First beer to blow your mind.

SNPA

 

I had been drinking my dads homebrew, SNPA, Guiness, Yeungling, Blue Moon and the like through college but my life forever changed the night of my 21st birthday. All the guys in my family toured Flying Fish in the morning and headed out to Philly for the night. First of many amazing stops that night was Monk's for dinner and a few fine beverages. A pot of mussels and a Kwak out of the legit glassware changed me forever. Since revisiting it, certainly not as earth shattering but totally blew my mind that night.

 

Actually without knowing it I was drinking craft beers a far back as 1975 or so. When i was stationed I Camp Lejeune I would pick up Pils Urquell and the like, mostly German brews. I was toddling along happy with Hop Devil, DFH 60, two Hearted and the like, then along came my first Hopslam. It was so freaking amazing that any brew could taste like that, it's been down hill for that same rush ever since. You hit a few here and there like HT and KBS, but your always chasing that next beer high, or at least I am..

 

Williamsburg AleWerks - Rapadou Porter

I'll never forget that beer. It was the richest thing I've ever drank. Wall to wall unrefined sugar, raisins, and malt.

I think it was a 2007 bottle, perhaps?

I still have one, and I'll be damned if it's not one of the best beers I've ever had.

 

Tripel Karmeliet was a recent one. Brooklyn Sorachi Ace gave me goosesflesh too.

 

Rogue Maple Bacon Donut blew my mind as to how someone would bottle and try to sell such a shitty beer.

 

A question with two answers.
Colt 45 tall boys - got drunk on 2 in high school.
Sierra Nevada Torpedo - discovered IPAs several years ago.

Both were mind blowers.

 

Punkin Ale from Dogfish Head. One of the first non AAL beers I ever had. Before that I had no idea beer was more than just yellow and fizzy.

 

Every bottle of batch 5 keeps blowing me away. I just had batch 2 and 3 but they dont hold a candle to batch 5

 

Newman's Albany Amber Ale. Some say it was the first microbrewery east of Boulder. Dumpy little building in downtown Albany. Circa 1980.



came in a cube-a-tainer




The William S. Newman Brewing Company, named after master brewer Bill Newman, was founded in 1981. Newman apparently learned his craft in England and brought brewing to, well, downtown Albany, at 84 Chestnut Street - about a block away from Empire State Plaza. Aside from the aforementioned "Albany Amber," he brewed a Pale Ale.

It was the first microbrewery east of Colorado, apparently. Among those working there? Jim Koch, who would later go on to found the little-known Samuel Adams in Boston. Of Newman, Jim notes:

These little microbreweries were starting up and that really got my interest. I actually worked in Bill Newman's brewery in Albany. He was the first guy who started a microbrewery east of Boulder. I came away thinking, OK, the idea is right. I knew that it was possible to make world-class beer here in the United States.

 

Brooklyn Local 1

 

Ruination. Pretty early on in my transition to craft beer. I'd had maybe one other DIPA before, but this made my mouth water.

 

It was Rochfort 10 in a really cool basement bar in Brugge. We asked the young owner (who was playing some heavy Chicago blues) for his favorite and he pulled these out. Done deal ever since.

 

KBS. It was my first BA stout and it blew my mind.

 

Brandy Barrel Aged Vanilla Dark Lord. I've had lots of amazing BA stouts before that beer, but that particular one just blew me away.

 

For me it was BA Tungusta / BA Jackhammer during Ogrefest. They're the reason I like BBA beers for sure!

 

Great Lakes Alberta Clipper. I had no idea a roasty porter could even be fruity, sweet, and still really good. Id never heard of it, and just ordered since I was at the brewery and they didnt distribute it. holy hell was I surprised.

 

At first, all i read was 'Rogue Maple Bacon Donut blew my mind..." and thought, Hell no! Then i read the rest i was like, Agreed

 

Rochefort 10

 

Zhukov, then months later Hunahpu, then a year later Apple Brandy Hunahpu.