Beer Thread
 

Two questions: What's your favorite beer right now and what was your thought when you first tried beer (and your age).

Of course most people, as far as I know, disliked beer upon their first taste, and for most people, as far as I know, tried it during their mid-teens, which means their pallet was quite pre-mature anyway. I personally don't acknowledge the average teen's opinion on most things, but their opinions are valid on some level I suppose.

I recall tasting it for the first time and thinking how awful it tasted. I used to ask my mother why she would ever drink it (she drank a beer once in a while, mostly wine coolers for the old lady) and she'd tell me it was an acquired taste. Well that was horseshit for me at the time and thought it ridiculous.

Fast forward a decade and all I've had to drink tonight was beer! Lionshead, to be more exact, and not to mention my present favorite. Why is it my favorite? Well, first of all upon opening a Lionshead twist-off you'll find a small puzzle inside the cap, which is just fun. Then the flavor. Mild, as I like it. Call me a panzy, but I'm no Guinness fan. I'm into that girly shit that's easy to down like a nice loaf of white bread. Ah, yes. I'm also quite fond of some hefeweizens, though I must say the bottled hef is not so great for me.

Anyhow, please, tell me, the answer to my questions!

There's a reason for that. It takes anywhere from 20 to 25 years for the taste buds to fully develop to the point where they can detect the subtle nuances of beer. To any teenager, it's horridly bitter. Unless that child is into bitter foods - and most aren't - beer will taste rather bad. Any 16 year-old who tells you he loves beer is full of shit. He loves getting drunk, that's it.

My first beer experience was born of complete naivete. My stepfather had horrible taste in beer. His preference was Genesee Cream Ale. I don't even know if it's available in most of the United States. If not, you aren't missing a thing. Stuff was swill. Pure swill. Even though I wasn't going to like the bitterness of any beer you gave me at age 14, I think Genny Cream Ale is probably the best way to make sure your child never becomes an alcoholic.

As for beers that I like, I haven't sampled enough of a variety to have a concrete opinion on the matter. Usually, I just try out whatever is in my friend's refrigerator and hope it's halfway decent. He's into microbrews and imports, so there has been some odd stuff. He had some pumpkin ale that I liked. And the chocolate ale was really good. Don't ask me to remember the names of them, however. But over time, it's become apparent that I'm more likely to enjoy a beer if the flavor is exotic. Plain beers bore me and I can't be bothered with them.

Whenever I buy my own beer, which isn't often, I usually get Sam Adams because I know that for a commonly available beer, it's probably not going to totally suck. I liked the blackberry witbier enough that I'd buy it again.

I might've had a taste of beer once or twice, but I really didn't start drinking it until a year or two ago.

I'm a big fan of belgian beers, and lighter beers for the summer. Although I did buy a Konig Ludwig Weissbier when I went on vacation a little while back, and it was rad; I hope they sell it around here.

Yes sir! I'm up there with you. Most of my favorite Belgian trappist beers are Chimay and La Trappe. Another fantastic Belgian beer is Leffe. I recommend Leffe to everyone.
I've even had beer-haters convert because of Leffe.

But yeah, lighter beer for the summer. I'm getting better at enjoying pale ale and IPA, but I still prefer weissbier/wheat beer. I love Franziskaner, or if it has to be really wheaty, Hoegaarden Grand Cru.

Of course I love most stouts and porters too. In fact, I started really liking beer after I discovered Guinness. My taste has evolved a great deal since then though.

A lot of microbreweries has popped up in Denmark the last ten years or so. It's very fortunate to be living here, if you're the kind of person like me who likes to try something entirely new every time you go out.

Fuck beer, y'all should drink lager. It tastes better, you can drink more of it without needing to shit, you don't smell like a tramp after drinking half a pint of it and it gives you all the energy you need to smash up a French cafe.

I used to drink Harvey's when I first started going to the pub, mainly because I was a bit too young to know what I actually wanted to drink. Then when I turned 15 I had a few nights out on the lager and saw the light.

Beer drinkers inevitably have stupid beards, large guts, wear sandals and socks and bang on incessantly about the relative merits of Old George's Hop Wrangler or Smokey Nun's Squitty Finger in dingy pubs with horse brasses all over the walls. They can all essentially fuck off in my opinion.

Sad to hear that parts of the world are still confined to that image, but yeah, that was also what I saw, at least outside of London.

Coming from the UK, you shouldn't be unfamiliar with some of the really good shit when it comes to cider either?

