at what age did become a beer drinker?

[hopjack13]

i had my first taste of beer (that i can remember) at about 11, i thought it was preety disgusting "hey that doesn't taste like soda pop!" then when i was about 12 my father took me out to the colorado river on a small boat with a 24 pac between us of *millwakies worst* and said "you drink beer don't you son?" (i had not seen him in about four or five years) being the only thing to drink other then river water i said "sure!" so i had one....then i had another...and i noticed it didn't seem to bother him how much i had so i kept going ....and going , by the time we got back to camp we were both pretty tilted. after i got home i started finding friendly homeless people to give my lunch $ to so they would go in and buy me a beer, i let them keep the change of course. i continued to drink swill untill i turned about 21 (which was in las vegas where i lived at the time!!) i never saw my father again untill about a year ago. he only had one year to live when i saw him last. so i thought beforre he dies i'll bring him over to the good side of beer sence he was still drinking swill....didn't work, i only spent a couple of days with him and he's gone now. oh well i won't miss him but im sure a/b will ...he he he.
any wayz lets hear some of your stories!!

[eddiefebuary]

I never really drank because my parents and brother are alcaholics and I am afraid of becoming one. Hovever, my divorce at the age of 32, after trying to do everything right caused me to look differently upon the world. Now I have more of the "relax, have a brew" mentality.

[fretlessman71]

Yeah... I like the "relax" part of that last post.

I guess I did what most people did; I drank swill at the beginning just to get drunk. I began at about 15 or so, although I remember getting drunk for the first time on mead right under my mother's nose in England when I was 13 (neither one of us really knew what it was, and by then it was too late). When I was about 17 or so, a friend's roommate began educating all of the people who hung around about better beer, and I started to have an appreciation for it. Still drank swill, but enjoyed better beer when I could get my hands on it. When I finally turned 21, I realized that I didn't like getting drunk anymore, and that the more alcohol I consumed in an evening, the less I enjoyed it because I couldn't taste it as well. I'm 32 now, and I believe that I drank about twice as much alcohol BEFORE I turned 21 than after. I'm much more into appreciating a well crafted ale than feeling that buzz (after all, I can buy cheap whiskey and get the same thing, right?), and have learned to have the highest respect for alcohol. "Drunk" and I are no longer friends.

[guzzler67]

At the tender age of 15, with my big goofy friend Ron, who was a couple of years older. We each had a 6 pack of Natty Bo (National Bohemian, the local swill of the time) that we drank while parked in a graveyard in his humongous 55 Olds, and listened to the Orioles game on the car radio. Got lightheaded as I remember, but not sick. Think I faked drinking the last two. If only we had remembered to bring some girls, it might have made it even more memorable.

[Fast_Eddy]

My uncle(who was beyond a doubt an alcoholic) used to slip me tastes of his "Buds" almost as young as I can remember. At the age of 14(in 1984) I managed to talk my mom into letting me go to a "Quiet Riot" concert with my 24 year old cousin. I talked her into buying me a 6 pack of Schlitz Malt Liquor. Somehow I managed to choke down all six in the 20 minutes that it took to make it to the arena. I was completely hammered and had the most god awful hangover the next morning. I did have freakin great time at that concert, though. I guess I've been drinking beer in some form or the other since then. My beer progession probably looks about like this:

1) Bud
2) Schlitz
3) Crap like Old Milwaukee's Best
4) Michelob
5) Bud Light - Coors Light
6) Guinness Draught
7) Homebrew and Good Beer - hallelujah!!

[fretlessman71]

Does Schafer fit into category #3? :)

[MagTheGrate]

I started drinking tequila and jack daniels at the ripe age of 15. Can't touch the stuff now, the smallest sip of tequila makes me want to hurl.

I'm strictly a beer drinker now, and have been for the last 5 years or so. So I guess officially I became a BEER drinker when i was about 24.

-Mag

[wortchillergoal]

I would guess that a big majority of us started with swill. When I was in my mid to late teens and gas was cheap, we would by a case of bud or miller and ride around country roads(back) in a four wheel drive vechile looking for woodchucks to chase back to their hole. I knew then I was different than most as I would try different beers when available and liked them when no esle did. At college, not to far from the FX MATTS brewery(Utica Club,Matts, and now Saranac) put on an Octberfest. At the end of the last day, FX himself tapped a keg of Matts dark ale for all of us workers. That is when I knew there was more to beer than most people thought.

[skahtboi]

My earliest introduction to beer began at the early age of about 6 or 7 years of age. At that time, our family would rent a cottage on the beach at Pawley's Island, SC, and we would spend two weeks of the summer there every summer. It was always a magical time, when things were different than regular life, and consequently my parents attitudes were a little more relaxed than they were back in that "other" world. So, my brother and I found it to be a relatively easy thing to beg a sip or two from my father, who was always drinking Falstaff. (As I remember, his best friend at the time was a Pabst Blue Ribbon drinker.) This was in the day when you opened the can with a church key style opener, and the best drink to have was the first one, right after it was opened and there was all of that fizzy froth mixed in, and the beer was real cold!

Later on, as I closed in on double digit years, my grandfather used to take us fishing up in the mountains in VA. We would spend many hours on Claytor Lake, tooling around in his small outboard boat, fishing for blue gill and crappie and checking the trot lines for catfish. He always carried an ice chest with him, which was filled with those little 6 ounce cans of Country Club Malt Liquor. My brother and I were usually able to conjole a can apiece out of him, sort of as a right of passage, and we would all sit there, contemplating the lake, the abscence of fish, and our cold beer.

These were the days that developed my taste for beer. At the age of fourteen, I attended my first keg party with my brother, who I haven't mentioned, was two years older than me. I began drinking real beer at the age of nineteen, when myself and two other beer drinking friends of mine decided to start experimenting with beers from other parts of the world. I have never looked back!

[danno]

I, like Fast Eddie, started my beer drinking with Schlitz Malt Liquor, during high school... I remember (probably because my buddies still remind me of it, 20+ years later...) of a party at a friend's house, where after lots of "the bull", I went to find a bathroom, and upon finding one, went "hey, a padded toilet seat", put my head down on it and promptly passed out... Since I had locked myself in the bathroom, my buddies apparently had to break down the door to save me...

[S.F.B.]

I was about 8. Grandpa owned a bar in a small town in Nebraska. When he would come home he would crack open a beer. I got curious and asked if I could taste it. Blech! Falstaff. Didn't really try it again for 5 years or so. After years of bad beer, I finally was old enough to buy it myself and the quest began.

[Bman]

I was 12-when I hit 18 I started to try any different beer that I could-growing up in St.Louis-it was not easy.

No looking back since then.

[SoxyinMO]

Started drinking wine at about 11 - love the stuff. Started drinking beer at 20, Pabst Blue Ribbon, mostly, thought it was IK, but pregnancy put an end to the alcohol for a bit . After the baby, my taste buds seemed to change and nice, round chewy malty beer is definitely my choice. Yeah, I know hops and all that, but love my malt.

[Richard English]

When I started drinking beer (in the 1950s) there was no such thing as chemical fizz in England. I started on Mackeson stout and then moved onto Meux's bitter.

In the late 1950's Flowers introduced keg beer and it became the drink of choice amongst we youngsters because it was bright, fizzy and expensive.

After a while, though, I began to wonder why I was getting such splitting headaches and thought that maybe it was just that I couldn't hold my drink.

In the early 1960s I went to work in the City of London and drank in Simpsons, at 36 and a half Cornhill. Foul-mouthed, sharp-tongued and memorable Amy served Draught Bass in pewter tankards and I quickly learned to love both Bass and pewter tankards. And I stopped getting headaches.

Sadly Bass is no longer the drink it was; Simpsons no longer serve their beer in tankards and Amy, I fear, must long ago have gone to serve the angels. Fortunately, the bar where she worked for so many years is now called Amy's Bar in her memory.

And, although the Bass is not so good as it was, I can still drink some excellent beers in the City; it's just so sad that the unspeakable and unspeakably foul Budweiser is now inflicted on the innocent drinkers in those pubs which were ancient when Charles Dickens used to drink in them, standing at the self-same bar, (and maybe even using the same tankards) as the one where I learnt about real beer.

[Theakston]

Fortunately I was born in the North of England. The legal age was 18 and we all started sneaking into pubs well before that. The beer in my local pubs was all fine cask bitter:
Robinsons, Boddingtons (was great back then), Theakstons, Hydes, Holts, Oldham Brewery, John Willie Lees, Sam Smiths, Timothy Taylors. The worst that we had was Bass Charringtons, John Smiths, Wilsons and the awful Tetleys from Warrington (not Leeds where it is good).

The fizzy mass produced lager was not available then except for a couple of these breweries who produced a really bad version with a dumb Bavarian sounding name. Girls drank it laced with roses lime juice or black currant (Yuk!)

[hops99]

My progression:

6- Root Beer
11 - First sip of dad's Budweiser (Blecch!)
15 - High School Parties with Piel's and Goebel (Double Blecch!)
18 - College Parties with Natural Light (Ugh!)
21 - College Parties with Busch Light (...)
23 - First Sam Adams Boston Lager (Buttery, Spicy, strange)
25 - On to Popular Imports (Bass, Guinness, Harp, Kirin, Red Stripe, etc.)
26 - That Damn Canadian Beer Phase (A step back in retrospect - Labatt's, Molson XXX, etc.)
27 - First Fat Tire, Sam Adams Holiday Pack, Great Lakes Dortmunder, Harpoon IPA (back on the right track)
28 - Self-Realization (my last macro fizz - on to the craft beer quest)
30 - Arranging vacations and business trips around craft beer.
31 - My 100th brewpub/brewery visited
33 (current) - My 150th brewpub/brewery visited, and I just wish that I had been exposed to real beer long before I got deep into my 20's.

