how many times until you appreciate a beers complexities?

I don't need to sleep with a woman multiple times to know if I like her. I like food on the first few bites or I don't. I know a good beer upon the first sip. I don't need to "evolve" or "adapt my palate".

 

Absolutely this!

Too many people try and force themselves into liking something because it is highly regarded. You like what you like. I don't like mustard and I don't need to spend time with it to find out why exactly I don't

 

I have know more than a few beers to be completely different when they come up to temperature. That said, by the end of the glass I will know if I like it or not.

 

It's not that I can comprehend it, it's just that I don't really care to. Lazy? Maybe. Cheap? Maybe, but there are so many beers and styles I like that I don't waste time and money on ones that I don't.

I don't care for any barrel aged beer that I've tried. Maybe it's just that I don't understand the complexities, but regardless, my taste buds have told me they don't like it. Why would I spend more money and more time trying to acquire a taste for something?

It's like music. People like different things. I'm sure there are complexities to heavy metal music, but I don't enjoy that type of music so why should I spend time trying to understand the subtleties of it?

 

I don't think that's what OP is asking though. The way I understand the question, he doesn't necessarily mean acquiring a taste of a beer you hated (i.e. forcing yourself to like something), but being able to pick out complexities/notes in a beer that you do like. So a better analogy would be enjoying the music of an artist in a genre you do like, and over time becoming even more impressed by the depth of the lyrics or guitar skill or whatever. Like I'll usually know with the first sip whether I simply like the beer or not, but it will take a few revisits for me appreciate all that's going on.

 

1

 

It's a lifelong journey.

 

I honestly think it depends on the person, some people are more inclined to being able to pick out all the complexities of a beer while others can only pick out the general flavors. I think a lot of it has to do with experience and then I think some palates just aren't as fined tuned as others. I would definitely say I'm more flavor aware than I was when I started, but I would never claim to be an expert.

 

Define "appreciating complexities". Is it simply noticing certain things at certain times? Is it how you feel about those things at those times?

Frankly, the question reeks of those who want to be known as the higher echelon of a given subgroup, mostly by showing that they "appreciate" things that others don't (or, rather, in their minds, "can't"). Here sit the clearly-more-attuned music aficionados who cluck their tongues at those who can't "appreciate" the longing and the metaphor in some random indie soundwave; the cineastes who blithely chortle at the confusion we mere mortals feel whilst viewing "Eraserhead" without a clear "appreciation" for Lynch's vision; the art historians who dismiss the kitsch schmuckery of Tommy Kinkade because his paintings lack the volatile brushstrokes of Bacon or Boccioni. Inherent in the question is this lovely little bias, the "good/complex" beer, 'cause, as we all know, "bad" beers and "simple" beers don't have appreciable facets.

When the question doesn't tickle my nostril hairs this way, it still doesn't sit right with me, as it assumes that at any given time one would/could be able to parse EVERY subtle nuance of a given beer, much less "appreciate" each and every one, much less do so "truly".

So, after all that, my answer is: Trick question. Your perception (and subsequent "appreciation") of any given beer (or any other anything) will vary from experience to experience. Certain characteristics will shift in and out of your line of sight as time goes on, and your "appreciation" of whatever you're currently focusing on will consequently shift as well.

(As a potentially illustrative aside, my answer to the Tootsie Pop question ("How many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop?") was always something along these lines: "Trick question: I don't lick Tootsie Pops, I suck on 'em." Physiological and kinesiological arguments concerning tongue actions aside, of course.)

 

I've discovered I like darker/stronger beers to be almost room temperature by the time I'm 3/4 of the way through my glass. I like warmer beer for some reason.

 

So basically it seems you also disagree with those who say they get it all on the first sip (or first 2 oz) and think their experience will not shift from one time to another.

 

You've never had beers that grow on you after a few; or you become less interested in over the course of a sixer? I certainly have. I think he's trying to say 'you never know for sure'.

 

I have indeed had beers grow on me. Which is why he also seemed in this part of his comments to be disageering with those who say, "just one sip and I know..."

 

Title was a little vague , changed to reflect the thread.

 

If you are drinking the beer to find out how complex it is, taking notes ect. it should only take 1 bottle or pint. If you are drinking the beer just to enjoy it you can pick different flavor or aromas for a long time. I've been drinking California Lager since Anchor started brewing it. It was good from the start and keeps getting better.

 

The same number of licks it takes to get to the center of a tootsie pop...1...2...3.

Three. Many factors--including my state of mind--influence my perception of a beer. Did I have a crappy day at work? Was I in the midst of conversation when drinking the beer and not really paying much attention to it? Were my kids running all over the living room and screaming? How fast did I drink it? What type of glassware did I use? Was I eating a meal or snack when drinking the brew? Temperature (both of the beer and ambient)?

By the third beer of a 4 or 6-pack, I've probably sampled it enough (in enough situations) to know whether or not I'll buy it again and appreciate its complexities.

 

If you have to try Orval more than once to appreciate its complexities, theres a problem with your taste buds.

 

Tried different Cantillon beers four times at various festivals and friends' houses before I enjoyed it enough to finish an entire glass. First time I nearly spit it out. Second time I thought ok not as bad as the first but still not good. Third time I almost liked it. Fourth time something clicked and I really started to appreciate it. After that I was buying it almost every time I went to the store and seeking it out at bars.