I gotta be frank. Beer, lager, cider. I love all of it.

My first beer experience was when I was twelve, and staying at my brother's house for a week while he was at uni. I drank five bottles of Stella. I was nonplussed.

As for preferences...

http://j.photos.cx/leffe-cf0.jpg

Leffe's fucking bitching, and at a pint for a euro fifty in the market towns I spend my summers pissing about in, you can't go wrong.

http://j.photos.cx/344837496_cdf8198499-860.jpg

Kunstmann Miel is probably my favourite beer of all time, though. Damn shame it doesn't seem to be available outside of Chile; I think it could really become popular over here. It's got a lovely honey tinge to it (and it's reasonably strong.)

Yeah, Leffe is the beer. My preference is Bruin, though I'd never say no to a Blonde.

How does the Kunstmann compare to other honeyish beer like Fuller's Honey Dew?
Fuller's might be the best one I've personally tasted yet.

Cider's a different matter. Whereas beer drinkers get wanky and anal about where the Hops was sourced and what phase of the moon the brewing started in and smell funny, cider drinkers know that drinking cider is all about getting fucked up as fast as is humanly possible. My mate's pub has a range of ciders and perries on tap and rotates guest ones from time to time. There's a fucking ton of organic and otherwise cider producers round here (Sussex being prime apple country after all) and fucking yourself over on scrumpy is an essential part of growing up after all.

Most people start off on the cheap and nasty White Lightning and Diamond White, get really ill then give up drinking cider for years. Then in later life you get back into it and cider drunk is always fun drunk. Old Rosie is a great Perry and at 11% or there abouts will fuck you over almost immediately. Even the bottled ones like Brothers are pretty decent, especially the festival strength one.

Cider is great, mainyl because even though there is the occasional cider bore, they still tend to enjoy getting smashed, unlike beer bores who are just boring. Of course if you really want to lose a day, Stella and strong Perry snakebite is the only way to go. I challenge anyone to drink three pints of Stella/Old Rosie snakebite and walk in a straight line. I've seen five pints of that put a hardcore alcoholic on the floor. :)

Leffe is decent enough. Tried Young's Luxury Double Chocolate Stout last month, and it was surprisingly good, for my first "chocolate" beer ever.

I like my beer mostly dark or wheat, and in that department much goes. Zubr might be my favourite nowadays, but only from tap.

With less darker beer it's usually Abbot, Stella Artois and Urquell. Those are the ones I rather enjoy. Especially Abbot - you can smell someone is drinking a pint of Abbot to the other side of the bar, that's how much aroma that shit gots. Love.

I'll definitely look out for that. I'm also partial to Kriek:

http://legalbeer.com/images/oud%20be...k%20sample.jpg

..but most of the places near me only sell Lindermans' kriek which I hear is basically alcopop.

Also a big fan of saison.

http://www.lukasliquorstl.com/beer/SaisonDupontAle.jpg

A lot of microbreweries do belgian-inspired brews, and although I haven't had a saison inspired beer like Dupont (haven't tried other belgian breweries yet) Heavy Seas does a good variation.

http://www.ccbeer.com/files/ccbeerfiles/Red-Sky-297.jpg

As for non-belgians, I've been trying to get back into IPAs. I've been burned pretty badly by a beer I drank when I first started out (only a few years ago, mind) but I think I'm over that for the most part. Don't remember what it was, just that it was on sale for $2 a bottle.

I haven't had too many non-us beers but I love draft Guinness and Stella is pretty good.
Last chocolate stout I had was Brooklyn which was ok.
I'm always a fan of Sam Adam's, especially cherry wheat.
I like to try new stuff like this wild dog blueberry beer I got a month ago or so. Not bad stuff but one is pretty much the limit for taste.
Harp's another solid one for me, but I'll pretty much drink whatever unless it's a cheap beer with ICE added on the name or IPAs, they taste too coppery to me.

This thread is making me thirsty!

I myself had my first taste of brew at the age of 11, and I drank three or four bottles of Carling (blech) and about the same amount of one of my brothers' friends' dad's homebrew, which I recall tasted like licorice. Since then, I've grown to be a fanatic of the brew, as exemplified by the fact that just reading through this tread has made me reach for one at 11:50 in the morning.

http://i392.photobucket.com/albums/p...ricotWheat.jpg

I'm lucky enough to be in a province where microbreweries are plenty, and many of them produce at least a few varieties of quality beer. My personal favorites of all the breweries here are the McAuslan brewery with their Apricot Wheat (pic) and Oatmeal Stout beers topping the list, and the Barberie Brewery which produces, amongst others, a fine Blackberry White ale. The McAuslan brews should be available in other parts of the world (almost certainly in parts of the US) and their two main branches are the St-Ambroise and Griffon labels. I have yet to taste a brew as sweetly bitter as their Oatmeal Stout.

