Best Commercial Beer You've Ever Had

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too many to choose from. I roughly divide all beers into 3 categories:

1. complete crap. The worst of the worst. This accounts for maybe 10% of the beers that I've tried
2. 'meh.' Middle-of-the-road beers. These are beers that I can enjoy under the right circumstances, but are generally rather boring beers that I won't go out of my way to buy. This category is about 80% of the beers I've tried
3. Yummy. These are the rare beers that ALWAYS hit the spot. About 10%.
 
I kinda have broad categories:

More malty: Belhaven Scottish Ale
More hoppy: SN Northern Harvest (and I'm generally not a hop bomb fan...)
Spiced: Abbey of Leffe Blonde Ale
 
too many to choose from. I roughly divide all beers into 3 categories:

1. complete crap. The worst of the worst. This accounts for maybe 10% of the beers that I've tried
2. 'meh.' Middle-of-the-road beers. These are beers that I can enjoy under the right circumstances, but are generally rather boring beers that I won't go out of my way to buy. This category is about 80% of the beers I've tried
3. Yummy. These are the rare beers that ALWAYS hit the spot. About 10%.

How about just one per each category presented? Fair deal?
 
Too hard for me to choose because I like so many and my favorites are probably considered swill by a lot of people here. I'd probably have to say Newcastle Brown. I just really like it and would choose it over most everything else I have access to. I also really like Fat Tire and Blue Moon.
 
I really like the offerings from Brooklyn Breweries. And as plebeian as it may be, for a day to day throw a few back beer, I really like their lager.

I swear back in 1991 or 1992 I had a Belhaven Oatmeal Stout that was for ever after my gold standard for all beers, but after looking around for it I am starting to wonder if this was an hallucination or a dream, it was a special release at the very least, because I haven't been able to find any of it since then. :(
 
For my go to beer, something I would take to a party or just pickup for everyday drinking I go with Kona Brewing Company, either their lager or pale or a Sierra Nevada.

The other beers mentioned are great but I would view those as more an occasional beer when the mood hits. For that I like Ballast Point Sculpin, Racer 5, most of the Stone line.
 
Maybe because it's local, but Allagash Black. I don't let myself have it very often though because it's far too drinkable for my palate and I always end up time traveling to the point the next day where I am apologizing to people.
 
Bells Two hearted ale , first time i had it was on tap...the best. got a case of bottles last week, its still awesome in the bottle, but man was that keg fresh.
 
Maybe because it's local, but Allagash Black. I don't let myself have it very often though because it's far too drinkable for my palate and I always end up time traveling to the point the next day where I am apologizing to people.

My buddy was up in maine and brought back a bottle of that. I completely agree with your statement lol, im glad me and him split the 750 bottle or i wouldnt have finished the brewday very well lol.
 
Lakefront Brewery's Riverwest Stein if I'm drinking a lot of beer.
Southern Tier's Unearthly if I want to treat myself.
Dogfish Head's 120 min IPA if I'm really treating myself.
Samual Smith's Oatmeal Stout if I'm feeling like something dark.
Killian's Irish Red for a cheap 12-pack.
Spatan Lager...if I want a lager.
Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest at a festival.
 
Having recently been reminded of the pure joy this beer has brought me once a year during me entire beer drinking life, Sierra Nevada Celebration is waaaaay up on my list.
 
Dogfish head 120 is great if you're ok with spending an extra few bucks but the 60 and 90 are good too and I'm not usually a big ipa guy but while were talking about ipas since I'm a michigan boy I'm a Fan of bells two hearted too. Another great one from bells is Oberon, that's gotta be my favorite wheat beer. I love shiner bock from the tap and its so easy to spot from a distance with rams head draft handle. My favorite brown has to be a tie between petes wicked ale and sierra nevada tumbler. Pale ales have another tie between sierra nevada pale ale and bass pale ale. Man I could go on and on they're all so good!!!:tank:
 
There are many great beers that I could consider if I were to only be drinking one. But you know how it goes with some beers, more than one and the novelty of their uniqueness kind of wears off.

So if I had to choose a best beer ever, it would have to be one that I could enjoy at least a few of without wanting to move on to something else.

Given that requirement, I would have to say Great Lakes Brewing Co. Dortmunder Gold is my choice.
 
My first real beer was a Guiness Extra Stout. My wife and I both will invariably be drawn back to Guiness - not draught - Stout on those rainy Oregon nights by the fireplace. I love the hoppy stuff (again, I live in OR) - but the beer that puts it all together for me is Guiness Foreign Extra Stout. I'd feel mighty smart if I could manage to clone that one.
 
I just recently had a Bell's Kalamazoo Stout and loved every second of it.
 
Konig Ludwig! My favourite beer next to guinness. I've tried 1000's of beers from 100's of different breweries and it is by far the best weiss.
 
Lets see, I would put Skullsplitter at the top of the list and Lucifer right below that. Both really good beers.
 