[davesarman]

High school was all about cheap beer and getting soaked to the gills. In college there was a bar that had a thing called "Around the World". It was a right of passage, you had to do it before you graduated. 10 beers, 10 countries, one night. Most people hated it and said it was an awful hangover. When it came my turn to try it, my first beer was Bass Ale in a bottle. That turned my head! Then Franziskaner Dunkelweizen! Then Makeson's Cream Stout! "WOW! Beer can actually have TASTE!" That changed my life. When I moved to a different college town for graduate school, I discovered a liquor store that sold single bottles! I was hoooked! I tried every beer I could and started keeping tasting notes! When I look back on those first notes now, I realize how little I knew. ("What's all the stuff at the bottom of the bottle? Must be a bad beer.") What a great journey!

[sierraman]

15- first beer buzz, keg of Coors at a football team party. Spent the next three years of HS swilling bud, coors, hamms, and the Bull.

18-22 the college years. No money, group of us could get deals from the Coors distributor in town so drank plenty of that.

23-24 post college years, ventured on to a LITTLE more flavour, Henry Weinhardt, Molson, Killians.

Age 25 (when I became a beer drinker). My Dad bought me a BEERS OF THE WORLD case. That got me hooked. Later discovered Taddy Porter, Chimay, Fullers, Sierra Nevada, Anchor, Spaten, Guiness, etc. Haven't looked back since.

[brewmonkey]

I like most here, had my first sip of beer when I was young. My father would have one here or there and which ever kid got it for him got to have the first sip. Natural progression from there, high school, wild days as a grunt in the Army (if you thought a college party was wild, hang out with an Infantry unit after they redoply stateside after 100+ days in the field). After I left the service (mid 20's) is when I had my first "real" beer. Up until that time, MGD was what was in the barracks 24/7, walk into a room and grab one from the fridge, they all were full of it.

I ETS'd and came back to KC, got into some of the Boulevard and the rest is history.

[chazwicke]

I like the rest of you was in my early teens before I started to drink with any regularity. Of course having many sips at younger ages. (My folks would sometimes have one of those small 2 1/2 gallon mini kegs of Natty Boh in the fridge and we would sneak cups back in the mid 60s.) Anyway, I drank lots of stuff that was cheap but in the summer of 1976 (June) I discovered the legendary Brickskeller in DC. I went there every night that summer and every weekend all throughout my subsequnt college years. The Bartender who was there at the time and I are still in touch and are old friends. The Bricks had an amazing selection of beer. I even had a New Albion Stout there in 1979 from the very first microbrewery. I met lots of people there and many are still friends. I give total credit to the Brickskeller for sending me down the path on my quest for beer.

[b3s]

well, i drank a lot of swill in high school and college, but i also drank a lot of guinness in college at a local irish pub...and a few decent belgians every now and again at a favorite small restaurant. i always liked good beer, once i discovered it, but i couldn't always afford it.

[bigmf]

Hmm.... let's see. Drinking age is 18 in Alberta, so I started in earnest at about 16-17. I pretty much just drank Molson Golden as at the time it was $5 per six pack or less. Six packs now cost almost $10 (CAD). Labatt's blue, Old Vienna, Molson Canadian were also big. Olympia and Milwaukee's Beast (misspelling intentional) we're the only imports I could find. They were slightly cheaper than the Canadian beers, but we're crap and had less alcohol content. The Canadian beers were better than American beers but still are not too exciting.

Big Rock brewery opened near the same time but I didn't notice for a few years. I guess I was about 20 when I went to the pub with a lot of imports. I first tried Bass Pale Ale. The bartender said if you like that you should have Big Rock's Pale Ale. It was quite similar but I thought that Big Rock had more flavour. I was hooked. I would drink mostly big rock from then on along with various imported British beers. I learned the term Reinheitsgebot (spelling?) from the label of big rock bottles. I thought that the british styles of ales were the best around.

It was around the age of 26 when I found a store that had many imports. I tried Belle-Vue Kriek and Gueze as well as others I can't remember from various countries. I learned how narrow my thinking was. Since then I have been open to many different types of beer and will try anything once.

[Bman]

I was 12-13 years-started with Stag, Falstaff, and Busch-started in late teens with imports-and the rest is history.

[stronk]

It wasn't all that long ago, for me. In fact, I've only recently (in the past two years) started drinking real ales. Beforehand, I'd mostly go for italian peroni and czech pilsners (still refreshing).

I'm now 17 and have just started up a school real ale society (I'm amazed it went through as well). The two-week periods between meetings feel like a desert, in which my only consolation is very cold London Pride from the school bar.

I live in England, by the way.

PS: No offense meant, but some of those stories sound like you're copying an American cliché out of a film script.

[Stodbrew]

Growing up, my dad owned a whole bunch of liquor stores in the Bay Area. In the late 80's, when micros really started to take off, we would get samples of all the new beers coming out. I was 16 or 17. Pete's wicked ales, Sierra, North Coast, Dead Cat Alley, Sudwerk, etc. In fact, in the last store, there was one door each of the big three, and we had about five cooler doors of micros and imports. So I was pretty spoiled early on. Then, for college, I went to Chico State so SN was always available, and very cheap in Chico.

Steve

[ron]

My first beer, at age 24, was a Sierra Nevada Hefewiezen. I think I started so late because all I had ever tasted before was macro crap like Lite and Natural, so I could not imagine actually drinking one. On a whim, at the Blue Marlin in Fairbanks, I tried the hefe and was sold.

[studentofbeer]

id had sips of my dad's beer at like 13-14, and since he had at least slightly elevated taste in alcohol (knew a bit about wine b/c he hated the table wine his parents served with dinner and bought beer/wine at trader joes), I learned to detest the macro stuff from an early age.

That didn't stop me from drinking busch light the first year or two of college b/c that was my friend's "frat beer" and that's all they had, but i hated every second of it and would take anything better when i could get it (what i knew at the time was basically, guinness, bass, sam adams, goose etc.) my friend was into germany, so he got me into things like warsteiner, which i thought was a really good beer back in the day.

Then a trip to england and scotland my sophomore spring break of college when i was 19 totally changed my outlook. i tasted really good beer for the first time (and legally, to boot!), and came back interested in good tasting beer.

once i turned 21 i was all over whatever american micros i could get (started out with pale ales and ipas) and gradually advanced to more complicated brews after drinking all the different styles at goose and learning about belgian ales from people at sam's and binny's.

now i love all sorts of beer, much to the dismay of my girlfriend.

[chazwicke]

Originally posted by Stodbrew
Growing up, my dad owned a whole bunch of liquor stores in the Bay Area. In the late 80's, when micros really started to take off, we would get samples of all the new beers coming out. I was 16 or 17. Pete's wicked ales, Sierra, North Coast, Dead Cat Alley, Sudwerk, etc. In fact, in the last store, there was one door each of the big three, and we had about five cooler doors of micros and imports. So I was pretty spoiled early on. Then, for college, I went to Chico State so SN was always available, and very cheap in Chico.

Steve

You have lived a charmed life.

[Richard English]

What's with the dismay?

Get her a few bottles of decent beer and convert her! I suggest Fiuller's 1845 as a starter.

[hopjack13]

i'd suggest fullers 1845 as a starter and in the middle and a finisher....ummm ummm good!

[chazwicke]

now i love all sorts of beer, much to the dismay of my girlfriend. [/B][/QUOTE]

My girlfriend when I started was a great sport. We went to the Brickskeller every single night of the summer of 76. We did not miss a night. And then every weekend for several years after while we were in College. My wife is also a great sport. Being a non drinker, she usually does not mind going to brewpubs with me. In fact, on one trip (probably about 1990) we visited California and Nevada and we hit 24 brewpubs in about 10 days. Of course that was BEFORE we were married. (She was still trying to win me over. I was a good catch for her and I never hesitate to remind her of that fact. LOL) Anyway, She is still supportive of my need to find new and good beer. She allows me to take solo vacations to Europe in my quest. So I guess having a supportive better half is a huge plus.

[studentofbeer]

ive been trying to convert her, but there are some hurdles to overcome.

1. she insists on drinking beer from a bottle. i have no idea why. it almost pains me sometimes to give her something yummy when she's not getting much of the taste b/c she keeps it in the bottle.

2. she complains that beer is too bitter. ive gotten some decent responses from scottish-style ales and apricot ales, but thats about it. ive heard good things about the rogue chocolate stout so i may try that. but this is the big issue to overcome. she is very finicky about her tastes i guess.

3. she says, jews dont drink. well she knows that's really a myth but its not in her cultural experience to drink moderately most days of the week. so she finds my interest in beer disconcerting to some extent, but she puts up with it.

i need to find the fullers 1845 around (never tried it!) and ill give it a shot. i dont forsee her ever becoming a real beer conoisseur, but it would be nice to share a pint with her every once in a while.

edit: hahaha chaz--thats great. my gf is reasonably supportive too and getting more so as she becomes convinced that beer is my one little vice and she's going to have to live with it-- she's willing to go to goose island with me etc. but she doesnt like going out because of the smoke in bars and things. when we went out in our hometown in LA it was better, except you have to drive there, limiting the amount you can drink to some extent. the big test will be on our vacation to england this spring--you can bet ill be trying to find the best real ale i can as much as possible.

