My first fat tire

[Brutus Brewer]

+1 on the drinking it on tap only. Also I only drink it in places where they sell enough of it to change the keg every once in a while. Pretty sure it doesn't age well and it doesn't bottle that well either. Kinda makes me wonder. Fresh on tap it's a great beer, bottled from the supermarket = gross.

Agreed. I was in Peoria last week and had a FT draft and it was terrible, certainly not the FT I remember drinking in Portland a couple of years ago. I hope it was just an old keg because it was sh*t.

 

[eljefe]

Back in the day FT used to be one of my favorites... In fact for me, like many others, FT was the first non-BMC beer that I could tolerate.

Is this not the point of FT. For many people it served as the gateway between BMCs and good micros. It is no different than Sam Adams (for me), Sierra Nevada, Serenac (also for me), and more recently Magic Hat and Blue Moon (I know, I know, I know).

I equate it to music. Your tastes evolve and grow and differ over time. It does not mean Air Supply sucks (ok maybe a bad example).

BMCs are carbon copies of each other and had it not been for Saranac or SA I would still be drinking Bud. Those two beers made me realize there was better out there. They served as a bridge from Bud to a whole new world of beer. I can tolerate either one of them today but they are in no way shape or form my preferred beer. They are to me, the Godfathers of the micro generation. We should therefore exult the trail they blazed and sing their praises rather than condemn them for not meeting our lofty taste profiles. After all, no one can make a beer as good as we can when we brew it ourselves.

 

[jmkratt]

I'm a Fort Collins homer so Fat Tire has a special place for me. I don't find myself drinking it all that often any more unless I'm over at the parents. I think Odells makes a better amber, Levity. However, I have drank so much Fat Tire I think I over did it. It was the 2nd beer I tried to brew though! I must say in college I flew to Houston for an interview and they had Fat Tire on tap! I was amazed the local beer was on tap in the big city, but it did NOT taste the same as fresh brew from home.

 

[jmkratt]

Is this not the point of FT. For many people it served as the gateway between BMCs and good micros. It is no different than Sam Adams (for me), Sierra Nevada, Serenac (also for me), and more recently Magic Hat and Blue Moon (I know, I know, I know).

I equate it to music. Your tastes evolve and grow and differ over time. It does not mean Air Supply sucks (ok maybe a bad example).

BMCs are carbon copies of each other and had it not been for Saranac or SA I would still be drinking Bud. Those two beers made me realize there was better out there. They served as a bridge from Bud to a whole new world of beer. I can tolerate either one of them today but they are in no way shape or form my preferred beer. They are to me, the Godfathers of the micro generation. We should therefore exult the trail they blazed and sing their praises rather than condemn them for not meeting our lofty taste profiles. After all, no one can make a beer as good as we can when we brew it ourselves.

That's a good way of phrasing it :rockin:

 

[passedpawn]

I wish someone would clone Hoptober and 2˚ Below.

Uh... you are a homebrewer... get busy!

 

[HeavyBrew]

I don't have anything against Fat Tire, hell, New Belgium is banking big time on it. I just hate hearing people talking about this Fat Tire Brewery and that they drink real beer..blah blah. You mention New Belgium and they don't know anything about them. I guess I'm sick of explaining that beers like Fat Tire and Blue Moon aren't the greatest examples of the traditional styles in Belgium. I know the brewers that make these beers are inspired by Belgian beer, but most of the people that come from drinking BMC try this stuff and think it's the greatest thing. You know they aren't going to go out of their way to go and buy the real thing. Well, I guess I just have a problem with those people, don't I? Once I started getting into beer more and more, I felt it was important to learn about the styles in order to enjoy the beers and know what to look for and what I'm tasting. I've never been one to drink, just to drink. Respect the old world brews and remember where they came from!

 

[superjunior]

After all, no one can make a beer as good as we can when we brew it ourselves.

kinda like comparing fast food to a nice home cooked meal

 

[Bmorebrew]

Quoted directly from beeradvocate.com about respecting beer:

First, Keep It Real.
As stated, beer is the ultimate social lubricant and a beverage that's meant to be fun, enjoyed, and celebrated. However, some who "mature" into craft beers tend to become beer snobs (different than beer geeks) and take things a bit too seriously, thus giving the rest of us a bad name.