What's unfortunate about living in Quebec is the relative difficulty of locating a given import brew. Malmer's mention of Chimay has reminded me of how long it has been since one has crossed my path. At least we have a good chance of finding a bottle of Maredsous or two relatively easily. Another good brew, which I could lay hands on back home with relative ease, is Holsten. Their Festbock was my staple brew for a number of years, along with the occasional Premium Beer.

I would say to anyone who has a chance to lay hands on any of these brews to give them a good tasting, as you will surely be quite pleased.

On a final note, I daresay I agree with Shin's sentiment that if you're going to be tearing a place up, nothing equals a good pint of lager, or a sweet pilsener to get the job done. Most of the beers I've mentionned are great for a tasting, and even to get you a bit of a light head, but ingesting heavy quantities of them will surely result in a painful wake.

Moderation is your friend, good people. :cmb:

Yes, I love how microbreweries are getting more popular, of course Portland was the best place I've been for these. Always something new to try, though it can DEFINITELY be hit or miss when you have so many around. I've had a brew that tasted like a damn boot... and I think it was called Boot Brew or something like that.

I myself love to try new things all the time, I'll rarely pass on it even if it's something I've disliked in the past such as an IPA or particularly dark brews.

Anyway, Shin, it's funny you mention the obsession with hops. Miller Lite is running inscensent ads about how they add their hops THREE TIMES as if that's supposed to be impressive to the average consumer. I'm pretty sure Miller drinkers aren't really looking at the craft of brewing but their wallets.

I need Boot Brew in my life. Link to online store plox

If I'm going to drink an actual beer, it needs to be ultra-dark shit from Germany (local brews ++ mode) or taste like bread/yeast.


Sam Adams has a Blackberry Witbeer that tastes like Blackberries and yeast. It's FANTASTIC.

Otherwise, I prefer a nice Woodchuck Amber. It's not a beer, but it's tasty.

Bass is my standard issue.

For special occasions its Sam Smith Oatmeal Stout.

For getting absolutely wrecked beyond the ability to walk its Dogfish Head World Wide Stout (18% ABV)

First beer I ever had was New Castle. Its been downhill ever since.

My palate for beer changes every now and then. Lately I've been a sucker for Yuengling. Beer's so expensive in New York that I prefer to buy cheap since I'm pretty far from a beer-lover. Regardless, my mainstays are always Woodchuck Amber, Sam Adams (any variety), Killians, Blue Moon, and Harp.

This year Sam Adams is putting out some more bottles of their Utopias. Have you guys heard of this? Supposedly the strongest commercial beer in the world at 27% ABV. My friend is thinking of getting a few.

fuckin' thank you

I had that once with dinner because it was on special, but I couldn't remember the exact name. Other than it was dogfishhead and it was a stout (they have like 50). But I'm pretty sure that was the one.

I can't imagine ever getting drunk on stout, there's just too many calories in there to counteract the alcohol, plus after a couple of pints you feel like you've eaten a large meal and my stomach just can't take any more. I've seen people get pissed on stout so I know it's possible, it's just not something I think I'd ever manage personally.

It's no problem getting drunk on regular Guinness, it's practically water taste wise. That, or it'd have to be 10%+ for a quick hammering. Haven't done that though, it's usually 2-3 stouts or porters max, before I crave something else.

Dogfish Head World Wide Stout <- that one sounds pretty damn interesting.
Also the Samuel Adams Utopias sounds like something I shouldn't, but really want to, drink. Pricey though.

You should give some of the Sam Adams Imperial Series a try. Those are also quite strong (10.3% ABV) but very tasty and far easier to find.

I'll be on the lookout for some of those. I've had Samuel Adams before, just don't don't remember what - I think it was an ale.

Speaking of strong beer, the Belgian Rochefort 10 (11.3% ABV), is a little piece of heaven. Smooth and tasty, you kinda forget it's so strong.
The taste is fulfilling but heavy, you'll have your taste buds exhausted after one or two. It's one unique Trappist beer.