[Jeff]

I think you two are both lucky. My wife won't even try a sip of beer. Everyone once and awhile I will convince here to try a new one, and as usual she says she hates it. She sticks to here dacquiris and wine coolers. I've even tried fruit beers and she doesn't like those either.

On a side note, Student, good luck to finding Fuller's. After much searching in my area I discovered that the local distributors stopped carrying it, and I will curse them everyday because of it.

[chazwicke]

When are you going to England? I'll be there in May. Possibly February too. She may convert herself after sampling some scrumptious cask ales. There are some excellent brown milds that you could get her to try. You will love the 1845. Richard recommended it to me and in fact we each drank one at GBBF.

[studentofbeer]

i will be in england in mid-march (gf's spring break from college, and i couldn't argue with $300 round-trip tickets to london from ohare, after taxes and everything. now i just have to figure out how to pay for hotel, travel and beer.)

yeah, i havent seen the 1845 at sams--havent tried binny's yet. ill ask brian the beer buyer at sam's if he can get a hold of it. if not hopefully it will be waiting for me on cask somewhere in the uk.

brown milds are a good idea--recommend any names? she seems to like darkish, malty-ish brews.

[Richard English]

That sounds like Chicago to me and I can teel you for a certain fact that Kalleh, who posts here, lives in Chicago and she can get 1845 from her local store. Indeed, she rarely drinks anything else.

She and I had a very good session last September when she came to London, finishing with a pint of Fuller's ESB at the Victoria.

Why don't you pt her and ask where she gets her 1845?

Kalleh would also be able to give lie to some of your girlfriend's other comments as well.

By the way, why don't you ask your girlfriend whether she would consider drinking champagne, or fine brandy, from the bottle? Then point out that fine beers, like fine wines and brandies, are deserving of better.

[studentofbeer]

PM sent, thanks for the info.

and yes i will ask my girlfriend whether she would even think of drinking champagne out of the bottle. then again, im worried she'd say yes!

[Kalleh1]

Studentofbeer, I would love to know how you got those fares from O'Hare to London! I am trying to get back to London myself. I was there in September, and it is everything you'd expect it to be--only much more! The pubs are fantastic and the beer is exceptional.

Now, before I went to England, Richard told me about Fuller's 1845, and I had to have it. I couldn't find it anywhere in Chicago; I called all over, including Sam's Liquors. However, my local Binny's Express--very small--ordered it for me. Amazingly, they can't keep it in stock. Of course, I buy cases there regularly, but others do as well. In fact, one man comes in and buys 6 cases at a time! So, soon, I think, Fuller's 1845 will be replacing Budweiser! ;)

[Richard English]

It's a lovely thought but a warning is in order.

I don't know about the USA but at one time the larger suppliers (of anything) used to put massive pressure on resellers to prevent their selling other peoples' lines. They could (and can) do this by making their own products more attractive to the reseller(if not the customer) by increasing the margins to the reseller and this is what A-B do in the UK. The product is a cheap one but is sold here as a premium product at a very high price (a small bottle of Budweiser costs more here than does a large bottle of 1845). That extra margin goes towards boosting the profits of A-B and its distribution chain.

That is legal, of course, as are the other kinds of support that the larger producers provide such as training and point of sale materials (every beer reseller gets a free Budweiser illuminated sign and most display it). What used to happen in the UK but is now illegal, is restriction of supply. Before this was outlawed, any reseller wanting to sell another supplier's product, or to sell a major supplier's goods at less than the "official" price, ran the risk of having that major supplier's supplies cut off. Since few resellers can risk losing the suppport of a major supplier (what beer store could exist if it were unable to supply A-B products), most simply refused to take any competitor's product. Many small suppliers were driven out of the market in this way.

Although it's now illegal, I suspect there are still all sorts of covert pressures applied, even now.

I can't speak for the legislation in the USA, but I do know that some of these sorts of anti-consumer practices are still common outside the UK.

[Kalleh1]

Actually, grass roots efforts in the U.S. do quite well. I think we should insist that our liquor stores carry Fuller's 1845, and other good beers, or we won't shop there. Then, it is up to us to educate our fellow consumers. Every single time when I come to buy a case of beer, the person behind me says something like, "That must be good." I then go into my mantra about how good 1845 is. In one case I gave a customer one of my bottles to try. In another, the man promised to buy next time (I had already bought all they had!)

Now, studentofbeer, you do have one problem; that is, it is very hard to convince women that beer is good. I have a hard time with that. They often think I am either from the lower class or that I haven't learned enough about wine. It is frustrating, and I admit that I almost never have a beer with women. I think that is different in the U.K., though, because when I was there in September, I saw a lot of women enjoying good beer.

I recently have joined 2 beer societies, one in Chicago and one in London. The London society assured me that they had plenty of women in their society. The Chicago association said that most of their women were wives of their members. So--there you have it!

[chazwicke]

Here is a grass roots effort to change some laws in North Carolina. I just received it via email:

Did you know that one-third of the world's beer styles are illegal in North Carolina?

This is one of a handful of states that caps the alcohol content of beer at 6 percent by volume. The result? You can't enjoy:
* the range of beers you want to drink
* the range of beers our brewers want to make
* the range of beers our restaurants and taprooms want to serve
* the range of beers that distributors want to import

Want to change that?

Do you live in the Triangle area? Go out for a beer on Saturday night, November 15, at one of the good beer places listed below, and help raise money for Pop The Cap.

Pop The Cap is a grassroots, citizen-driven movement solely committed to lifting the 6% alcohol by volume cap for beer brewed and sold in North Carolina.

Come join us at any of TEN fine area brewpubs/restaurants to help raise funds for the cause. The following locales have pledged their support for Pop The Cap--many of them donating $0.25 per pint sold on Saturday to the cause:

--Chapel Hill / Carrboro--
Carolina Brewery
Top of the Hill
Tyler's Taproom

--Raleigh --
Flying Saucer
Sawmill Tap Room
Village Draft House
Horniblows Tavern (Edenton Brewing)

--Cary--
MacGregor Ale House
Harrison's Bar and Grill

--Holly Springs--
Bass Lake Draft House

Have a beer and support a change in the law! Tell your server you're there to support Pop The Cap. Even better, support your local establishment and and a beer and a meal.

For more information, check www.popthecap.org. Join us!

For those of you in other states that can enjoy beers over 6%, wish us luck!

Cheers!

[studentofbeer]

chaz, that is a travesty. the liquor laws in this country are odd, to say the least. i remember being in new york once, and wanting to buy a bottle of duvel to give to a family friend of my girl friend's family, because he was the one that first introduced me to the beer and started getting me into belgians (and showed me michael jackson's ultimate beer book, which i have poured through over and over and over now).

Anyway, i would see signs for liquor stores and go in, and when i asked for beer the proprietor would inform me a) you dont buy beer in liquor stores you buy it in markets, and b) proceed to think i was some kind of low-class scum for wanting to buy beer in his wine and scotch fancy liquor store. that weirded me out. thank goodness CA and IL both seem relatively open about where and what one can buy in terms of beer.

Kalleh, yes its odd. What i hear from her is she wants sweet-- she doesnt like the bitterness at all. being that ive been more of a hophead, maybe im not letting her try the right things. she also doesnt like carbonation much (though oddly likes champagne) so im hoping some real ale in london might do the trick. Im on the lookout for "sweet" beer, so if anyone can help me come up with some maltier, sweeter selections it would be appreciated.

It seems strange to me that there wouldn't be more women in the craft beer world, since macros are billed as the tough guy beer in advertisements. a question for the ages i suppose.

[hops99]

Hey, this kind of thing works. We had a similar situation in Ohio that was changed last year. For years, Ohio's cap was 8%, and the ceiling was lifted in '02 after a couple years of lobbying. Good luck, North Carolina!

[chazwicke]

I actually went to Richmond to help lobby some of our (Virginia's) politicians with regard to beer back in the early 90s. We wanted have our microbreweries be able to sell beer right from the brewery. After all, The Virginia wineries were allowed to sell their wine that way. Anyway we were successful. We fought the powerful three tier distribution lobby and won. There was other legislation that we were successful with as well. So grass roots movements can do some good. In fact most of the states around us now have brewing associations to monitor or change laws that effect them. Virginia brewers are banding together and Maryland brewers have too.

[Herb Ninja]

Im on the lookout for "sweet" beer, so if anyone can help me come up with some maltier, sweeter selections it would be appreciated.

If you can get some good dark milds she might like those, I know I love em. It may not be as sweet as she likes but its not very bitter. Also you can drink several pints (assuming the alcohol is low like 3.5%) and only get a slight buzz. I remember tasting my first one at the wenlock arms and being like, DAMN THIS IS GOOD, if I could get this on Maui for a decent price id be drinking every night of the week. :D

[Fast_Eddy]

Good British Milds are very hard to find in the US. I've seen where a few British brewers feel that they're too delicate to make the Atlantic trip and arrive in a good condition.

[Kalleh1]

Richard will be able to answer this better than I; however, I hear that the new Fuller's 1845 on draught is sweet. Perhaps your lady would like that, studentofbeer! Of course, it would mean that you'd have to go to the U.K. for it!

[Richard English]

A few points here.

The draught 1845 gives me the impression of greater sweetness but I suspect that this has more to do with its lower level of carbonation (see later) than with its sugar level. (I have posted a longer article elsewhere on this board).

Secondly, Fullers have only produced 1845 as a draught beer for a couple of months at the end of this year. My own feeling is that they will not do so again since their draught range (Chiswick, London Pride and ESB - plus seasonal specials) is already comprehensive.

