American Beer

[Parthenon]

I would venture a guess that a lot of these comments on how bad American beer is are coming from kids below the drinking age that have only managed to try the bottom shelf macrobrews that they can manage to get their hands on. Hell, I bet most of them can't handle the taste of beer in general, domestic or foreign.


American Macro: Budlight/PBR
American Micro: Bluemoon/Bigboss
Mexican: Dos Equis Amber
Euro:Grolsch/New Castle

Blue Moon is a macro, produced by Coors.

Eh, I break down micro/macro based more so on availability rather than the distributor.

[Fson]

What do people for the US think of domestic beers?

Honestly I think they suck, in most cases. I'd gladly drink Molson or Labatts before taking anything American. I recently tried Budweiser for the first time since I was like 13 due to me moving to another area where Canadian beers are less common. I can drink Miller light, and I rather like Yuengling, but Molson is my fav.

most beer seems to taste the same to except american beer is more watery.


a bit like american smokes are a bit "shit" the beer seems to be too, is becks american?

[Sarkhaan]

What do people for the US think of domestic beers?

Honestly I think they suck, in most cases. I'd gladly drink Molson or Labatts before taking anything American. I recently tried Budweiser for the first time since I was like 13 due to me moving to another area where Canadian beers are less common. I can drink Miller light, and I rather like Yuengling, but Molson is my fav.

most beer seems to taste the same to except american beer is more watery.


a bit like american smokes are a bit "shit" the beer seems to be too, is becks american?

Becks is German, owned by AB InBev

I would venture a guess that a lot of these comments on how bad American beer is are coming from kids below the drinking age that have only managed to try the bottom shelf macrobrews that they can manage to get their hands on. Hell, I bet most of them can't handle the taste of beer in general, domestic or foreign.


American Macro: Budlight/PBR
American Micro: Bluemoon/Bigboss
Mexican: Dos Equis Amber
Euro:Grolsch/New Castle

Blue Moon is a macro, produced by Coors.

Eh, I break down micro/macro based more so on availability rather than the distributor.

Gotcha. It standardly breaks down as the multinationals being the macros (AB Inbev, SABMiller, Molson Coors) and any of their products (though some are considered craft brews, which one could argue would include Blue Moon) while microbrewery is generally just about everyone else (Sam Adams being the largest)


Oh, and just to demonstrate the vast range of American beers, there are 1400+ microbreweries and brewpubs in the US, with the highest concentration in New England and the Pacific Northwest.

[Fson]

What do people for the US think of domestic beers?

Honestly I think they suck, in most cases. I'd gladly drink Molson or Labatts before taking anything American. I recently tried Budweiser for the first time since I was like 13 due to me moving to another area where Canadian beers are less common. I can drink Miller light, and I rather like Yuengling, but Molson is my fav.

most beer seems to taste the same to except american beer is more watery.


a bit like american smokes are a bit "shit" the beer seems to be too, is becks american?

Becks is German, owned by AB InBev

ah ok i see, then yea ive never tried an american beer i like then..

[SD_Film Artists]

Going by Budweiser, I thought that US "beers" were more like largers than beers/ales.

[Vetalia]

Anyone who says American beer is shit has never had an actual American beer produced by a genuine brewery dedicated to the craft. Try some Stone ales or North Coast, to name a few. Great Lakes' selections are excellent (especially their Dortmunder Gold, in my opinion) and aren't extravagantly expensive...I usually get it for $7.99 a sixpack, which isn't dirt cheap but is certainly worth the money compared to a cheaper sixpack of some generic Pisswasser.

[SD_Film Artists]

You want Spitfire or Bishop's Finger or atleast something Dutch or German. American beer is just wrong.

Agreed, Spitfire is my fav.

[Ryadn]

Can't find it easily? I work at the place that has the largest beer menu on the east coast, with 112 beers on tap and 450 bottles.

