Beer for the beginner

There are various different types of beer, such as ale, lager, pilsner, and wheat. I generally prefer wheat beer, of the Hacker Pschorr brand, but I also enjoy a good pilsner like Paulaner. Yes, the Germans make the best beer, no doubt about it.

And then there's Guinness. You're not ready for Guinness.

Personally, I actually started on vodka and progressed to bourbon and most recently scotch.

My favorite beer is from Wynkoop, a local microbrew (in denver). Since that is probably not an option, my favorite non micro brew is probably New Castle, or Mickeys (malt liquor, a 40, real cheap shit). I would recommend trying various things. A lot of beers are nasty, many are not. I have heard good things about Easystreet. I also kind of like Blue Moon. A few other options are hard ciders. It could take a while to find your preference. Currently I am on a beer sampler. Last night I tried a fosters and a blue ribbon (both very cheap) and both very bad. I am pretty sure german beer is where its at. Damnit, now I want a beer. As for guiness, you may or may not like it. It was my first beer, and I liked it. Although new castle is better IMO.

I usually try to avoid lagers. Most just dont do it for me.

If you get tired of beer at some liquor stores you can get premade mix drinks (I am sure they would be better if you mix them yourself). Pinacoladas are nice.

Recently I have been wishing beer tasted more like root beer. Next time I go to the liquor store I will get rootbeer schnappes and mix it with rootbeer. Then maybe make a rootbeer schnappes float. hope it goes well.

Big name american beer in general are crap. I just cannot fathom how the hell someone would want to drink Bud Light (Interesting anecdote, I just won 50$ yesterday by guessing which beer was Bud Light out of two, and what the other kind was. It happened at some football game. When he asked me how, I answered "Well, it tasted like greasy water, as usual, and this is compared to Coors Light no less.")

That being said, maybe try some canadian beers, altough they aren't that great either. I quite like Corona and Heineken, altough some might disagree. The real good stuff is in Europe. Kilkenny, Guiness, Lowenbrau, etc. I know Stella Artois is decently price, in Canada at least. You might give it a try.

Remember that beer is an acquired taste, just like wine. You might not love it the first time around, but as you drink more, you'll learn to appreciate the taste.

In my experience most newer drinkers prefer liquor over beer. My thoughts on the reason are that you can put liquor in all kinds of things, like soda, but you can't change the taste of beer. Plus beer is an acquired taste.

If you like Pepsi, I suggest Pepsi with either vanilla vodka, raspberry vodka, cirtus vodka, or I guess straight vodka. It's like drinking vanilla Pepsi, raspberry Pepsi, or Citrus Pepsi - with a kick.

For when you really feel like you're ready for beer, a good starter is Miller Light, IMO.

When I'm at home, I'm more likely to drink Michelob or some other light beer, but when I'm out it's more along the lines of tequila, Tecate, Sol, and Dos Equis. (Yes, there's a reason for that.)

I haven't tried Guiness yet... maybe I'll give that a shot.

edit: And no, I stay away from most anything with the name "Miller." >_<

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Original post by Benjamin Heath edit: And no, I stay away from most anything with the name "Miller." >_<

I think it's a good starter because there's little taste to it, but what taste it does have is like beer. My personal preference is Corona, but if there isn't a lime to go with it I think Corona is nasty (not that that's stopped me from drinking it).

Oh Guiness.. with the Bailey's for the carbomb.. it's the only true way to drink Guiness. Anything less is weak. [smile]

My favorite beer is Yuengling Black & Tan, hands down.

I discovered Guiness and BitBurger yesterday and they were quite good. Guiness doesnt have as much alcohol as most beers available around here(4.2%) Vs (5.0-6.0%) but in my opinion it's easier to drink than those piss-tasting beers and packs more of a punch than the others. Yet again I usually drink with a good meal. Last night was different :P but I enjoyed each one I tasted.

Strictly speaking, pretty much all beer is either a Lager (brewed with bottom-dwelling yeast in cold temperatures) or an Ale (brewed with top-dwelling yeast at warmer temperatures). Most American beers are Lagers. Most American beers are also crap unless they're made at a micro-brewery.

I prefer Ales, they tend to be fuller and more "complex". Can't really explain that till you start drinking more beer =) My current favorite beer is Newcastle Brown Ale.