My own feeling is that studentofbeer's girlfriend is complaining less of bitterness than of lack of balance. Extremely bitter beers (such as Goose Island IPA) can be too bitter for tyros. 1845, although well-hopped, has its bitterness well-balanced by plenty of malt. Thus the hop bite is not so evident. For those who like very little bitterness, it might be worth trying a sweet stout (sometimes known as a milk stout), such as Mackeson. Sweet stouts have lactose (a non-fermentable sugar) added which allows the brew to retain sweetness. Normal sugars ferment, of course, which means the addition of extra sugar simply gives extra strength, not extra sweetness.

For those who truly dislike hops it might be worth trying a hop-free brew such as Froach (from Scotland). This is flavoured with heather and is a replication of an ancient recipe that dates back to the time before hops were introduced into the beers of our Islands.

Incidentally, studentofbeer's girlfirend's propensity for drinking beer from the bottle (ugh) will also help create strange flavour sensations, most notably carbonic acid "burn" as the carbon dioxide is forced out of solution close to the tongue, by the pressure reduction on the liquid as it is sucked from the bottle. This "burn" could be mistaken for bitterness by inexperienced drinkers.

[Kalleh1]

Thanks, Richard. Still, I would love to try the draught 1845. I hope they don't discontinue it before I get to England again!

Yes, I agree that studentofbeer's girlfriend is probably responding to the extremely bitter beers and those that are very "thin" tasting (there is probably an official word for the latter). I love Fuller's 1845 because of its fullness, nuttiness, and the touch of orange flavor that it has. It tastes so different from something like Budweiser, Coors or Millers, that I think many who purport to dislike beer would change their minds when tasting 1845.

[Luther]

I've always been a whiskey drinker...( Knob Creek ). But i started tasting some really good beer like SN Pale Ale and Bigfoot.and I started to brew my own...now I drink a lot of beer and Knob.

:D

[mesmartyoudumb]

I didn't drink beer until i was 21...on my 21st birthday i celebrated the irish in me by goin to the local pub and drinkin guinness,a few nights later i bought a beer conuisseer book at my local favorite book store and here i am,22 and proud to be a good beer lover.

[fretlessman71]

You are one of the rare among us who started down the right path from the beginning... commendable! PROSIT! :D

Oh yeah... welcome to the board! The more the merrier!

[Summer]

I started drinking beer at the age of 14. At the beginning I just wanted to get drunk (like others that age do I guess). I used to drink Finnish lager that didn’t have any taste at all (like all my friends did). That beer is not even brewed anymore… I think I was around 19 or 20 when I got to the world of better beer. And it was Fuller’s London Pride that really hit me. And I still love it!! It is always a trustworthy choice. And nowadays I don’t drink to get drunk I just like the taste of a good beer. (although sometimes I do get drunk…;))

[chazwicke]

Originally posted by Summer
I started drinking beer at the age of 14. At the beginning I just wanted to get drunk (like others that age do I guess). I used to drink Finnish lager that didn’t have any taste at all (like all my friends did). That beer is not even brewed anymore… I think I was around 19 or 20 when I got to the world of better beer. And it was Fuller’s London Pride that really hit me. And I still love it!! It is always a trustworthy choice. And nowadays I don’t drink to get drunk I just like the taste of a good beer. (although sometimes I do get drunk…;))

Was that beer when you were 14 Lapin Kulta? Your description sounds like it.

[BluesHarp]

Originally posted by Luther
now I drink a lot of Knob.



...not that there's anything wrong with that!

sorry, just sailing around the board, and somehow that tweaked my twisted sense of humor...:D

Peace!!!

[Richard English]

Quote "...And it was Fuller’s London Pride that really hit me...."

I that bottled LP?

I have drunk both LP and 1845 in both draught and bottled form. I consider that LP is much better on draught and 1845 a little better in bottle.

[thewiz]

Originally posted by davesarman
In college there was a bar that had a thing called "Around the World".

j/c where did you go to college?

[thewiz]

Other than the teenage megaswill stories - anytime anyone wanted me to try 'real' beer they brought out a big heavy stout or barleywine or something - a big shock to the taste buds and not exactly a welcome change

I was primarily a wine drinker and drinker of sweet things (read: girly drinks)..... I always did drink beer since most of my friends did and SN Wheat was $1/pint at bars in Chico, but never really appreciated it....

Eventually, I became a season ticket holder to the Sacramento Kings and one night we walked around the arena and found the only corn dog and garlic fries vendor there... coincidentally - that kiosk was run by Gordon Biersch....

Since we didn't want to stand in line anywhere else (the Corona bar was right above our seat location), we ordered GB's Golden Export and I realized that there was beer out there that wasn't mega-swill crap, yet wasn't Bigfoot.... lagers with - TASTE!!!!!

Light golden refreshing beer with hops... next it was SN Octoberfest, GB Pilsner and my quest began.... guess I've been self identifying as a beer drinker for about 3 years now.

BTW - funny story - someone brought over a 6 of Curse Light the other day - I had one and I could taste the chemicals in it... what a wakeup call.....

[Summer]

Originally posted by chazwicke
Was that beer when you were 14 Lapin Kulta? Your description sounds like it.

No, it was a lager called Lahden Erikoisolut (Lahti Specialbeer), and was made in Lahti-city by Lahti Brewery. That brewery was bought by Hartwall in the late 90's. Hartwall is one of the biggest brewerys here (they brew Lapin Kulta). They stopped the brewing of Lahden Erikoisolut, 'cause it didn't sell well enough. But now I just read that Hartwall has started to brew it again, and it's been available in the shops in the beginning of this year. The name is now Erikoisolut. But I don't see anything 'special' about it...

Richard, the first time I had London Pride I had it draught. But I do enjoy the bottled LP too :)

J.

[Richard English]

Quote "...Richard, the first time I had London Pride I had it draught. But I do enjoy the bottled LP too ..."

Can you get 1845 in Finland? If so, do yourself a favour and try a bottle!

[davesarman]

Originally posted by thewiz
j/c where did you go to college?

South Dakota State University....no jokes please! :)

[Summer]

Originally posted by Richard English
Can you get 1845 in Finland? If so, do yourself a favour and try a bottle!

I was just at really nice (Irish style) pub, and tasted Fuller's 1845. It was really really REALLY good!! Thanks Richard :)

J.

[Richard English]

Although there are many contenders for the title "best bottled beer in the world", Fuller's 1845 must be amongst the top half dozen and is certainly my favourite.

Now I know it's available in Finland I am looking forward to my next visit!

[Kalleh1]

I just took the age quiz on drinking beer, and while I thought I was rather young when I started drinking beer, I was actually rather old. However, I was astounded that 4 people actually started drinking beer between the ages of 5 and 10! Was this a joke or is this not-so-rare in countries other than the U.S.? While I love beer (and especially Fuller's 1845, Richard!), I can't imagine children drinking beer regularly.

[chazwicke]

Well maybe not now. But keep in mind that generations of children drank ale rather than water because it was safer during much of the past thousand years.

[fretlessman71]

Some of us are pretty good sneaks, too... I remember going into my dad's liquor stash when I was that young and "sampling" some of the libations even when he knew I was doing it! (I guess he knew I wouldn't like the taste too much then...)

[TheBeerSnob]

One of my very early memories was being _allowed_ to have a sip of my dad's beer. Probably Rainier or Olympia...

As he wasn't around much after I was 8 (mid 60's), it would have to have been before then--at least in context of what I remember about location, etc.

Dad, see what you've done now? I did thank you, didn't I?

[PCaravan]

My first sips of beer would have been from swill my dad bought when I was a kid. I was normally not allowed to touch the stuff and never really had a chance but I remember one summer (I was about 10 or so) I was helping my dad build a barn near our house. He kept sending back to the house to get him a cold one. There were sufficient places between the house and the barn he couldn't see me sneaking a sip on the way and I'd tell him I opened it for him since he was on the top of the ladder with his hands full... LOL. I do remember it tasting like s**t but I'd keep taking those sips when he wasn't looking because it was damn hot and the swill was so damn cold.

My next experience with beer came when I went to college at 18... still underage in OK. Of course everone in college is always trying to get their hands on something to drink when they can and it's always the cheap stuff. I still did not like beer at all. I could drink it if it was the only choice but I prefered the mixed drinks of various sorts... until someone one day handed me a Guinness Draft (about 20-22 year old at this point). That's really when I became a beer drinker. I now enjoy many styles of beer from stout to IPA to bock but I avoid swill like the plague now... might as well be drinking Pierrie.

[LtJudge]

For me it all started at age 14.I was in a Heavy metal band as the drummer(yes,we were pretty good)and ended up play at several Bars and night clubs.Well at age 14 you need to fit in(all other band mates were 17+)Soooo I was drinkin what ever they would(Pbr,Point,Old Syle ect)It's all history from there(But thank god my tastes have changed!)

[CapsFan1974]

I think my first beer was when I was around 12 in my tree fort in my back yard acroos our creek. About 6 years later, I was mowing back there and I happened to run over a can of Rolling Rock. I believe it was from that time in the tree fort! That was in Maryland and now I'm in San Diego where, for some unknown reason, RR is considered a Premium beer!?!?

I have since come to know what real beer (and real ale) is!

[chazwicke]

I saw by your moniker that you are a Caps fan. But I saw the San Diego location. I guess you were in the DC area. I remember when Rolling Rock cam in little 8 oz bottles and you could buy a case very cheap. That was appealing to us high schoolers.

