Obsessed with 'The Best!'

Notch and Fort Hill both make killer beer without people lining up 4 hours before opening in hopes of getting a few cans

 

Ipswich, Jack's Abby, Beer'd, and Kelsen are my stand by localish breweries that don't get tons of hype but make great beer.

Most people who only look for the best have the least clue of what that is. They really just want the next, the new. It's just where craft is right now.

 

Victory, Stoudts, Troegs, Neshaminy Creek

 

Totally forgot to mention Ipswich. Best shelf oatmeal stout and original ale is a damn fine beer.

 

Sierra Nevada Pale Ale
Pick up a 12 pack and enjoy it. There is a reason it is a classic.

 

Definitely. Not to whalzbro it up, but their Zumatra Coffee Stout is also excellent.

 

Shout out to Twin Elephant, Ramstein, Deschutes, Smog City, and The Strand.

 

Precisely! Truth be told, there are as many 'bests' as there are types of beer, contexts, moods, and times of the day. If you're overly concerned with what others think about what's in your glass, that's a good way to miss out on what's best.

 

I used to tick and chase new releases and all that. Now, if it's in cans and a style I enjoy, I buy it. I can't drink a bourbon barrel stout every day nor do I have the money to do so. I consider myself just a beer drinker. A fan of the trade and a general big fan of beer and the things that come with it. More good times have been around a pils or pale than a barrel.

I've learned to appreciate skill in subtle styles. Cheers to every day beers.

 

Lil Sumpin' Sumpin', Clown Shoes Galactica, and 21st Amendments Back in Black are kinda my quick grab beers that I always enjoy if I'm in a hurry

 

Although I have a cellar mostly comprised of BA stouts and porters, many of them cult beers, my favorite beer to drink is "new" (to me). I tend to ignore my cellar as long as I have new beers to try. Most of them are stouts and porters, but since I've worked through most of those available in distribution here, I have diversified to almost any beer/style I haven't had before and sounds interesting. So that's my answer - my favorite non-cult beer is "new".

 

I make it a point to purchase core offerings of my local beers in addition to brands like Firestone and Founders. Not only do I enjoy the core offerings but more often than not it's the purchases of these year round beers that help determine allocations of the more limited stuff.

 

Yup! "Welcome' to BA!!

My suggestion is that maybe you could start some of these thread discussions. I am uncertain how much participation will occur but this is a worthwhile effort.

Cheers!

 

Fort Hill!!!!!!!! Damn good beers. The rauchbeir is amazing.

 

There is no best beer, only favorites.

 

Just saw on Instagram that Troegs sold their first beer twenty years ago today.

 

I enjoy trying highly acclaimed beers when I can but I don't have the resources or the time to do so frequently. Here in KY, I love being able to pick up solid brews from West Sixth, Against the Grain, Braxton, and enjoy the taproom at Dry Ground (local to me). Rhinegeist in Cincy makes some of my favorites as well. When I travel, I make sure to visit local breweries and try local stuff. I just like trying new beer and new breweries. It doesn't have to be rare or "the best", and I rarely come across a beer that I don't enjoy.

Cheers

 

100% agree with the OP ... the only issue about celebrating individual "regular" beers is the spread of distribution. I'd love to start a thread about New Republic's Marlinspike and Windlass, a porter and that same porter with sweet potatoes added, but neither of those beers is widely distributed and I'd likely be having a conversation with myself.

BA.com is full of members who love everyday drinkers. In fact, I bet you'll find most BAs have a rotation of easy-to-find beers that they love as much as their favorite whales. Hang around WBAYDN and New Beer Sunday and you'll find that community of BAs unburdened by the whale chase.

 

I try as many beers as I can from every brewery I can get my hands on. All styles, all breweries, everything. There are beers that I've had that people on here would shrug their shoulders at if I mentioned that were amazing to me Bad Shepherd The Loud IPA from Charleston West Virginia fresh on tap anyone?

We are blessed as beer lovers in the USA to be living in the best year for the drink. Even just a short while ago, Sam Adams was as fancy as I could get in a store. Our selections keep getting better and better and better. I live in WV on the Ohio border and can get Bear Republic Racer 5 IPA from California right now if I wanted to. It's an exciting time to be a beer geek in America right now.