Secondarily, a point I always try to remember, an anecdote from a brewer friend while he was on vacation in France - he says he and his wife were enjoying a terrific dinner in a little cafe and enjoying an awesome house red wine. Two tables over was a French couple drinking the same house wine with an ice cube in the glass. Such thing would be considered a heresy in the US, but even in France (where one might argue they have a far deeper wine heritage) something like this can be done.

With music, cigars, food, or beer, the bottom line is listen to, smoke, eat, and drink what you like.

 

[Brutus Brewer]

Agreed. I was in Peoria last week and had a FT draft and it was terrible, certainly not the FT I remember drinking in Portland a couple of years ago. I hope it was just an old keg because it was sh*t.

I was in the Quad Cities the other day and had Fat Tire at the hotel we stayed at and it was great. I just don't understand how it can be as inconsistent as it is.

 

[iron_city_ap]

I went to a dinner co-sponsored by New Belgium last spring. First off, the people from there were great. Not that I know much about brewing, or am all that great at it, but they had a genuine interest in what I had made and my enthusiasm for the craft. Their beers were paired with matching food, and I have to say 'holy *#*$R', was it spot on. It was my 1st experience where good beer was paired with good food. I've had a few of their beers that I don't really care for, but others are pretty damn good. I can say much. ,much worse for other breweries. Match that with their overall genuine sincerity for what they do and the scale they do it on and I'm more than willing to tip my hat to them. After my evening with them, I really can't knock them at all.

 

[flabyboy]

I went to a dinner co-sponsored by New Belgium last spring. First off, the people from there were great. Not that I know much about brewing, or am all that great at it, but they had a genuine interest in what I had made and my enthusiasm for the craft. Their beers were paired with matching food, and I have to say 'holy *#*$R', was it spot on. It was my 1st experience where good beer was paired with good food. I've had a few of their beers that I don't really care for, but others are pretty damn good. I can say much. ,much worse for other breweries. Match that with their overall genuine sincerity for what they do and the scale they do it on and I'm more than willing to tip my hat to them. After my evening with them, I really can't knock them at all.

I have a friend who is a brewer at NB. He is very passionate about his work and has shared fresh kegs with us from NB that were fabulous. FT is definately not their best beer.

 

[Spirk]

I was in Ft Collins this weekend, visiting a friend, and had a Fat Tire at one of the bars downtown. I tried it when I moved here a year ago and didn't like it much back then but I really liked it two nights ago. I was so surprised that I decided to have a 1554 an hour later just to see if my tastes had changed that much. I first had 1554 back in Sept and sincerely thought it was the worst beer I had ever drank. Two days ago, I LOVED it. Home brewing has changed me.

 

[chumpsteak]

Fat tire tastes like dust. You know when you're sweeping your garage and all the air your breathing smells and tastes like dust. Fat tire tastes like that. It's like tripping and falling into a mud puddle with your mouth open. It's what I imagine mud pies taste like. I may be biased towards hoppy beers....

 

[ReverseApacheMaster]

I still like 1554. Some of the Lips of Faith beers are ok but I haven't been blown away by any of them. I used to like Fat Tire. It's one of the few beers we get around here that's canned and not crazy expensive so it's a decent one to take on the water.

I used to drink quite a bit of Fat Tire and their Belgian offerings (Abbey and Tripel) but other than the occasional 1554 or Lips of Faith it's probably been a couple years since I've had any of the others. There's just too many other good beers to drink.

 

[TromboneGuy]

New Belgium brews are OK, but being from Kansas, I've been able to get it for a long time. My friends in Oklahoma, who can't get it regularly, go nuts for the stuff.

I'd rather have the Odells. I really like their 90 shilling.

 

[jaycount]

Sunshine wheat is the best NB beer (that I've tried).

Mmmmmm, Sunshine wheat.

 

[smalliewader]

I also find ft to not be the ft I used to drink in Colorado in the early 90's. Still enjoy it, but it's not the same. Maybe recipe change, maybe a freshness thing.

It's funny so many prefer Odells, I remember when they came out....... Hated their beers, haven't had one for probably 15+ years.