[HarkJohnny]

sips of my Grandad's or Uncle Bill's can of Old Milwaukee back in the day's of their cottage house on the lake (I know, it sounds magical and it was! I still long to have just a weekend there). That's probably where I got started.

Thenat about 16 at a family birthday party 3 of us went for a ride in his new (old) car. He had a 6 pack (can't even remember what it was) but we each chugged two bottles, and I remember not even being able to finish the last of the second bottle... made me very full. But it was certainly my first buzz. All that night we sat on the couch in his basement messing with some of the younger crowd.

At about 17 my parents had gone to a party and ended up bringing back a milk jug full of killians irish red from the keg they didn't finish. "DAMN that's good stuff" I thought! It was my first taste of anything other than a really cheap beer at the time and my father and I finished the jug that night. About 18 or so my dad would pick up 6 packs of Killians for me and that's really the beer that started me on my way. Sam Adams, Bass, Killians were the standards on any given weekend.

I never went away to college and didn't drink all that much for awhile. a 6 pack here, there, etc. But once I moved out at about 22 and was out of college, had a girl (engaged) and got my own place, I was drinking 4, 5, 6, 7,8 a night. cheap stuff mostly again, but good stuff here an there. That last a good couple of years, and I think it was the college years that I never spent drinking a lot taking their course.

Last few months though, i'm just tired of the headaches, hangovers, jaw pain (I tend to grind in my sleep when drunk) and such have led me to drink less... thereby making it easier to afford better beer. That combined with my new affinity for brewing is taking me on my next journey of beer. Hope it's a fun ride!

[hair-of-dog]

i started about 9-10 my dad would give me a small bottle of beer which i would drink because i wanted to act like a grown up but i never liked it.
about 12 i found vodka and cheap cider . can't beleive how i could drink that stuff at one time and enjoy it. the smell of cider nowadays makes me want to hurl.
i then moved onto bud, but nowadays i like to drink stella. but i'm betting as soon as i make my first brew i will be hooked

[Bangbang]

Ok....I remember takin a few sips when I was under 10 but I did not actually start drinking beer until I was 16. Then I was hooked. I drank alot of Bud. I actually did LSD before doin the alcohol. My family is full of heavy drinkers and some have been of the "fallin down stinkin drunk" variety. I am one of those so called Functional Alcoholics. Most people would not even think I had been drinkin other than the smell. I am in a real bad mood tonight because my Harlot Wife has my jeep and my brewing pot is in it. Ughhh! I was goin to cook up some Stout tonight. :mad:

[WobblyPop]

I started tasting beer at aroung the age of 12. My best friends dad is a homebrewer and he introduced me to many different styles of beer. Man there were some awesome Ukranian New Year's parties at their place. I think the first beer I ever tried was a bitters. After that I regressed to drinking crappy beers like Canadian and Labatt Blue. Thank god for the deregulation of the liquor industry in Alberta, I couldn't imagine having to live with crappy beer.

[Jose]

I had my first drink when I was 18. This was after I got back from basic training with the US Army and was enrolled in college. I knew it was illegal but the stance I took at the time was "if I'm old enough to die for my country, then I'm old enough to drink". I still like that stance but I don't think if I had kids I'd want them to drink until 21. Isn't that always the way?

My first experiences with beer made me think I would never like the stuff. Now I somewhat of beer connoisseur.

[BeerNewb]

first taste at age 5, thought it was gross. I reintroduced myself to beer at age 19, i still thought it tasted like crap.
Im 22 now, and ive been trying tons of new stuff. My wallet is thinning out =P

[swzine]

15 for me.

[Prodigital101]

I think I was around 8 or 10. We always had wine at dinner or Dad would have a beer at night- I remember him having a "beer-meister" that had a keg of I think Lone Star (we lived in Dallas). He would sometimes pour me a juice glass of beer and we would sit in his chair and watch TV...was quality time for us since he traveled ALOT.

Later, my roomate in college drank Schaffers...I would not touch the stuff (guess I have always been a beer snob) and would rather skip a couple crappy lunches at the school dining hall and have tasty beers.

[YamahaXS]

I acquired a taste for beer at 17, but didn't discover 'good' beer until 23 or so.

[curious1]

This was a funny story so I had to cast my vote.

Our family used to go "wilderness" camping every year. One year, we ran out of water. Fortunately, dad's beer supply was always well stocked & always on ice. It didn't take much for this thirsty 4 year old to open up a Blue (and that was before twist-off caps!) and drink the entire thing down before being caught.

My parents still tell this story, and it's become my earliest childhood memory. Not sure if it's because I really remember it or because I've heard it told so many times.

Anyhow, it was the beginning of a long friendship with beer, although I'm no longer a fan of the Labatts products. It did get me through my teenage years, though. I have two teenagers myself now, and they're both Blue drinkers.

It must be genetic.

[curious1]

This was a funny story so I had to cast my vote.

Our family used to go "wilderness" camping every year. One year, we ran out of water. Fortunately, dad's beer supply was always well stocked & always on ice. It didn't take much for this thirsty 4 year old to open up a Blue (and that was before twist-off caps!) and drink the entire thing down before being caught.

My parents still tell this story, and it's become my earliest childhood memory. Not sure if it's because I really remember it or because I've heard it told so many times.

Anyhow, it was the beginning of a long friendship with beer, although I'm no longer a fan of the Labatts products. It did get me through my teenage years, though. I have two teenagers myself now, and they're both Blue drinkers.

It must be genetic.

[Concrete Blonde]

I'm having trouble sleeping (y'all would too if you were here...I'm taking bets that fret can hear b3s' snoring 57.2 miles away) (sm00ch..love ya, honey ;-) ) so I'm up reading old threads. I found this one particularly interesting as well as amusing.

When I was in the sixth grade, my friends older sister thought she take the *CHILDREN* out and get them drunk. I grew up in a very small town (Population 5,000), so most any and all beer drinking done as a teenager was done in someone's car up in Farmer Joe's wheatfield. I probably don't need to add that the sixth grade was one HELL of a long time ago, but if I remember correctly, we sat in the cemetary and tried to get a WHOLE BOTTLE of beer down. I thought it was disgusting and tasted like hazelnuts. I believe it was Hamm's. No freakin' wonder I had to plug my nose.

I can tell from reading the posts here, who are the users that are approximately my age by the references to the "Schlitz Malt Liquor" craze (didn't we all have a poster in our bedrooms with a big blue bull on it?). The first time I really got drunk; however, was on Boones Farm Strawberry Hill wine. (Ninth grade) All you ancient Schlitz ML reminicers should remember that golden oldie as well. I thought I was fine as frog haiir until I got out of the car and found myself on the ground, gazing up at the spinning clouds.

If you've read my post about my recent weekend in Vail, you'll note that things haven't changed much since. :p

[chazwicke]

probably the first time I ever was really drunk was on some pink chablis stolen from one of my friends parents. we were camping out in the back yard. And boy was I sick.

[fretlessman71]

Originally posted by Concrete Blonde
I'm having trouble sleeping (y'all would too if you were here...I'm taking bets that fret can hear b3s' snoring 57.2 miles away) . And I thought my cats were keeping me up!....

Actually, until I started drinking a gallon of water a day, I could have been on the Olympic Snoring Team -- I have fan letters from Waverly Person at the Nat'l Seismology center in Golden! ;)

[Mikejesmike]

I had my first taste of beer when I was about 4. My dad gave me a sip of his Miller. I got drunk the first time at 15,from 15-18 I would sneak as much beer as I could to drink. When I turned 18 I just asked people for a beer,I figured I'm an adult,if anyone gets in trouble it'll be me. After about 6 years of swill I began drinking much higher quality beer at about 21.

[Jake]

I became a real beer drinker at 41.

[Jetsi]

I had my first beer at 11. Yuck (Could it be because it was Schlitz? LOL).

Had my first real beer at 21. Had my last taste of tequila at 21 also.

Made my first homebrew 5 months ago.

Its all relative.

Jetsi

[chazwicke]

Welcome to the board. I drank tequila a long time ago but only in the last few years did I discover fine tequilas. So I went about 20 years not drinking tequila in between.

[Jetsi]

I dunno about "fine" tequila. I'm afraid to give it a shot after downing 1 liter of Cuervo many years ago. I was sick for DAYS.

The smell still makes me gag. I can't even have a margarita.

But enough about tequila. I am looking forward to getting some good beer recipes, and advice on making my own recipe.

Jetsi

[fretlessman71]

Welcome to the board Jetsi! Don't worry about your TeKillYa experience; I had a similar one with a pint of JD when I was 15 and haven't been able to go near whiskey of any kind since. :rolleyes:

If you're of a mind, I play at Elway's Steakhouse in Cherry Creek with a great pianist/singer on Th/F/S at 7 - come on down and say hi!

[taco]

I started drimking beer when I was 16. Working as a dishdog for a buffet. The fry cook and porter always went over to the texaco and bought quarts of red bull. :eek: Ialways took up thier offers to join in so I guess you could say I was born on the wrong side of the tracks. Oh well Ill alwats have a soft spot for OE 800, and gotta love that mickey's.

[rogerdoct]

:rolleyes: Well, when I was 3 or 4 years old I went camping with my parents. My Dad had a snout full and passed out... I proceeded to consume his full bottle of ale! Next thing I remember was my parents coming searching for me and retrieving me from the girl scout troop who was also camping... Some peoples parent's spoil all the fun! From what I've been told they thought I was cute and adorable...
Roger "Doc".

