Favorite Session beer(s)?

Yards Brawler
Guiness Extra Stout
Konig Pilsner
Sunshine Pilsner
Ayinger Pils
Kostritzer

 

What do you mean by low ABV? I mean under 4%. Most of the beer (about 90%) I drink is over 5 and under 7%.

 

Firestone Walker Pale 31...oh wait crap.

 

Just this past weekend, I had Burley Oak's Jacques Gosesteau. It's a fruit sour that's 5.0%. It is absolutely fabulous. I was at a beer festival and I kept going back for more of this one at the expense of being able to try a new one.

 

I was in Krakow Poland a few weeks back and stumbled on Teatime Brewery an English brewpub (owned and operated by a fella from Huddersfield) brewing and serving 8 cask brews on hand-pump, including a divine bitter (England's Glory at 4.0% ABV) and an dark ESB (Nettlethrasher, at 4.8%). I had nowhere to go and nobody to know, so I settled in for a a solid 4-5 hours of drinking and soccer. It had been ages since I was in the UK and the experience of cask ale had faded a great deal.

My experience reminded me that the real testament to a beer's sessionability is its capacity to keep you at once casual, yet intimately content with your choice. I was not once tempted to try the 4 or 5 American style brews, but instead I comforted myself in the arms of those beautifully malty ales, in the pattern of 3 bitters to 1 ESB

I would forgo the 5000 breweries in the US to have those beers poured within a mile of my home

http://www.teatimebrewery.com/teatime-beers

 

It's gotta be Lawson's Super Session #8 (4.8%) or von Trapp Pilsner (5.4%) – both quite reasonably priced and relatively widely available in the Northeast.

 

SN Pale Ale

Add me to the list of any cask beer. Not realistic, but one can dream.

 

Elaborate Metaphor.

 

I mean as low as I can acquire. The only sub 4% beers I've really seen here have been sours/farmhouse ales. But I drink primarily 4-5% if possible. I only drink beers over 6% rarely.

 

I don't normally drink "session beers" but if I did, it would be:
- DayTime (Lagunitas) - I'm not sure why this beer doesn't get more love...IMO, this is much better than Founders All Day IPA or Stone's All Day IPA (but it seems I am clearly in the minority).

Runner Up (although no longer brewed):
Levitation Ale (Stone)...when fresh, this was absolutely delicious and perhaps the first "crushable" hoppy offerings that were widely available. Like original Ruination, I miss this (and at one time) ubiquitous "session" (not to mention, hoppy amber) ale.

 

- Baby Genius from Bissell Brothers (4%)
- any of the Eureka variants from Tree House (4.1%)
- Whirlpool from Night Shift (4.5%)

These are my go to summer sessions.

 

Piggybacking off some suggestions here but:

Jack's Abby House Lager
Night Shift Whirlpool
Captain Lawrence Effortless Grapefruit
Weihenstephaner Hefe
Von Trapp Pils
Notch Left of the Dial + Pils
SNPA

 

This, from Good Nature . It's 4.0%. It's advantage over others[Day Time & All Day, for ex.] is that it has oats & wheat. Feels like 6-7% , not "hop water".& it's $8.49/6pk. Also, for some reason, maybe the oats, it holds up well over time, remaining bright & fruity, even 8+ weeks old.

 

Uinta Baba Black Lager

 

I've never had it on draft, and can only imagine the flavors could be even better than bottles, but I'm okay with them too!

I've had Bikini at a BYOB concert, and knocked back 8 of them. I barely had a buzz.

A lot of people will give a 2.7 session IPA flack, but I think it has a lot more flavor than any BMC light beer.

 

Tuna

 

If I was looking for a session beer (I'm not) and I could get fresh Alpha King (I can't), my session beer would be Alpha King.

 

I am known for getting on my soapbox but there is the world of difference between a beer you can drink a few of and a beer specifically intended to be consumed in multiple pints.
The term session does not mean time during which you are drinking. It derives from the two 4 to 5 hour periods of a day when the pubs were open.Drinking for just a couple of hours rather devalues the expression.

 

Appreciate the words from across the pond. I think that there are some inherent differences here in the US, most namely that real 'session' beers as you describe are often unavailable. We do the best with what we have.