My Grandfather worked for the Genesee brewery....Now they call Genesee Cream Ale the "Green Grenades"

In the same light, I grew up on Genesee light. My sister is nine years older then me so she would always have me drink whatever she had left over. I probably started drinking when I was about 14. I'll be honest I liked beer. Maybe I like bitter tastes, or maybe I'm just very prone to alcoholism. Both may be true. I do tend to show certain signs of being an alcoholic...

Or I just know how to have a good time...grumble...

I drink alot of cheap beer because really, it's all I can afford at the moment. Out of the cheap stuff I enjoy my Genny Light still once an a while, and I can handle a Busch from time to time

Molson is probably my favorite Canadian beer. This is a beer I just like to enjoy, and not binge drink.

I wish I knew more about microbrews however. I like a nice Hennepin from the ommegang brewery or a Flying Bison from here in buffalo.

I guess the thing I enjoy the most about beer is that the more you travel the more you find. I guess it's the same with wine, but wine is for you fancy drinkers. A nice cold beer is just an awesome stand alone drink.

Eh, I don't know any of these beers.
I drink Coors Light regularly because I think Corona is water beer, but at least its not Miller bad, yuck.

This is what I want: The Beer of all beers

When I was younger I used to drink anything that was under $2 for a 40. Thinking back to what I used to drink makes me cringe. Piss beer in the beer pong cups, Old English and orange juice (I'll never drink this again. I drank 120 ounces of the crap one night and ended up puking until my throat was raw.) Spaten and Stella weren't that bad, but it was rare that I was ever able to pay upwards of $20 for a 12 pack.

There's a local pub near my house that has 20 different beers on tap and over 150 different beers at any given time. Whenever I drop by, I usually ask the regulars what the good specials are and what I should try. Sometimes it's a hit, sometimes it's a miss, but the exposure is invaluable. I like the pub because the only shit beer they sell is bottles of Budweiser and whenever someone buys it, they ring a bell and everyone in the bar boos as loudly as they possibly can. The boos get louder and more intense the later the night gets.

I like how you make this awful generic post - but dissed my old-ass post because I actually know what I'm talking about. :)

Dude, you said New Castle was the best beer you've ever tried and everything else has been "downhill" (which I assume to mean lesser-than). You don't know shit.

1.) You're posting in a thread based specifically on personal opinion. Being critical of it and then posting yours is a failure in logic on your part.

2.) I didn't say it was the best beer I ever had. Please go back and check what you read and then note at no point did I edit the post to prove you wrong.

3.) English may be your second language and if thats the case, I apologize when I point out that I purposely formed the sentence in a specific manner to suggest that drinking has become a vice for me, thus leading to the "down hill" I mentioned in that post. If English is your common tongue, please become a functioning, literate person before you ever reply to me again.

4.) I worked in one of the largest liquor stores in my state for 5 years, where we stocked over 100 different bottles of domestic, import and mico brews from all over the world. Nevermind that we also sold thousands of types of wine, hard liquor and anything revolving around or involving alcohol in some form or fashion. Whatever streetwise smarts you picked up from drinking OE while smoking and joking on the street corner with your hoodrat friends doesn't amount to shit and/or fuck because I had to sell this shit via store and distributor in amounts and quality that would probably make your brain numb over.

5.) Balls to your chin, bitch.

EDIT: Actually, I removed the diss so you don't need to snap your fingers any louder. I don't know what you look like, but I have a funny feeling that you're probably an angry-short little man.

I believe my first was in high school; a Coors Light I stole from my dad. Like anyone else's experience, I thought it tasted like crap and didn't touch beer until I got into college.

I concur with lurker; this one is pretty tasty. I can't drink more than half a pint though...usually end up sharing it with someone.

For my standard issue I like sticking to Sapporo, but if not available I go for micro-brewery specialties. Thankfully I live in an area where the latter is plentiful.

I usually don't drink at all on the account of my wallet.

Man, that shit is not a toy. But, like any double stout or ale, it's worth its weight in gold. My personal favorite I've ever had is the Rogue Double Dead Guy Ale. I've had a bottle sitting in my beer fridge for well over 6 months now and I think I'm gonna drink it on Thanksgiving.