[Jinja]

Like most, I had sips as a kid - yuck! Then when I was 13 I went to England and with my American accent (and way too much makeup!) I was served at the pub where I had a bit too much martini & lemonade. I also explored the world of Heinekin at a cousin's 18th birthday. But for the most part clandestine underage drinking involved wine coolers and vodka.

College of course led to much consumption of cheap keg and canned beer - Busch, Hamm's, Gennesee, Pabst BR and Milwaukee's Best.

Once I was of age (or at least close) I discovered English-style hard cider, and enjoyed a few years drinking Blackthorn and Woodpecker. After spending a few years going to Irish-style pubs, I discovered the Black&Tan and then the Half & Half. Cider is too sweet for me now.

It's interesting the number of women mentioned who don't enjoy beer - I actually introduced my guy to beer. We started with Gordon Biersch Marzen and now he's a hophead - quite a progression!

Thanks to me he skipped those bad beer college days though!

For your lady friends who find pale ales or even ambers too bitter, Marzen is a great mild-tasting lager without a strong hoppy bitterness.

I would also recommend Rogue Hazelnut Nectar as a tasty "sweet" beer.

Jinja Out

[rogerdoct]

;) When my Son was an infant, we took a trip during the summer to Mammoth Lakes Ca. to go mt. biking and fly fishing. This was my Son's first trip away from home, and he was freaked out! Crying and crying and would not go to sleep... I told my Wife I would sit up with him on the couch of the condo. I sat there tried to calm him down etc. but to no avail. I was drinking beer and eventually I fell asleep. Shawn drank my brew, and was out cold. Hell, if I'd known that, I'd have done it hours earlier!
Roger "Doc".

[Audiopup]

Originally posted by taco
Oh well Ill alwats have a soft spot for OE 800, and gotta love that mickey's.

I must say to this day, once every 6 months I will hang out with a good friend of mine from back in the day and enjoy a 40 of Old E or Mickey's Ice. It is far from the best beer in the world, but the smell and taste does take you back...

[JorisP]

If anybody's interested. When a boy at home, all beers we ever had in the fridge were Tuborg and some other loathsome Belgian lager, long gone by now. I had sworn never to touch beer, such horrible stuff. OTOH, from 14-15 I learned a lot about wine, and by the time I was a student, I knew the contents of my fathers' winecellar better than he did himself. When 19, I knew of two unlabeled Champagne bottles in a corner. When at last I brought up one of those, I was received by a bellow :"Don't you shake that! That ain't wine, it's gueuze!!" So I suggested we drank gueuze for a change. My father agreed, mentioning the bottles were at least 15 years old (and looking back with what I know now, I realise it was kriek, rather than gueuze). Two sips later, I was sold utterly. I started out to find all gueuze/ kriek /etc. I could find, and later all other beers for good measure. I'm still at it, 29 years later....

[chazwicke]

I had my first lambics some years ago. Probably mid 80s. I too am a convert. I love them. Both Gueuze and Krieks. There are a few that I don't like, usually the sweeter variations of the style. I like the winey tartness. I can be devine.

[chazwicke]

Originally posted by Jinja


It's interesting the number of women mentioned who don't enjoy beer - I actually introduced my guy to beer. We started with Gordon Biersch Marzen and now he's a hophead - quite a progression!

Thanks to me he skipped those bad beer college days though!

Jinja Out


I know Star is already aware that he has a jem in you. If you were not engaged and I was not already hitched, I ask you to marry me!

I know a few of the members here have supportive wives or girlfriends. My wife is supportive but she really does not drink. She will take a small sip. So while it is great to have her as a DD it is not as fun for her to hang out in an English pub while I sample all the cask offerings. She is great because she understands my quest and she never minds if I tour alone or with buddies. She does like brewpubs as most have somewhat edible cuisine. So we can enjoy a meal while I sample. And she is always patient when were traveling as she knows we will be hitting every brewery or brewpub in the area. I'm betting my wife has been to more breweries than many on this board. Our first trip that we took as a couple many years ago, we hit 24 breweries/pub in 14 days. :D

[Richard English]

I suspect that many women don't like the bitterness of hops so it's worthwhile trying to find a beer that doesn't use them (not A-B Budweiser - although its aquaintance with hops is surely slight).

Try Froach from Scotland which is flavoured with heather, or any of the Belgian fruit lambics.

Graduate to more hoppy drinks as your lady's taste buds mature.

[xtalman]

I was told that I my first try was at a wedding when I was about 3 years old. After that my parents instituted a rule that only they or my grandparents could allow me to "sip the foam" off the beer. After that it was the usual swill in upstate NY, Genesse etc... until I discovered real beer in my early 20's.

[zoom6zoom]

Don't remember exactly, but remember getting "sips" from Dad and the uncles hanging out at the beach, probably about junior high. So that means it would have been Schaeffer, and sometimes Schlitz. Schaeffer was rated fairly well when they were a regional brew... it's when they tried to run with the big dogs and go national that quality fell through.

Anyway, when I got into college, access to beer was no big deal so I didn't tend to binge like my mates - besides, it was 3.2 beer in the Midwest - blech.

Can't remember exactly when I turned from the dark side but was probably turned by trying brews like Saranac and the like... I remember drinking Sierra Nevada Porter and Oatmeal Stout in Cali somewhere around '83 or so.


As far as those who drink from the bottle... it's your failing as a host! Serve it to them in a nice glass, don't just hand them a bottle...

[Richard English]

Quote "...As far as those who drink from the bottle... it's your failing as a host! Serve it to them in a nice glass, don't just hand them a bottle......"

Hear, hear! Bottles belong in the servery; glasses belong in the hand.

And how ever is one to be able to marvel at, say, the wonderful russet colour of a Fuller's 1845 if it's to be drunk (yuk) from the neck of a dirty bottle!

[Fast_Eddy]

Originally posted by Richard English
Quote "...As far as those who drink from the bottle... it's your failing as a host! Serve it to them in a nice glass, don't just hand them a bottle......"

Hear, hear! Bottles belong in the servery; glasses belong in the hand.



I'll third that.

[Dextolen]

I was a sugar baby in the earlier part of my drinking career if it wasn't sugary sweet, I wasn't interested. It was, sadly, wine coolers in the pre-legal drinking days. Then it was mixed drinks, rum and coke, etc. Beer came first through a period of relative poverty (Goebel, etc) then through american craft beers the veil was lifted and I saw the light.

[Sladek]

Originally posted by Jinja
It's interesting the number of women mentioned who don't enjoy beer - I actually introduced my guy to beer. We started with Gordon Biersch Marzen and now he's a hophead - quite a progression!

Thanks to me he skipped those bad beer college days though!

For your lady friends who find pale ales or even ambers too bitter, Marzen is a great mild-tasting lager without a strong hoppy bitterness.

I would also recommend Rogue Hazelnut Nectar as a tasty "sweet" beer.

Jinja Out

This is a great thread! Jinja you are truly an inspiration! If I weren't married.... ;) My wife is a teatotaller, but sips my beer and has become able to taste subtle differences in a pilsner, for example.
I was a strict, moralistic, teatotaller teenager until university; then I went to all the house parties with all the kegs of Busch and Coors Lite and cans of Hamm's. Even the occasional Mickey's. Luckily, I went to uni in Madison, where good beer was plentiful and there are 2 brewpubs near campus. When I turned 21, my friends and I started to drink better stuff (starting with Sprecher Amber and Great Dane Hefeweizen), although piss like Rolling Rock to chase hard liquor on binge nights was commonplace. My friends also lived with a homebrewer; that helped. I remember drinking Dragon Stout (Chinese? I don't remember), thinking, wow, this is beer...
Summer of 1998 I spent in Vancouver and toured the Granville Island Brewery, which was instrumental in turning me on to quality beer. Then Prague, and there was no turning back. 1999-2000 I lived in Denton, TX, when Wildcatter Stout was still around, and found the Gingerman in Austin...nuff said!

Richard, I've had the Fraoch heather ale and some of their other beers; interesting beers! Their ales also come in cask versions, right? I would loooooove to try those!

[Stefan A]

Parents never drank anything, so I got little encouragement from home. Learned from friends. But here is my beer resume:

6-7 - one sip of swill from a friend's father. The worse tasting thing I had ever had.

18 - Bottle of Coors Lite (I think) at a work party. Could only drink a couple sips. Some guy volcano'ed it and I just sat there.

19 - 1/4 bottle Fosters

20 - 2 cans of Bud at the "Block" in Baltimore. Sitting at the bar-had to drink something. Got my first buzz.

20-24 - Mostly various typical American Beers. Binges. This was the beginning and it was pretty fun. The occasional Bass, Moscova, Fosters Oilcan, Mexican Beers (worked at Chi Chi's)

24 - Once a week heavy microbrews. Usually too strong for me - but it was free. Petes, Sam Adams, other beers I had never heard of.

24-29 - Trying different imports, but staying away from micros.

29-34 - more adventurous. Various styles of German and Belgium. Have learned to enjoy Oktoberfests especially.

34 - Interested in getting into various Microbrews, but don't know where to start. Also, much more into German Beers, particularly wheat and helles.

[Sladek]

Hi Stefan,
So you're interested in micros, but don't know where to start? How about Victory Pils:
http://www.victorybeer.com/Beers/PrimaPils.htm
Or their Victory lager, which is helles-style. Sounds like you're looking for a bit lighter style, so a stout might not be your thing, or an intense hoppy IPA like Sierra Nevada. Anchor Steam is a classic amber malty lager. Or you can probably get Brooklyn Lager in your area. I'm sure others here can recommend some regional micros.

[chazwicke]

Originally posted by Stefan A


20 - 2 cans of Bud at the "Block" in Baltimore. Sitting at the bar-had to drink something. Got my first buzz.



