Beer thread

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mycroftt

Joined
Nov 13, 2002
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In an earthquake thread gajinoz responded thusly to my assertion that the best beers are brewed in Belgium and USA, so I'm starting a beer thread to see if we can get a new topic going.

gajinoz said:
I assume you're kidding!
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I'm not kidding about the best beers being from Belgium and USA. Have you had any of the Belgians, like Corsendonck or Rodenbach or even the lambics? The Abbey beers? Did you ever get Kwaacked? I'll take Belgium over any country beer for beer.

The USA brews many of the worlds best beers. I have tried over 600 American beers and dozens of them are world class. No other country can lay claim to so many world class beers. Maybe we win by brute force because there are so many independent breweries but we win nonetheless. I guess the flip side is that no other country brews as many BAD beers either ;) .
 
Personally, I like Scottish and Yorkshire ales the best. Most American versions tend to be too heavy on the hops, making most of them a little too bitter for my taste. The Canadians make some very good ales, e.g. Big Rock Brewery's Traditional Ale. Aass brewery from Norway makes a Yule ale that will make you sit up and take notice-I haven't seen any since the late '80s. Check out Belhaven Brewery's St Andrews Ale and a Yorkshire ale called Old Peculiar.

I have never had an American pilsner that can come near the level of Pilsner Urquel.

My favorite stout is from Oz, Toths Sheaf Stout.
 
The American pale ales in particular have an extremly aggressive hop schedule, usually including dry hopping. This is more akin to the India Pale Ales than to the Scottish or British pale ales. Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, which virtually defines the American pale ale style, uses so much Cascade hops that it tastes like grapefruit juice to people who are not accustomed to that flavor profile.
 
mycroftt said:
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, which virtually defines the American pale ale style, uses so much Cascade hops that it tastes like grapefruit juice to people who are not accustomed to that flavor profile.
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I am accustomed to it, I just do not like it. It seems unbalanced to me.

Try a six of St Andrews Ale and compare.
 
After listening to an NPR article on the Belgian Lambic brews, I had to try some. We do have a local import store that carries a fair selection. Very interesting!
As I recall, I liked a couple of the more-champagne like types a lot, and not so much one of the others.
My internet research did confirm that the Belgians take their brewing seriously.

I started drinking German brews back in the 60s, and still favor a good Pilsener or Lager. Although our local brewing giant, Anheuser-Busch, still pushes Bud Light (yecchh!) for all it's worth, they can still put out a good product.
Yearly they make up a variety of specialty items; last night I tried the Marzen that they market under the Michelob label...Not bad at all.
 
mycroftt said:
No other country can lay claim to so many world class beers.
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Germany can. Germany has the highest number of breweries in the world and many of them are excellent.
 
Quiet Storm said:
Germany can. Germany has the highest number of breweries in the world and many of them are excellent.
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Some of the best beer I've ever had was by small breweries in small towns in southern Germany. For consistency, variety & availability, just take a drive through the south of Germany- staying away from the bigger cities & see what the local breweries have to offer. No better way to lose an afternoon.
I'm also a HUGE fan of the meaty Belgian ales & there are real gems available in Belgium that never cross the Atlantic. Amazing stuff.
Also love UK-style ales- was a big Samuel Smith's drinker in the early/mid 80's when finding it entailed a drive & a substantial $ outlay. Worth it.
And yes- many US micros are pretty damned hops-heavy. With time, our brewers will learn a little restraint. If you do like the hops on the heavy side, try Tupper's Hop Pocket- http://www.beerhunter.com/documents/19133-001744.html probably the hoppiest thing to ever hit you in the mouth.
 
Quiet Storm said:
Germany can. Germany has the highest number of breweries in the world and many of them are excellent.
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Where do you get the information that Germany has more breweries? Everything I read indicates that USA has had more breweries than Germany since the late 1990's, although the definition of brewery seems somewhat nebulous. They both have a lot of breweries and they both produce many excellent beers
 
Just look who is winning the major international competitions: Bridgeport, Maytag, Full Sail... American, west-coast, mostly Portland, Oregon breweries.

And yes, it is nice to live in the Portland area.
 
Rodenbach feels like drinking piss (the only reason why i didn't just put "is" there is because i never tried piss ... but i did try Rodenbach :barf: ). The best beer (lager) comes from Czech republic, that country is just awesome - relatively cheap accomodations, food and beer and that beer is awesome. Krusovice, Staro Pramen and the likes of those. The "Bud" piss is a knock-off of Budvar IIRC. Germans als make some fine beer but i'm not too fond of their "white beer" (made from wheat) and some brands are just mediocre. Czechs win hands down and the runner-up (but not very close because of more "industrial" taste of most of their brew) is Germany. I haven't had a single bad beer when i was in Czech republic, they were all just good or awesome, not even mediocre.

Belgium may have a huge number of breweries but the stuff they're making is only good for killing vegetation, souring the lettuce and cleaning toilets.
 
I believe there are good beers all over the world, when I was in grad school in Ann Arbor, Michigan, there was a place nearby where me and others would go on the weekends, they had a wall with beers form all over the world, so we would pick one or two or three and never had the same one twice, some were very good. I tend to prefer dark stouts with a bit of a sweet or bitter/sweet taste.

If you ever come to Mexico I recommend: Indio (from Nuevo León in the north), León (from Yucatán in the south) and Noche Buena which is only produced around Christmas time, I also like Luna Llena from the local restaurant The Beer Factory (name in English).

Luis
 
Being an Ohio guy...I have to speak out for Great Lakes Brewery in Cleveland. Their Dortmunder is amazing.

If you are looking for some beer info and ratings, check out http://www.beeradvocate.com/ . They have reviews of beers and even micro-brews from resturants. Cheers!
 
You can drink all the canadian beer you want... please, take it.

I'd say the best think there is without going to hard alcohol is stout. Guinness preferably, but I'll take any stout over even just a dark beer.
 
I used to be a beer snob. Had to hunt down the micros and find the stores that sold Samuel Smith for 12.00 a six pack. Then I just became a cheap drunkard. I like Coors Light just fine. For some reason, though, I can't stand Budweiser. Maybe its that beechwood aging.
 
mycroftt said:
Where do you get the information that Germany has more breweries?
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OK, I ran a Google search and it seems like 1997 was the first year with more American than German breweries. Please bear in mind that Germany (with a population of 82 million) is much smaller than the US (almost 300 million), so the "breweries per capita rating" should still be almost four times as high over here. ;)

Rugger's right, there are lots of very good beers from small breweries in Germany.
 
So far I've found more German beers that I like that anything else. Shiner Bock, however, has to be my current favorite. Although Sam Adams is pretty good too. Of course, I've only been able to buy the stuff for six months so my frame of reference is pretty limited.
 
my favorite beer year round is nice and local... about 8km away in fact...

great western honey wheat.
 
I am a big fan of Belgian Ales as well, strong and rich is my thing. Mass market American Beers don't impress me, but there are many good smaller brewery's here in the US. Holland also produces a fine brew, the Heineken available in the Netherlands is a warm full beverage that is nothing like the skunky version sold over here.
 
My two personal favorites....Guinness and New Castle Brown. ;) Killian's ain't too shabby either.

Paul
 
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