Tips:
-Drink lots of different kinds of beers; you won't really get a taste for beer until you drink lots of different kinds. Most will taste bad when you first start, give it some time
-Find a bar nearby that has lots of different beers available, preferably on tap if possible; draft beer is IMO always better than bottled. And bottled is always better than canned


A Few Good Beers (I apologize for spelling in advance)
-Franziskaner Heffe-Weisse (wheat, Germany)
-Hoegarden (wheat, Belgium)
-Newcastle Brown Ale (ale, England)
-Delirium Tremens (or others) (ale, Belgium)
-Harp Ale (Ireland)
-Bass (England)
-Guinness and Smithwicks

Beers to Avoid:
-Anything served at a frat party
-Most American commercial beers (Budweiser, Miller, Coors, etc.)

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Original post by Khawk I think it's a good starter because there's little taste to it, but what taste it does have is like beer. My personal preference is Corona, but if there isn't a lime to go with it I think Corona is nasty (not that that's stopped me from drinking it).

Ya know, I can't recall if I've had Corona or not. Eh, it was probably Sol.

In any case, just don't make the mistake of drinking on an empty stomach. Get some steak or something in there while you're out.

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Original post by Khawk If you like Pepsi, I suggest Pepsi with either vanilla vodka, raspberry vodka, cirtus vodka, or I guess straight vodka. It's like drinking vanilla Pepsi, raspberry Pepsi, or Citrus Pepsi - with a kick.

Would something like Mike's Hard Lemonade be the same sort of thing?

Definitely agree with Khawk that most new drinkers prefer liquor over beer (and, people that only drink really crappy beer). It's just easier to throw liquor in whatever and make it taste different, but he's right, you can't really hide the taste of beer. I shudder that he recommends Miller Lite to start though...

I pretty much started with Yuengling; it's rough at first, you really have to choke down the first beers you have. Yuengling is now my 'backup' beer, the beer I go to when I can't find anything better. It's definitely an acquired taste. Guinness isn't really that thick to me anymore; there's a micro brew they have at a local bar that's way thicker than Guinness; man is it good stuff.

By far my favorite brewery (aside from wynkoop) is Avery brewing co (in boulder, co). At my liquor store they run pretty cheap for such good beer. The best part is the alchohol content. I have a Salvation Ale one night (school night). I felt way more buzzed than I should have. Turns out it had 9% alchohol. I never tried it, but they make a beer called "The beast" with 18% alchol. I did not taste much alchohol in the salvation ale. damn good beer.

Beer is definately an acquired taste, but I think you can get into it.

Also, anyone who has had Mack and Jack's African Amber and mentions it here gets a rating++. I LOVE MJAA.

While KHawk is correct, beer is an aquired taste, I found Hacker Pschorr's Heffe Weisse to be quite atypical of most beers. It's kind of heavy, very smooth, almost has a sweet taste. Drop a wedge of lemon into the glass and it's heaven. If I had a choice, I would only drink Hacker Pschorr, it's just so pleasant.

One of my favorites is a local brew called Red Oak. Yuengling is also my backup -- it's fairly cheap here and it beats Bud et al. Coronas are good with a lime. I'll occasionally get a Guiness or another dark beer. Once in a blue moon I'll go with Blue Moon. I'll always choose something on tap over a bottle.

I'd suggest expanding your taste in beers rather than going with a sweet drink. Go to local beer sampling events.

You might also try liquors and shots. I'm no connoisseur, but they can be a lot of fun.

I always go for the good ol' Keith's:

I knew I'd get some heat with the Miller Lite, but since it's like water I think it's a good way to ease into beer drinking. [smile]

Yuengling is awesome. Definitely up there on the list of favorites. I also like Sapporo beer. If you ever go to the Caribbean islands then try Carib. It's pretty good.

When I visited London I primarily had Bodinger's (sp?). I think I tried every major beer on tap that I saw in pubs, but I guess that one was most like my acquired American beer taste.

Beer is definitley an aquired taste. I have not yet aquired it (although I can't say I try very much)...I just hate that stale beer smell...eugh. Anyway, if you don't like beer you can try something like vodka and . Or tequila and or if you want something really bland my friends drink really...really bad wine with grenadine (disgsting stuff).

(the burn is half the fun though in my opinion, start with good tequila shots ^^)