Good or great American breweries? Sam Adams, Harpoon, Magic Hat, Boulder, Fat Tire, Pretty Things, Hooker, Dogfish Head, Anchor, Sierra Nevada, Victory, Wolavers, Otter Creek...each has at least one beer that would match, if not beat, European beers in a taste test. And yes, Sam and Harpoon are available on every tap list in Boston, with Magic Hat being readily available, and every other being available in the nearest liquor store.

Hell, I'm struggling to think of a place on this coast that doesn't have Sam Adams, though not often on tap---but every bar I can think of has at least Anchor Steam or Sierra Nevada on tap.

I will admit to being spoiled...we have beers from around the world on tap. But even random bars in the area...the minimum is Bud Light, Harpoon IPA, and Sam Boston Lager. Other common standbys are Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, Magic Hat #9, Sam seasonal, Guinness...really decent beers. I actually can't think of a single bar in my area that doesn't have at least one Harpoon and one Sam Adams on tap.

Oh, we have international beers on tap, too, I was just trying to think of domestic brews. I think many, if not most, areas have at least one bar with an extensive draft menu, don't they? In Santa Cruz we have 99 Bottles, with 40+ beers on tap and 100+ total. I just looked through the menu, there are 28 domestic beers on tap, and the majority of them are from California, Oregon, Washington, Colorado and Hawaii.

[Lizardiar]

Ireland's Beer is better...

[Vetalia]

Ireland's Beer is better...

Well, it is Ireland.

[Kobrania]

British ale is better, Exmoore gold: the taste of Gods balls in a glass.

Since he is the 'greatest being' he must have tasty bollocks.

[Densocial]

Harp i believe to be the nicest freely available beer around Dublin from the offlicence anyway. In a pub though Guinness or Sparta Pills would do me down to the ground.

Not too big a fan of american beers
Coors light would probly be my favourite american
And Leff Blonde would be my favourite Belgian or German

[Sarkhaan]

Going by Budweiser, I thought that US "beers" were more like largers than beers/ales.

Beer is the big category, like wine. Lager and ale are the subsets, like red and white.

The most widely consumed beers in the US are lagers, and specifically American Light Lagers. The majority of craft beers, conversely, are ales. The most widely consumed of these are probably American IPAs, American pale ales, wheat beers, and stouts/porters, all variants of ales.
While lagers are produced and consumed in higher volumes, there are more types of ales available. And all of them are still beer.

[Fson]

Ireland's Beer is better...

aye it is surley like..... that was sarcasm, although we have some nice beers the best beer comes from the sassenachs and the dutch/germans (cant really tell the difference in beers)

[Ryadn]

Going by Budweiser, I thought that US "beers" were more like largers than beers/ales.

Beer is the big category, like wine. Lager and ale are the subsets, like red and white.

The most widely consumed beers in the US are lagers, and specifically American Light Lagers. The majority of craft beers, conversely, are ales. The most widely consumed of these are probably American IPAs, American pale ales, wheat beers, and stouts/porters, all variants of ales.
While lagers are produced and consumed in higher volumes, there are more types of ales available. And all of them are still beer.

Mmmm, wheat beer. So tasty.

[Sarkhaan]

Can't find it easily? I work at the place that has the largest beer menu on the east coast, with 112 beers on tap and 450 bottles.

Good or great American breweries? Sam Adams, Harpoon, Magic Hat, Boulder, Fat Tire, Pretty Things, Hooker, Dogfish Head, Anchor, Sierra Nevada, Victory, Wolavers, Otter Creek...each has at least one beer that would match, if not beat, European beers in a taste test. And yes, Sam and Harpoon are available on every tap list in Boston, with Magic Hat being readily available, and every other being available in the nearest liquor store.

Hell, I'm struggling to think of a place on this coast that doesn't have Sam Adams, though not often on tap---but every bar I can think of has at least Anchor Steam or Sierra Nevada on tap.