As for my regular beer of choice, I despise almost everything that Anheuser-Busch makes, so I try to stick with imported beer or, if there's absolutely nothing else, Coors Regular is OK but it needs to be really cold for it to be palatable. The bottles that get recycled from here at the house on a monthly basis tell a damning tale of Newcastle Brown, New Belgium, Heineken, Pacifico and Humboldt Hemp Ale binges and I'm continually surprised how much of this stuff gets consumed here at our house on weekends.

I like to grill regularly, so anything that goes with food that we're eating is always a plus. Carne asada with beans and a salad always goes well with a Pacifico or a Newcastle while a steak and grill-baked potato will always go good with a Fat Tire. The beer gets rotated here depending on what we're cooking.

My first beer was when i was 16 in germany on an exchange program. My german friends took me out pub hopping, and just cause i had no idea what i was doing, my first beer was a Guiness. It was a little strong, but at no point did i ever outright dislike it. After one, i didn't know if i wanted anymore, but then my friends decided that i couldn't let that be the end of my first experience. I tried various big name german beers, as well as a number of microbrews over the course of the night. I can't remember any of the names, which makes me sad, cause i'd like to try and track down some of them when i eventually go back to germany.

As for now, i don't drink beer that often, but i do whenever i'm around my dad, grandpa, or uncle. We all enjoy beer, and the former two enjoy wines and whiskeys which i'm slowly developing a taste for as well. My uncle, however, is a beer drinker, through and through.

Beers that i've taken a liking to would be Molson, and Moosehead and Rickards for big name Canadian beers, as well as some of the smaller brands from Manitoba, specifically Fort Garry dark, and pale, as well as Two Rivers. I still enjoy many of the beers i picked up in Europe, like Heineken or Becks. I've also really enjoyed Stella in the past, but nobody in my family is a big Stella drinker so i don't get much exposure to that name.

Speaking of Germany and beer. 3 weeks ago: Munich: Oktoberfest: Me in the middle of it.
Normally I'm not that fond of regular Pilsner, but having it served cold 1 liter at a time certainly has its charm. Quantity over quality at its best.

I was down there with this beer club we have, and plans for next year was going to be drinking a whole lot of beer in Prague.
That idea went down the can. We'll return for another round of Oktoberfest next year instead.

well this is interesting.. BEER! I had my first beer at 19, Miller Lite.. at a LAN party. didn't like it at all but it made me feel funny so I kept downing it whilst shooting my own teammates in Battlefield 1942.. good times. Then when I hit 21, I bought a case of Guinness because the picture on the box made it look tasty. I got hooked. It's all I really drink nowadays and various microbrews. Though I did buy a 40oz of Steel Reserve the other day. I was gonna puke out my insides after drinking that. Yuck.

I had a rauchbier last night. I am pumped about it. It's perfect for autumn! You know, all them leaf bonfires, having fires in your fireplaces, it's a bit colder so you want something heavier for your beer...

Last weekend I dranked some Rauchbier too (can't remember the label right now) while I was in a restaurant in Vienna. It fit well with the plate of Geräucht (smoked) Salmon I had.

Have to agree with you on the autumny thing.

You should also try smoked chocolate stout while you're at it.

Oh yeah, Deni was a huge fan of chocolate stouts some time back. Now's getting to be the time of the year for it too...

^5 big beers.

I'm bumping this thread because I'm in need of recommendations and because people need to drink more beer in general.

I just got into Orlando, Florida this morning and I would really enjoy checking out a local beer or twelve while I'm here. Bought a Blue Moon Summer Sampler and am enjoying it quite heartily so far. I'm actuallly curious as to what American beers are worthwhile and readily available since this is my first time in the States. However the main reason for this post is that I would really appreciate recommendations for breweries, restaurants or what have you that serve local brews.

Just to clarify, I don't see color when it comes to beer so any which kind of brew will do, so long as it's something that's got a bit of flavor to it.

I'm not from the Florida area so I can't recommend any good local stuff. Obviously you're trying to stay away from the Millers, the Buschs, the Coronas... Dogfishhead is available everywhere. Rogue is another good brand, their Hazelnut Brown Nectar is one of my favorites. Bells is a large brewery from my area that might sell down there. Oberon is their summer brew and it's just now becoming available, and you should probably be able to get Two-Hearted Ale (hoppy) or Hopslam (hoppier) still.

A lot of that stuff you can get here in Canada, lurker.

To be honest with you Rychord, Orlando, Florida is kind of a shit place to be if you want to spend your time trying interesting local beers. Best bet though is to head here.

