Planning a tasting for some first-timers

Depends also how many participants are there, and what you want to achieve.

Take your time, take a break, serve some food, have some neutral cracker or baguette white bread out also for people who want to cleanse their palate.

And most importantly make sure people have fun, your list is fine.

 

Perhaps pre stout tasting[if available] try a Porter such as Black Butte,Edmund Fitzgerald or even Stone's Smoked Porter.

 

To really intro people to a style most non-beer fans would never believe until it hits their tongue, I'd go with a framboise. Start 'em off with a readily available Lindemann's. That's one of my go-to's any time I meet somebody who says, "I've never had a beer I like, others have tried and failed." It works particularly well for women.

 

You should have a Pale Ale category. Sierra Nevada & Stone Pale Ale are real good intros to that area. Sierra Nevada, for me, is the standard.

 

Prima Pils really isn't representative of a lager, either, though.

How about Jack's Abby Red Tape Lager? Not sure how available it is, but someone extra'd me one and I thought it was good.

Lots of good ideas in this thread, including water/crackers and a porter or stout before an imperial stout. Allagash White may be a good one to include, also.

2 concerns with Rochefort: 1) I wouldn't expect it to be a hit with new drinkers, but I could be wrong. 2) It's expensive. Even someone who likes it may be turned off at the idea of spending $6-$9 for a beer. As an overall point, especially if the participants are not well-off, I might aim to show them less expensive beers that they'd be likely to purchase on their own.

I would also consider a maybe "risky" maneuver: include their favorite macro, possibly somewhere in the middle, to highlight the differences.

 

My VFW post was a total Bud, Coors, Miller crew with a couple of Becks drinkers (another AB product). I got the house committee to bring in Yuenglings. I can drink Yuenglingas, at least it has some taste. A number of the other members have switched and it is now on the permanent menu. Almost all the Becks drinkers have switched. Working on them now to try a very cases of SN Pale Ale with the hopes of getting a few more converts. Since we have an open tap, I also have been talking to the house committee about buying a quarter keg of Westbrook (a local brewery) IPA.

I was in Connecticut earlier this month and the American Legion post had Harpoon IPA on tap.

There is some light in the darkness.

 

I disagree with removing the IPA and IRS. I for one did not like stouts until I had stronger stouts. Some people from day one will enjoy the more intense flavors with no need to ease them into it. If all stouts tasted like Guinness, I wouldn't drink stouts. Maybe have a couple in those categories and do smaller pours to show the range of favors that can be in those style beers.

I also would include a pale ale to show where IPAs were born. If you go with Stone on both pale and IPA that would be a good way to compare the two.

 

I would ditch the fin du monde, the dubel and quad are belgian versions, why not the trippel? But then again I'm not a fan of fin du monde, so there ya go.

 

I agree, no Bigfoot

 

I think it's just hard to showcase every style and then also include lighter examples as well as extreme examples in the same sitting. The taste buds are going to be fried by the end of the line up that you already posted. If this is a group of people you regularly see, maybe do a smaller grouping of styles and include more entry level to extreme examples in each style.

 

I'd just do two... maybe three different styles in one night. IMHO, if you did all of those great brews... after the first couple, you'd have no comparison. I'd maybe do Saison, Belgian Strong, and Quad... Doppel, BW and Scotch Ale... Hefe, Dubbel, RIS???
My point is, I wouldn't serve 12 different styles in one night. Pick three or four of your favorites no matter how different they are, and serve them with some like appitizers or a cheese/fruit/cracker plate.
again... just my .02

 

+1 on this point. 12 new styles to introduce in a focused, useful way is a bit much. Even introducing 9 styles to a friend of mine was a bit much for him when he was first interested in learning about beer.

 

After every 4 beers they try, I would give them a "mystery beer" and have them identify the style from the 4 they just tried, just to keep them on their toes. To make it more interesting, you should hold a loaded handgun to their temple just in case they should guess incorrectly...

 

+1 on replacing Bigfoot... I love it fresh and aged, but I think another more English style barleywine would work better. Personally I would sub St. Bernardus Abt12 or Chimay Grande Reserve for the quad, but that's just because they are more middle of the road drinkable, yet totally excellent, quads versus Rochefort 10, IMO.

 

Lager: Tusker Lager. Work in Allagash White and Alaskan Amber as well. Cheap and fantastic.

 

Wow a Westy 12! You are quite the beer advocate. Congrats and hopefully the community will have a few (very appreciative) new members.

 

Very nice presentation!