Overwhelmed?

Yeah, we do live in a great time for craft beer with the plethora of choices we have. Are there any stores in your area which have occasional tastings? We have stores here where they'll do tastings from several breweries and this is a good way to get exposure to different styles & breweries without having to make a purchase you might later regret.

 

I've been into craft beer for many years now and still find that I know very little compared to many here on BA. I've been on the site for a month or so now, and am finding myself looking at beer in stores differently and keeping a keener eye out for things people rate highly here. I also try not to let the threads of the super beer snobs intimidate me. Like what you like and don't be afraid to try something new.

 

Have fun experimenting, but you'll drive yourself crazy if you think you can try everything. Find a few you really like and spend the bulk of your money on them. Take some fliers on different beers too once in a while. My two cents.

 

That's what it's all about, as you try new styles those old favorites will mean even more. Enjoy.

 

If you haven't already, make it a mission to drink the "classics" so that you know what good beer tastes like. Check out the Beers of Fame on here for ideas. They're easier to find and they'll give you the baseline for what a particular style of beer should taste like.

That baseline is helpful when you start experimenting with whatever Fernet-Barrel-Aged-Dark-Malted-Imperial-Gose becomes the next "it" beer.

 

Overwhelmed? Not really. Excited? Yes, there is a lot of good beer out there, so it's a great time to be patient and enjoy the variety of beers that are available to us.

 

There are so many great beers right now that it is easy to develop a buying problem before a drinking one. Every time I go to a store it kills me to leave without some of the stuff I know is fantastic. Bottom line is, drink what you like. If you want to explore some new styles, examples, find a good singles selection and/or a bar/brewery that offers some flights from various breweries.

 

What is overwhelming is if you got caught up in whale hunting. The hunt is addicting. In case you don't know, whales are basically rare or sought after beers. And you will never catch em' all. There is no Pokemon fairytale ending, just more and more obscure beers.

Its easy to get caught in the hype, so I'd just avoid it. Otherwise you'll find yourself driving 4 hours every weekend to pick up beer from tiny but packed breweries in Mass or Vermont, wasting precious time and money.

 

it's easy to get carried away wanting to try all the big name beers and new releases that are always coming out. i don't know if overwhelmed is the right word but this happened to me...i'd always be thinking "i need to look for/pick up/try this" but eventually you find your way to something like pure hoppiness at philly price and look in the mirror and make some life changes.

 

I've been into craft for about 7-8 months now and am still in the mode of trying new beers, almost all stouts since that is my preferred style now. I live in South Dakota and the variety is somewhat limited compared to most states, so I am amazed that every time I go to a bottle store I can find at least a couple of new beers to try. I suppose that during the upcoming off-season for stouts (summer) it could get tough finding new ones to try, so I'll take the opportunity to try other styles. I am also amazed at the number of local breweries, bottle shops, taprooms, and beer events.

 

I've been drinking crarft beer for 20 years now and I'm still learning things and discovering "new" (to me) beers.
A few recommendations I have:
1) Don't be ashamed to have a few go-to beers you keep around all the time - I call those my daily drinkers, things like SNPA, a few local IPAs and so forth.
2) Don't be afraid to try new things either. You may love domw and hate some, but you'll discover where your tastes lie.
2a) don;'t be afraid to revisit beers later on. When I first started, I would only drink super dark stouts. I later went to IPAs, but didn't like Belgian styles. I later revisited those and discovered I now liked them. Same with sours. Now I have an appreciation for lighter styles, like Pils and such.
3) find a local store that has a good selection and knowledgable staff.
4) if a store has a tasting, go to it. Especially larger ones with multiple brewers attending. A good way to taste a lot of different things at once (that said, be careful and don't try to taste EVERYTHING - that way leads to bad times.
5) go to beer festivals - see above.
6) above all else ENJOY BEER. Don't look down on someone else's selections, even if they look down on yours. Please don't turn into a beer snob.

 

I've been at it for 20 years drinking a variety of beers and still feel overwhelmed at times. I finally decided to stick with drinking my local stuff from a few Michigan breweries that I like, and then treat myself and further expand my horizons by taking a couple beercations each year to explore out-of-state options.

 

Agreed 1000000% with JrGtr.
Take time and explore. Try a new style each time. Pretty soon you'll have a foundational understanding of what you like and what you don't.
Your palate will change as well. There is no "good" or "bad" beer. It's all up to you.
Never get too serious about beer either. It takes the fun out of it. For everyone.
Relish, explore, get curious, and take full advantage of this golden age in beer!!

 

Do not despair, Hoppy Bastard can help, your worries are over now. Yes, we have too many options. This is a great time to be a beer geek! Two words.....SAMPLER PACK.

 

I'm a huge fan of the mix-six concept. I'd much rather buy only one beer I potentially don't care for instead of 6. If you have a store in your area that let's you buy and mix singles like that, it's a great way to try unfamiliar styles and breweries.

 

If its fresh, there is no "wrong." Enjoy the ride!

 

I get overwhelmed sometimes when I go into massive places like Total Wine who have like 2000+ different beers (at least it seems that way). However, I've really gotten to know a lot of the smaller shops who carry fewer, better products that are fresher which makes selection much easier.

 

I am still baffled that after having 2,400 different kinds of beer I can still walk into my local six pack shop and find at least a few new entries every visit. Overwhelmed? Not really since they have "New Arrivals" sections I can get in and out in minutes. If nothing catches the eye I fill up with old favorites

 

So as I am new to BA and the truly just discovering this magical world of craft beer, I can't help be feel overwhelmed at times by the incredibly large selection of beers. Am I the only one who feels or has ever felt this way?

There are a lot of beers but if you want to learn more about what is out there I would suggest that since you are already sampling some good beers you should try over time other beer styles that are made by the breweries you have grown to like, and also to try some of the same styles you like that are made by other breweries. Over time you will get exposed to some really great beers and some not so great ones, but most likely you will be able to add to the list of beers you enjoy. Also you will find that there are certain local breweries you may know more about and that is pretty typical since a lot of small breweries don't widely distribute their products outside of a certain geographical region.