And just what else did you get that night on "the Block"?;)

[Stefan A]

And just what else did you get that night on "the Block"?

I was wondering if anyone was going to pick up on that. Fortunately, bud was the only thing I got. One of the only times you can say FORTUNATELY. But I think it's funny that that was my first drinking experience.

As for the beer suggestions - thanks a lot!. Do any of those come in 1/6 kegs?

Stefan

[jstrausss]

Boy - For beer drinkers most of you guys certainly have good memories :) lol I honestly can't remember ?

[Lusitano]

As I said somewhere else in this forum, I come from a land where we start drinking as son as we stop breast- feeding. At events such as weddings, birthdays, etc.., parents would and do give a bit of an alcoholic drink to their children. That was/is usually the national drink, Porto wine, as well as Champagne and interesting home-made liqueurs. The only time I got drunk was when I was 12 years old. After that, I stopped drinking. I started to pick up the customary habit of having a drink at special occasions, until I went to France in 2000 to do some studies in Architecture. There, I started to drink reds, whites, rosés, and an occasional beer.
That was an excellent experience, in many ways. I learned that it is not so much about how much one drinks but what and how one drinks.

When I returned to the US, I was 24, I started to look for places where the good stuff was sold. Unfortunately, in my community that was a tall order; it is a sea of Corona, Bud, and Coors. Working temporarily for a wine importer helped things a bit.

So far, I have tried about 80/90 different beers from many countries, including Kenya, and I must say that beer is as refined and complex as any other alcoholic drink! But I am no expert.:)

[Chubber]

Second food to ever cross my lips, after boob juice, was Schmits Bock Beer. True story.

My daughter is 2 1/2 and she gets the last tablespoon of my bottles. You are never too young to drink beer.

[Richard English]

Quote "...and I must say that beer is as refined and complex as any other alcoholic drink! ..."

Actually I would disagree. I think fine beers can be more complex than any other alcoholic drink. It's just that wine (a very simple drink to make compared with the complexities of brewing) seems to get all the publicity. Take a look at the article on this very topic in the latest Fuller's Real Ale Club magazine.

[fretlessman71]

So, you're kind of agreeing, but more so, as in "it's not just as refined and complex, but more so." Is that it?

[Richard English]

That's right. It's a disagreement but a positive, not a negative, one. I suspect that sometime my UK phraseology and grammar is not always clear.

I truly believe that beer is a more interesting. more complex and generally a far more versatile drink than wine. It annoys me that, say the New York Times will probably have two or three pages in a food a drink aupplement about wine and probably no more than two or three lines (if that) about beer.

[fretlessman71]

And you've said in the past, IIRC, that this is mainly because wine in general has done such a wonderful job of marketing themselves to our "snobbish" nature? I can understand that.

Turns out Anheuser Busch is trying to get the good word out about beer in general - check out this article from the Realbeer home page. (http://www.realbeer.com/news/articles/news-002757.php)

On top of this, AB released two "real beers" - Michelob Celebrate and AB Brewmaster's Private Reserve, of which I have a bottle of each. Will report further when tasting commences, but early reports is that they're both pretty darned good.

What are we supposed to think now????:confused:

[Richard English]

Well, anyone can have a change of heart!

I suspect that the real message is that A-B have realised that the good beer revival isn't going to go away and that they might as well get some of the action. And it they start to brew good beer then I might drink it. Time alone will tell.

[chazwicke]

Originally posted by Richard English
Quote "...and I must say that beer is as refined and complex as any other alcoholic drink! ..."

Actually I would disagree. I think fine beers can be more complex than any other alcoholic drink. It's just that wine (a very simple drink to make compared with the complexities of brewing) seems to get all the publicity. Take a look at the article on this very topic in the latest Fuller's Real Ale Club magazine.

This is starting to change. More and more media are becomming savvy to good beer. The Washington Post now has a regular beer column featuring local beer writer Greg Kitsock and even the NY Times has been publishing occasional articles about good beer and brewpubs as well as beer and food pairings. All I can say is: It's about time! I agree with Richard that beer does not get the respect it deserves. And if AB can help change that then I'm all for it. After all Beer is the reason man became civilized.

[corkybstewart]

I don't remember how old I was when I first drank beer on my father's boat, but when I really started drinking was as an exchange student in El Salvador in 1971 at the ripe age of 14. The governmenet clsoed the schools down the day after we got there so there was nothing to do but hang out at the beach eating oysters and drinking beer-warm, bottled yellow fizzy stuff. I can't remember the brands but it was cheap. I drank cheap stuff through college,beer and wine but our favorite watering hole had 1/2 price imported beer night on Wednesdays. Fosters, Carlsberg Elephants, St. Pauli's, Guiness. Woke up in the Juarez Mexico jail puking blood during spring break one year and have never been able to drink tequila again. Married a woman from Chinon France and learned to appreciate good wine, and her father introduced me to the wonderful world of Belgian beer. My interest in homebrewing was fading after about 5 years, then spent a week in Belgium and Holland and came back with a renewed purpose in life.

[beer'n'metal]

I remember having family BBQ's in our back yard and one summer after learning how to read my dad made me read the back of his Rolling Rock bottles, i eventually ended up memorizing it and he would make me recite it for his buddies and give me a sip after i said it. To be honest i forget it now, but it went something like "we bring to you from these glass lined tanks in Latrobe, PA blah blah blah." I wish i remembered it....

Well after that we moved to New Jersey and thats when i thought drinking 40's and bonging Natty Ice was cool. Then i found my favorite beer Yuengling and drank that religously untill i joined the military at 18. I've been over seas ever since and have had the pleasure to have beers from all over Europe, South Korea and Japan.

[corkybstewart]

I had my first Yuemglings this past week in Mobile AL, the lager and the bl;ack and tan. I bought a bunch and shared them at several Christmas parties there. My 80 year old aunt and my wife were sold on the lager. I brought some back to New Mexico, but it won't last past tonight.

[skorpion317]

I started off in high school, drinking stuff like Miller Lite (piss water), Corona (Mexican piss water), etc. I progressed onto Budweiser, which I still enjoy on a warm summer day. I only recently began drinking microbrews....some I like, some I don't. That's all part of the process, though. Now I'm getting into homebrewing...who knows where that will lead me.

[blaskos]

I started to drink some beers at about the age of 17. I did have some of my dads beer when i was a little kid. My parents were ok with it as long as i was smart and didnt drive or anything. Of course they didnt want me to drink a lot.

The funny thing is is that i basically started out with coors and a lot of micro brews. My parents and brothers always had microbrews so when i had beer purchased i would always spend a few extra bucks to get the good stuff. I am 21 now and my mom says you need to start with the crappy stuff (key light) and i say hell no.

I still dont see why people wont spend a couple bucks extra for some really good beer.

[fretlessman71]

Originally posted by blaskos


I still dont see why people wont spend a couple bucks extra for some really good beer. Mainly because in most areas (Front Range doesn't count), many people don't know what good beer IS. And some folks (CO High Plains) think that drinking microbrews isn't very Manly (I was told this by two different eastern CO Flatlanders, so I'm not making this up to be sarcastic and judgemental). It's like a lot of things; it has a lot to do with your upbringing. My dad used to drink Coors and Michelob; I can't go near the stuff. (Except for Michelob Celebrate; finally cracked that bottle last night - not bad at ALL for an AB product. If it were on tap somewhere, I'd consider getting a pint! Good start, AB!)

[Beer Monkey]

Originally posted by fretlessman71
And some folks (CO High Plains) think that drinking microbrews isn't very Manly (I was told this by two different eastern CO Flatlanders, so I'm not making this up to be sarcastic and judgemental).)

I've heard the same thing drinking at RFD they went out of their way to order a coors when theres tons of other great things.

[PsychoBrew]

I had an older brother and sister and in the middle and late 70s and that meant trouble. I was about 10 or 11 when my nice older bro decided to wean me on schlitz stout and Mickeys Big mouths - as I grew I was influenced in the ways of Spudweiser - oh the memories (YUCK) none the less as I finally hit the legal drinking age, beer opened itself up to me and my taste quickly changed - Killians, Fosters, and ah yes Henry Weinhard's Dark. When I entered my 30s I expanded into the fine micros and at the top of my 30s finally my own home brew.

Looking back although I almost didn’t graduate from high school because of the influences of my older siblings I still have to smile about it because of all the different beers I have tasted some crappy some not and the fact that I still had enough brain cells left to get a college degree ;)

[imike]

I have alcohol when I was about 24 years old :)
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[cewldre]

alright, so I was one of those who started very young. Where I come from, and all my friends agree to this, it's not uncommon to have a baby picture of you holding a beer can and taking sip. I have one, all my friends have it, etc... You get the idea. Well, I had my first beer then at like 4, but really didn't "have" a beer until maybe 14 or so.

[recentcoin]

Hmmm...I never did get into drinking beer. My family has always made whiskey and I've got quite a taste for good burbon. My husband, though is another story. He started drinking beer as a teenager.

RecentCoin

[Richard English]

Originally posted by recentcoin
Hmmm...I never did get into drinking beer. My family has always made whiskey and I've got quite a taste for good burbon. My husband, though is another story. He started drinking beer as a teenager.

RecentCoin

If you believe you don't like beer then you've simply not yet found the beer that suits you. Just keep trying - it's worthwhile in the end.

Most things that are worthwhile need a bit of effort to get the best from.

