Trying to get into beer

New people always seem to have an irrational fear of hops. I blame the mega-breweries like AB-Inbev and Miller for this. A lot of people have this notion that hops are "bitter" and yeah, they can be but its a REALLY nice bitterness. Hops have such a wide variety of flavors, like grapefruit, lemon, orange, pineapple, spice and many other flavors. Afterall, hops is just the flower of the Humulus Lupulus plant. Nothing to be scared of but I try not to recommend big hop forward beers to new people, you never know what they're going to think of it.

 

Some plants ARE scary.
Easing into something or knowing your preferences doesn't necessarily equate to irrationality (nor does it necessarily have anything to do with "mega-breweries.")

 

New Glarus has some great fruit beers but I see your from pa as am I so not easy to get. Tired hands makes some great lower alcohol IPAs that a delicious as well. Spring house in Lancaster pa has some tasty chocolate and chocolate peanut butter stouts as well. It takes some time till you find your nitch but there are some great beers to try out there just set limits as too many end up not being able to enjoy at all when they over do it.

 

Are they? How so?

True but I can't tell you the number of times I've run into Bud and Miller drinkers that hate the thought of drinking a beer that has hops in it. The funny thing about is, 90% of the time they can't even tell me what hops taste like. They just "think" its something bad. I would call that an irrational fear. If you've tried several IPAs or Pale Ales and you just don't like them, fine with me, but when people that have never tasted hops tell me they hate hops I find that to be rather amusing.

The megabrewers have been telling us for years that hops are bad, and that you would be better off to drink our beer because it's not "bitter".

 

Like anything in life, the way to get into something is to literally get into it. Drink beer. Also, ignore the sorts who have elevated opinions of their taste, who will tell you to take baby steps. There is absolutely nothing frightening about 99% of the beers out there. That said, it wouldn't hurt to read about the style before you consume, this way you have some background on the style to guide your expectations (e.g., don't gulp a barleywine and expect refreshment...expect warmth and comfort and a slow ride etc.)

 

or a hop stoopid

 

Welcome to BA!

It sounds like Sierra Nevada Kellerweise would be a good one for you to try. It's a wheat beer with great flavor and a nice clean finish. If you want good representation of a balanced hoppy beer try Deschutes Freshly Squeezed IPA. It is another beer with great balance and much smoother than your typical IPA.

 

Unfortunately, this is what the majority of very young drinkers drinkers first stated in their minds when they started drinking. No matter what type of alcohol.... whiskey, beer, wine... Hopefully, you will not kill yourself, kill someone else, lose jobs, do jail time, or....

 

When I was little, I was terrified of Stinging Nettle and Poison Sumac. I couldn't go catch turtles or frogs in the woods without getting completely annihilated by one of the two. Totally off topic, but I cracked up when I seen those posts. Thanks for the laugh!

 

My best advice is to never rule out a particular style of beer. Your palate will change and don't let your ideas of a previous beer styles get in the way of trying something new. Also keep in mind that there's a beer for every occasion, whether it be crushing natty with your buddies or sipping a huge stout for a nightcap.

 

If you like fruit beers check out Sam Adams "Cherry Wheat and "Blackberry Witbeer" For something that is a little different you could try "Poor Richard's Tavern Spruce Ale" by Yards. If you are willing to give Pumpkin Ales a try I would recommend "Imperial Pumpkin Ale" by Wyerbacher

 

I got into some poison sumac a couple of summers ago. It got all over everything including my eyelids. Nasty, nasty shit.

 

Let the beer get into you. The rest will take care of itself.

 

Every time I see a thread like this it puzzles me. When I was 21, I didn't systematically chose to get into craft beer. It was a long, long, gradual process. I also find it weird when people ask for suggestions. For the billionth time, why don't people like exploration? It builds appreciation. The wins are much more appreciated after you've suffered a defeat or two. Also, it means you use your own mind, not someone else's. Just my opinion.

 

In PA, you should try Tröegs Troegenator. It's a doppelbock made in Hershey. Despite its place of origin, it is not chocolatey. It has dark fruit flavors. Just be mindful that the ABV is higher than your typical college beers.

 

I've tried this beer two times and it's been a drain pour each time. Nugget Nectar is much better, as is their 6.0% Amber. Maybe I just dislike dopplelbocks.

 

I knew you were weird, girl.

Ruination as your 1st.. hah

 

There are a lot of breweries that have capitalized on the IPA craze and made some really bad bitter beers. It took me a while to realize that hoppy beers (even IPAs) can be amazing if done well. I think that's where someone new to craft beers can really benefit from starting threads like this. If you don't think you like hoppy beers, try some of the Lagunitas beers or Flying Dog's Single Hop Galaxy.

 

I wouldn't argue it's the best beer by any means, but it seemed to fit what he was looking for.

 

Because today's generation is too lazy to actually do research and do things on their own.