I will admit to being spoiled...we have beers from around the world on tap. But even random bars in the area...the minimum is Bud Light, Harpoon IPA, and Sam Boston Lager. Other common standbys are Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, Magic Hat #9, Sam seasonal, Guinness...really decent beers. I actually can't think of a single bar in my area that doesn't have at least one Harpoon and one Sam Adams on tap.

Oh, we have international beers on tap, too, I was just trying to think of domestic brews. I think many, if not most, areas have at least one bar with an extensive draft menu, don't they? In Santa Cruz we have 99 Bottles, with 40+ beers on tap and 100+ total. I just looked through the menu, there are 28 domestic beers on tap, and the majority of them are from California, Oregon, Washington, Colorado and Hawaii.

Honestly, of all the places that serve beer, I know of only one that has less than five taps, and that is the trashy bar in the Howard Johnson (and the one beer on tap is Harpoon).
I'm looking at my bar copy right now, 85 of our beers are from the US (at a quick glance, it looks like California, Massachusetts, Vermont, Colorado, and New York have the most). The only category in which imports rival domestics in terms of numbers is strong/double/triple/quads, where Belguim makes a strong showing. The bottles look to be a bit more import oriented (cost and availability of kegs is more limited than bottles), but still with a huge showing from the Americans.

[Lord Tothe]

If any of you have the misfortune to find yourselves in the vicinity of the Tri Cities down on the Columbia River in Washington State, there is one bright spot called the Atomic Brew Pub. Go there, try the beer, and enjoy the food.

[Doctor Cyclops]

Americans make some of the finest beers on earth. You just won't find any of them at Wal-Mart.

Still, the greatest beer in the world right now is La Fin Du Monde. So Canada wins the gold medal anyway.

[The Black Forrest]

A friend started this one. It's supposed to be pretty good. But, I admit to not having tried it.

http://www.greenflashbrew.com/

Hmmm. Wouldn't a friend give out freebies?

[The Parthians]

Dogfish Head 60, 90, and 120 IPAs are glorious and better than about 99% of beer currently on sale today. Actually, anything ever made by Dogfish Head Brewery is fantastic.

With exception to that and the entirely overpriced Sam Adams Utopias, which is pretty good, American beer is pretty much disgusting and a poor imitation to the European stuff. I tend to buy beer based off the season, so I buy a lot of Belgian ales in the Fall and Winter- St. Bernardus, Chimay, and Gulden Draak are my favorites. Spring and Summer I go more for lighter Weissbiers and Hefe-Weizen, so I tend to get Franziskaner, some of the other German beers or Delerium Tremens, which isn't a Weissbier per se, but is a good lighter colored beer that isn't too heavy.

If you haven't tried these, pick them up if you see them at a store. If you like good beer, you'll love them. Dogfish should be easy to find on the East Coast, with exception to the 120 minute IPA which is way too strong for a lot of people. Give it a whirl, Raison D'etre or 60 minute IPA are a lot more of a kick than an MGD, but much better in every respect.

[Sarkhaan]

A friend started this one. It's supposed to be pretty good. But, I admit to not having tried it.

http://www.greenflashbrew.com/

Hmmm. Wouldn't a friend give out freebies?

Tell your friend his IPA is pretty bangin.

[Sarkhaan]

Dogfish Head 60, 90, and 120 IPAs are glorious and better than about 99% of beer currently on sale today. Actually, anything ever made by Dogfish Head Brewery is fantastic.

With exception to that and the entirely overpriced Sam Adams Utopias, which is pretty good, American beer is pretty much disgusting and a poor imitation to the European stuff. I tend to buy beer based off the season, so I buy a lot of Belgian ales in the Fall and Winter- St. Bernardus, Chimay, and Gulden Draak are my favorites. Spring and Summer I go more for lighter Weissbiers and Hefe-Weizen, so I tend to get Franziskaner, some of the other German beers or Delerium Tremens, which isn't a Weissbier per se, but is a good lighter colored beer that isn't too heavy.