[beerenthusiast]

high school- any crap I could get my hands on
college- any crap I could get my hands on
mid-twenties- became a REAL beer drinker

[Saint-Thomas]

My father always let me have some of his, but he only had it around once a year or so. I never liked it, but I drank it because he let me have it, and of course I wanted to be just like him. It was probably Miller.

In high school, I couldn't get it to save my life. For some reason, I found it far easier to get whiskey and wine. One memory I have is going spelunking with a liter of cheap vodka. Along the trailway we found a cooler full of Busch assumedly left by some other teenagers going to the cave. We took it along and I discovered how much I really dislike Busch beer. I was turned off to beer entirely until I was about 20 or 21 when a friend brought me a can of Boddingtons Pub Ale from Manchester. I was in love! But I couldn't (still can't!!) get it in east Tennesee or Western North Carolina (ie. Asheville). I now go to Atlanta or have a friend bring it to me from Nashville. (I'm still looking to find Fullers 1845 to try)

So I still didn't like beer becasue I was afraid to try anything that wasn't Boddingtons. I found Franziskahner, and again, was in love. But again, distribution was poor and I lost interest in beer. At 22 I was introduced to an American IPA by the local brewpub when they would have college appreciation nights ($1.50 / pint). I spent the rest of my twenties in love with bitter beers and eventually branched out to other types. Now I still love APA's and have in the last 3 years discovered Abbey ales but again, thwarted by poor distribution in Knoxville. I try to go to the Sharp Edge in Pittsburgh to do my research in that area. My current favorite APA is Table Rock by Olde HIckory Brewing in NC.

Whenever thers is a beer that knocks my socks off in Knoxville, the distibutors drop it or the brewery goes out of business/changes recipes and I am again, beer poor. I tried my hand at homebrewing some years agoa and just recently re-discovered it. Ia m attacking the hobby with all my spare time and energy to try and understand the nuances of making a good brew. Also, I want to recreate all those great beers I just can't get where I live.

In summary, I only dabbled, with little interest until I was of legal age when I discovered craft brews and other styles beyond american pilsner. And I've only been truly a fan for the last five years or so.

[Arassuil]

My first beer was a can of Hamm's I swiped out of an ice tub at a family reunion when I was 13. It was damm good and I got all bubbly feeling, mainly due to my swilling it down before someone caught me. I was spotted tossing the empty and so some grown up cousins and uncles would keep a close watch.

[cattersley]

16... I was at a cottage for Thanksgiving, and some of my family friends were having a bit of a drinking game over at there cottage, my parents down at the park fire pit. I had never drank before in my life. Eight rounds of shooters with Bud chasers, and I stumbled to bed. The next night it was a 12'r of Labatt Blue. I never thought my parents acutally thought my parents caught on. When that weekend was actually brought over my birthday this year (26th), they both smiled at me saying they knew what I was up to. LOL.

I have drank alot of different beers over the years. I have enjoyed beer of all strips, colours, abv's, and IBU's... always looking for that new one that will give my mouth a good old punch of flavour.

Cheers all!

[Powhatan]

I started waaaay early... my uncle had Genesee on tap in the basement and it was our job to fill the pitchers. :)

I did the Coors to Miller thing (the beast in highschool/college) - but Bud gave me headaches...

Bass and Guiness got me on the right path.

Looking back... at a friends bachelor's party in mid-PA, we went to (what i now suspect was) a micro-brewery. I asked for a Lite and they handed me a list of what they had... I tried something that tasted akin to peanut skin (similar to Harpoon IPA) and was totally turned off.

I'm older and wiser now.

[Rabies]

I put 20-25. I don't count stealing sips of Grandpa's Dixie as being a beer drinker. In my teens I went more for liquor, cheap wine and daiquiris. In my 20s it was MGD and whatever looked cool. Fishing and camping trips were excuses to try new beers with cool looking labels. It's only now in my 30s that I'm really expanding my beer consumption, in quantity, quality and variety. One of my neighbors thinks it's funny that I'm always drinking "something different".

Not to go all off topic, but having quit, you know, smoking :p say no more, and my new neighbor buddies who all like beer, one home brews, are big reasons why I'm more into beer now.

[jr.]

i was in highschool when i had my first beer, riding around with buddies drinking keystone light. now i work for a coors distributor in memphis Tn. i have been trying different beers every week. right now im having a shiner bohemian black.

[iahebert]

The first time I ever got drunk I was 21, but still didn't like drinking. Before that I would say I had a total of a pint's worth of any sort of alcohol (beer, wine, what have you). I thought it was gross.

I never learned to enjoy cheap beer until about a year after I learned to like beer. I think it was right around mid-december of 2002 that I had my first pint of Boundary Bay's Cabin Fever at the brewery itself in Bellingham, WA. I credit that beer as the beer that made me like beer.

From then on, my preferences have changed quite a bit. I used to hate IPA's, and now the Boundary Bay IPA is my absolute Favorite Beer.

That's what I got.

[Arassuil]

That Boundary Bay IPA is one tops beer! I had a pint (among the many pints) at the Taphouse in Bellevue last October celebrating the finalization of my divorce! :)

[chazwicke]

Congrats!!

[East Coaster]

Ripe old age of 15

[OntheLoose]

About seven years ago I started looking for better beer. (Better than BMC) I tried everything my town had to offer and started to like a few of them. Sam Adams, Sierra Nevada, Fat Tire I liked these but I had this nagging feeling that their was better beer to be drunk. My town didn't have any breweries or brew pubs so I started brewing my own. Now I make beer that I like much better than beer I can buy. In fact I am becoming a bit of a beer snob. I ordered a Alaskan Amber on tap at a restaurant last night and it was not very good. My beer is much better than that. I think the main reason is Pasteurization. I think Pasteurizing beer sucks.

[shockley]

It was a while before I became a beer drinker, even though I had probably gotten drunk first at age 13.

Im only 23, so when i was young we just drank smirnoff and boon's farm. We drank beer at keg parties, but only to get drunk, not for pleasure. I don't remember the tipping point when I became a beer drinker.

Nowadays, I LOVE DRINKING CRAPPY KEG BEER in a red plastic cup (natural light, milwaukee's beast, miller lite) because it feels like being 15 again. (Yeah i know im young, so it didn't happen very long ago).

[chazwicke]

I'm the opposite - I hate drinking beer that reminds me of my early days drinking back around 1972 or so. Most beers that had corn in their grain bill seem to turn me right off. And although I will do it on occasion, I really don't like drinking out of those red plastic Solo cups. I prefer a glass. However, I know that sometimes you have to use them. I'll take them over drinking straight from the bottle.

[fretlessman71]

Try the clear plastic Solo cups - they're not as hard on the carbonation. I forget who turned me on to that little tidbit - our Louisiana friend, maybe? - but I'm grateful for it, as plastic cups are the norm around here these days... :rolleyes:

[brrman]

My first beer was at age 14... Molson Canadian (grew up in Canada). That was me beer of choice for the next few years until I got out of college. Then my progression went:

Alexander Keith's Pale Ale
Bass/Harp
Various Sam Adams styles
Guinness
Home Brew

I am a beer snob now. I admit it.

[beersage]

I'm a late bloomer per this poll though I wonder how many craft beer lovers started drinking that stuff at 21. I know a group of guys around 30 who just started in the last couple years.

[jonlouisville77]

My dad always gave me a drink when I went to get him a beer as a kid. That's probably why I was loyal to the same brand as him, (Sterling), when I got older. I know I started drinking with my friends around the middle of 8th grade, because by the time I was on the JV football team in 9th, I was an old hat at finding people to buy me beer. I drank Sterling for the taste, relative strength, and because it was a local beer with a long history that was cheaper than pondwater!

[roadkizzle]

Well, I never drank anything other than a sip or two of beer, or a small glass or so of wine with my parents before I got to college. Then, the summer after my freshman year my girlfriend, who is a year and a half older than me, transfered to the same university I was at, and we were both underage at this time, but would get some friends to get us a couple of beers every so often, but they were usually Bud Lights.

Then, when she turned 21 during that school year, we would go to the grocery store, and I would choose a beer to try, and she would get it for us to drink with dinner, or something. At this point in time, my favorite beer was Shiner Bock, but most of the other beers that I tried were international light lagers, such as Stella Artois, Heineken, Grolsch, and Becks. All I knew at the time was that they were better than the BMC that I was drinking.

Then, when I turned 21, I started exploring all of the craft beers that I could get at the grocery store, because they just straight tasted better. I would still drink light lagers, until I got my school ring, and my university has a tradition of "dunking" our rings, in other words, we drop it in a pitcher of beer, and chug the beer to get to the ring. My biggest mistake in this was we got rid of all of the carbonation in the beer, and let it warm up, so it is supposed to be easier to chug. It tasted so bad, I have not been able to drink any pilsner style beer since almost a year ago.

But, now that I am in Germany, and Dortmund to be specific, I have grown very fond of the Dortmunder Exports. I just wish there was a greater variety of them, because right now, there are only about 3 brands here, and most places just make the pilsners, which I still do not like very much.

[TRIP]

I was raised around quality beer, traveling to 3 or 4 brewpubs or breweries in each city my family visited. I probably visited atleast 150-200 before even turning 21. I started to really enjoy tasting and drinking craft beer when I graduated high school, and have just started homebrewing since turning 21 in April. I am certainly one of the lucky ones, having been taught to avoid BMC beers at a very young age.

[chazwicke]

[QUOTE=TRIP and have just started homebrewing since turning 21 in April. [/QUOTE]

I tried his homebrewing effort last night and it was quite good. A nice finish that lasted awhile. I'm looking forward to future efforts