Alpine Bad Boy was one of the best beers I've had the pleasure of drinking.

Alpine Pure Hoppiness

Pliny the Elder

and I really like Great Divide Yeti.
 
There used to be a stout at 3rd Street Aleworks in Santa Rosa, CA that was great on tap, but AMAZING when they ran it out of the cask. Aside from that particular beer, I'd have to go with Sierra Nevada. Solely because it's the one I keep going back to time and time again.

Granted, I'm sure if I thought hard enough I could come up with a seasonal/special here or there, but off the top of my head the above ones would be my selections.
 
too many to list...

contenders would be

lost abbey - angels share
lost abbey - red barn ale
orval
pliny the elder
pannepot 2007
FFF - dreadnaught
jolly pumpkin - special ale
great divide - old ruffian
avery - the beast
boulevard - saison brett
 
I'm an out and out pils fan having lived in Germany so long.

Altenmünster Brauer Bier Urig Würzig, which ratebeer ranks very low, but I got a case from a local guy so it would have been pretty fresh, maybe that makes the difference, but it's a beautiful soft subtle Muenchner Helles.
Then Rothaus Tannen Zaepfle is pretty high up there too, a much hoppier pilsener beer

If I'm in the UK then it's probably whatever the barman advises is tasting good off of the pumps on that day, and they normally are able to steer you in the right direction.
Old Speckled Hen is a delight when it's going well off the cask.
 
I really like North Coast Brewing Red Seal out of a cask. There is only one place in town that I know of that has it, so it is a treat for me.
 
Malty: Ayinger Celebrator
Hoppy: Pliny the Elder, Ruination (tied)

Honorable mentions: Allagash White, Hennepin, Lindemans Framboise, Youngs Double Choc Stout
 
A rough Top Ten:

Westvleteren 12 - aged 3-4yrs ` 1997 was sublime
Orval -aged 1yr or more
Drie Fonteinen Oude Kriekenlambik -aged 3-5yrs
Any beer from Brasserie Cantillon - aged 3-4yrs
Lupulus Blond
3 Monts Grande Réserve Spécial Ale
Nostradamus
Malheur 10°
Gouden Carolus Hopsinjoor
(Troubadour Magma IPA - - Viven Imperial IPA) <<< count as 1:drunk:

Left out many other great beers:
Troubadour Blond Ale
Westvleteren Blonde
Moinette Blond
Oud Beersel Oude Gueuze Vieille
Drie Fonteinen Oude Gueuze Vintage
Hell the list just goes on & on
......:mug:
 
Rogue Yongers Special Bitter! i dont think you can get the original anymore now its an imperial version i believe.
 
DFH 90 min IPA is probably my all-time favorite. But I just tried Stone IPA for the first time a few days ago and its a close second.
 
I would have to say leffe. For some reason it's a beer I rarely drink, but when I do, it's really is refreshing.
 
Weihenstephaner Original Lager, hands down.

Just had a half liter of that yesterday. Damn, that is one fine beer!

My wife and I toured the Weihenstephan brewery on our honeymoon, and I have never had so many good beers in one place in my life! If you're ever in Freising, Bavaria, get a tour of that place. The brewery is awesome, but the loads of free beer afterward really makes it all worth the stop.

TB
 
In terms of drinking from the bottle at my dining room table, there are too many fantastic beers to try to name the best. My most memorable beer drinking experiences are always context specific though. Here are a few.

Aecht Schlenkerla Bock at the 2010 tapping. My wife and I got something like the 5th and 6th half liters poured.

Russian River Pliny the Elder at the Pub. I walked in very cynical thinking there was no way PtE or Russian River in general lived up to the hype. I was wrong.

Kiwanda Cream Ale at Pelican Pub. The best place to drink beer in N. America and one of the most masterfully made subtly flavored beers anywhere.

Old Stumblefoot at Walking man.

Döllnitzer Rittergutsgose at Goseschenke Ohne Bedenken in Leipzig.
 
A rough Top Ten:

Westvleteren 12 - aged 3-4yrs ` 1997 was sublime
Orval -aged 1yr or more
Drie Fonteinen Oude Kriekenlambik -aged 3-5yrs
Any beer from Brasserie Cantillon - aged 3-4yrs
Lupulus Blond
3 Monts Grande Réserve Spécial Ale
Nostradamus
Malheur 10°
Gouden Carolus Hopsinjoor
(Troubadour Magma IPA - - Viven Imperial IPA) <<< count as 1:drunk:

Left out many other great beers:
Troubadour Blond Ale
Westvleteren Blonde
Moinette Blond
Oud Beersel Oude Gueuze Vieille
Drie Fonteinen Oude Gueuze Vintage
Hell the list just goes on & on
......:mug:

i'd like to get my hands on 3 Monts. can't seem to find it around here.....
 
Three recent favorites:
Founders Backwoods Bastard
Two Brothers' Cane and Ebel hopped up red rye
flying Dog's Scotty Karate.
 
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