded me, and upon realizing it was my B-day, said...

"You don't want that ****." and went back to the cooler and filled a sixpack with Pilsner Urquell, Guiness, Pete's Wicked Ale, and a couple other microbrews I can't remember, and sent me on my way. He didn't charge me either, just said happy b-day and waved me out of the store.

right on, its nice to hear that you can still find the occasional cool person out and about. just remeber to pass the gesture on someday to some random person

 

[justbrewit]

the beer that woke me up from slumber was thomas hardys. after having a taste of that, the flood gates were open, wide open. from there it was any thing that looked like a microbrew or english or...or....or.....

up to that point i hated beer, i only drank comfort and coke. i have thanked my old roommate many, many, many times for opening my eyes to the wonderful world of frosted barley pops

 

[autoferret]

Thats sweet!!!

 

[gmeyers]

I saw the light when I bought a pint of Samuel Smiths's Oatmeal Stout while on Phish tout in 1999. Since then I will usually pass up a "light" beer. Other early staple of my diet where Orval, Hobgoblin, Bass, Dogfish Head 120 IPA ( With the corked wine bottle) and the list goes on and on.

PS. does anybody know where to get the Dogfish Head in the large wine bottles???

 

[Baron von BeeGee]

Nobody mentioning Shiner Bock? I remember when they started carrying it in the "special beer" cooler at my local bar where I drank Michelob Dark gratis since the bartenderess pitied a poor grad student. We all tried it one Friday (payday) and decided it was the best beer ever created. I was pretty shocked when I eventually accepted a job in Dallas and discovered it was $7/12-pack out there.

 

[cweston]

In college, I drank better beer than the usual cheap swill whenever possible. I'm not talking artisanal brews, I'm talking Labbatts instead of Goebel or Old Swillwaukee.

In my 20s I lived in Seattle when the microbrew concept was really taking off (1980s-early 90s). That's what did it for me.

 

[jornellas]

For me it all started with Sierra, then I went to the Goathill Tavern (140 beers on tap) My buddy had just started bartending there, I proceeded to try every beer I could.

 

[Lil' Sparky]

To be honest I only recently became interested in "real" beer (I'm 31). In my younger days I just drank to get drunk, and haven't really had much to drink for several years.

I moved to CO 2 years ago and there's a lot of Microbrews around here. After trying a few of those, I realized that beer could actually taste pretty good (never thought so before).

Then I met a guy that brewed his own - and it was GOOD! He taught me how to brew - I started w/ all-grain - never have done an extract, and I can honestly say that all my beer has been very good. Lurking on sites like this has only perked my interest more.

Tonight I tried a Samuel Smith's Taddy Porter for the first time. I'm impressed, but I don't think it's as good as the vanilla porter I've got bottled right now.

There's a whole world of beer I still need to try, but all in good time.

Cheers!

 

[bitsmith2k]

growing up my pops would drink OV, which may explain why he doesn't drink much anymore.. i used to swipe a few bottles here and there.. but i still remember my first two pints in a pub came when i was 16 years old..after a rugby game, my coach bought me a pint of Guinness, after that my buddy's dad bought me a smithwicks (in doing so schooling me on the proper pronounciation) that got me on to good beers.. my old roomates dad brews, after having one of those i was hooked on the homebrew..

 

[Walker]

my buddy's dad bought me a smithwicks (in doing so schooling me on the proper pronounciation)

???

Can you enlighten me?

-walker

 

[bitsmith2k]

???

Can you enlighten me?

-walker

smith-icks
or with his irish accent 'smidicks'..

the only reason i brought that up was last night we overheard a guy ordering a smith-wicks..

 

[Walker]

thanks. I never ever knew that the "W" was silent.

Interesting....

-walker

 

[Caplan]

thanks. I never ever knew that the "W" was silent.

Interesting....

-walker

?????! Greenwich mean time? Surely you don't say 'green witch' or 'gren witch'!

it's 'gren itch'!

 

[Walker]

Yeah, I know how to pronouce Greenwich, but I didn't know Smithwicks was similar.

-walker

PS: That's pronouced "Alk Er"

 

[kornkob]

My first beer was a home brew my old man made. A stout he had aging in the basement.

 

[Caplan]

PS: That's pronouced "Alk Er"

Did you miss 'whole wick' of the end of that?

 

[Glibbidy]

While in High school our marching band went over to the UK to play some concerts. The locals in Bristol hosted us, and this jolly english fellow turned me and my buddies onto his homebrew out of a beer ball/party pig contraption.

Then a few years later in college We used to drink beer at russells restaurant in bloomsburg, PA. They had this thing called the passport & visa. You would basically drink your way thru the states, and countries they had on these documents. Fullers ESB and Voodoo lager come to mind as well as the Sam Smith's products. In retrospect I guess I also took Yuengling for granted as really drinkable beer

For me it all started with Sierra, then I went to the Goathill Tavern (140 beers on tap) My buddy had just started bartending there, I proceeded to try every beer I could.

Henry & Harry’s Goat Hill Tavern rocks.

 

[opqdan]

Im only 22 (almost 22.5 ) so my real beer tasting days are ahead of me rather than behind me. Like most people, I would partake in the occasional alcoholic drink when the mood set in, but I was never a big fan of drinking just to get drunk. Right from the get go, I could not stand Bud/Miller/Coors lights. They were just fizzy, yellow water with almost no taste at all. I wanted something with substance.

Eventually, I tried Guinness. The first time I had it, I was disgusted. Not knowing how a 'real' beer tasted, I though it was way to strong for my liking. I ended up finding Hoegardden and fell in love. Since then, I have re-tried Guiness and gound that I love it almost as much as my fiance. Not only that bu I moved onto other stouts. My current favorite beer of all time is Sam Smith's Oatmeal stou, but I haven't tried a whole variety of different beers. Any recommendations would be appreciated.

My first homebrew experience has yet to happen (we'll begin brewing an Irish stout next weekend), so wish me luck. After that, who knows. I really really want to make a chile beer, but I need to find one to try first.