Sam Adams. Just try a Sam Adams. At some point I'm going to get my hands on their Noble Pils variety (it's brewed with all five noble hops), and I'm guessing I will enjoy.

http://dairyairfoodgalley.files.word...m_tremens1.jpg

Delirium Tremens. This is my favorite beer ever. Smooth, tasty, and just plain beautiful. It tastes better out of the bottle than it does on draught. If you can come across some of this, give it a try.

Oh. I didn't know where Rychord was from. :(

Lurker: The only one I've tried from your list was a Rogue Dead Guy Ale (well, besides miller et al.), Though I saw a Dogfishhead variety or two at the Publix near here so I'll give it a try.

knk: I haven't really tried most of what Lurker mentioned, as Montreal is mostly Quebec beer in most places and there are a good enough variety of those that you don't have to go looking for imports most days. New Brunswick (where I'm originally from) is just piss poor for beer, besides Picaroon's and the Pumphouse brewery, both of which I'm pretty sure don't sell their beer outside the province. I'll see if I can give the place you listed a try, though with a couple reviews comparing it to a dank pit I can imagine having a hard time getting it to fly with my GF and her parents, though judging by the reviews that really should be the place to go. By the way, how many varieties of Big Rock do you guys have in Alberta? I tried their Grasshopper and red ale back home and they rate pretty high on my list of awesome. Wish we got more of that down there.

wvlfpvp: Sucking back a Coastal Wheat right now, eyeing the Black lager next (thank god for variety packs :p). pretty good stuff.

Sprout: I've drunk that before and it is indeed quite good!

Thanks for the suggestions all, and keep 'em coming! I'm here 'til next sunday so I have a bit of time yet to try more!

Drinking some Dogfish Head 90 minute IPA right now, it's the best beer I've tasted on this trip so far. Also had Yuengling lager wish was all right, and some Linenkugel Berry Weiss, which was ok, though it tastes a bit watered down. Also had a few at the theme parks, none too noteworthy though.

Additional brew: @wvlfpvp: Had a Noble Pils tonight, t'was indeed great stuff. It had an astringency to its aftertaste that I've rarely gotten from a beer before. It took me a while to find this beer though.

Anything made by Anhueser(sp?)-Busch or Coors Brewing company is complete shit, except IF PBR is made by either than those than I shall UN-broaden that statement and say that everything besides PBR is utter shit.

That said, I drink almost exclusively io-brews. My favorites areanything from Lost Coast Brewery in Eureka, CA, anything from Lagunitas Brewing Co. in Petaluma, CA, and many others. If you're in the Cali area consider trying these delicious micro-brews: Downtown Brown, Great White, Lagunitas IPA, The "Kronik" (aka Censored Ale), Moylan's Kilt Lifter Ale, and Arrogant Bastard

Pabst Blue Ribbon is shit, it's just shit that's socially acceptable because of its acting resume.

So, I had my Pabst in memoriam and I have to say that it's not bad until the last third of the can and then HOLY SHIT WHAT IS GOING ON WITH THIS NASTINESS.



Also, somehow I missed the perfect opportunity to memorialize when I went to see Get Him to the Greek and they showed some fucking Heineken commercial beforehand. Nobody in the theatre shouted anything out either.

I agree that PBR is cheap, sub-par beer. I can only stand drinking it because it's one of very few cheap beer selections in my area and it's cheaper (and better tasting in my opinion) than Keystone Light or Coors Light, so I drank a lot of it during high school and I guess you could say I built up a tolerance to it.

I love how much I've changed since I started this thread. I used to hate stouts but now, well, I've come to enjoy them as much as a good hefeweisen.

I must admit, however, that the bottled Guiness is still pretty bad; tastes like water.

Such is the story of beer.

I think my first taste of beer was a Heineken. only had a sip, but wasn't too fussy on it. I think I was 18. my first real sit down with a pitcher of beer experience was Carlsberg when I was 19. it's a bit too carbonated for my taste, but it did change my mind about drinking beer.

my beer tasting experience is pretty limited, but I think my favourite is still Guinness. I can't drink more than a pint of it at a time, but goddamn is it delicious when you're in the mood for one. only on tap though, I can't stand it in bottles or cans.

recently I tried the raspberry fruit beer from Mill St Brewery. I've only had the one pint, but I think I can say I'd be able to drink that all the time. it's not sweet, but it smells exactly like fresh raspberries and tastes so refreshing. they make a decent tasting stout too. I may have to go there entirely more often.