If you haven't tried these, pick them up if you see them at a store. If you like good beer, you'll love them. Dogfish should be easy to find on the East Coast, with exception to the 120 minute IPA which is way too strong for a lot of people. Give it a whirl, Raison D'etre or 60 minute IPA are a lot more of a kick than an MGD, but much better in every respect.

If you get the chance, try their 75 minute cask conditioned IPA (it's a blend of the 60 and 90, plus the cask conditioning). Great stuff, if all but impossible to find.

[The Parthians]

You want Spitfire or Bishop's Finger or atleast something Dutch or German. American beer is just wrong.

What? British beers better than Samuel Smith's Oatmeal Stout? I must find these.

If you get the chance, try their 75 minute cask conditioned IPA (it's a blend of the 60 and 90, plus the cask conditioning). Great stuff, if all but impossible to find.

Never seen it for sale, but that must go on my list.

[Barzan]

Another "all American beer sucks because once I drank a Budweiser and it sucked, and everyone knows it's the only beer sold in America (even though it's not American-owned anymore)" thread. Awesome. Let's pretend we argued good-naturedly for a few pages, I posted links to some of my favorite local brews like Buffalo Bill's and Trumer Brauerei, you countered that X equally obscure regional beer was superior simply because it's European, and we agreed to disagree.

Well that's really not the point though. I've no doubt that there is somewhere in the US where there is good beer, but you just can't find it easily. It doesn't have the tradition and culture that lends itself to that sort of thing, unlike the UK where good beer is relatively common.

But as I pointed out, you can't really get good coffee in the UK. Probably for much the same reason. Not that there is no good coffee in the UK. It's just not somewhere you'd go and look for it.

That would make more sense if beer wasn't popular in the U.S. because something else was drunk more often, as in the case of coffee and tea in the U.K., but I'm pretty sure beer is the alcoholic beverage of choice in the U.S. Maybe it's small potatoes compared to, like, our kickass soda industry?

Pop in the States is awful -- it's made with corn syrup, not sugar -- that makes it impossible for my thirst to be quenched with a pop in the US -- I only get more thirsty. And Lacadaemon's got a point -- you have to go out of your way in the States to get decent beer, whereas in Not America, most places have a wider selection -- even your local White Spot at least has a microbrew. I mean, let's be realistic -- what other country in the world sells "light" beer? Beer might be the most popular alcoholic beverage in the US, but most people don't bother drinking the real thing.

I don't know I rather like Molson... But I'd agree that Heiniken is shitty, another beer that I don't know why people like...

Well Molson is better than Budweiser, Miller or Coors. As for why people like Heiniken (or Becks for that matter), they like the "European" sounding name, and assume that it's better. (I remember reading a study about the value of Europe's name when it comes to marketing...)

[Tsa-la-gi Nation]

Dogfish Head 60, 90, and 120 IPAs are glorious and better than about 99% of beer currently on sale today. Actually, anything ever made by Dogfish Head Brewery is fantastic.

With exception to that and the entirely overpriced Sam Adams Utopias, which is pretty good, American beer is pretty much disgusting and a poor imitation to the European stuff. I tend to buy beer based off the season, so I buy a lot of Belgian ales in the Fall and Winter- St. Bernardus, Chimay, and Gulden Draak are my favorites. Spring and Summer I go more for lighter Weissbiers and Hefe-Weizen, so I tend to get Franziskaner, some of the other German beers or Delerium Tremens, which isn't a Weissbier per se, but is a good lighter colored beer that isn't too heavy.

If you haven't tried these, pick them up if you see them at a store. If you like good beer, you'll love them. Dogfish should be easy to find on the East Coast, with exception to the 120 minute IPA which is way too strong for a lot of people. Give it a whirl, Raison D'etre or 60 minute IPA are a lot more of a kick than an MGD, but much better in every respect.

Dogfish Head is a American good beer. I also like Anchor Steam (San Fran.)