What was your gateway craft beer?

Early on, all I drank were watery, bland but easily-obtainable Bud Light, MGD, Rolling Rock and the occasional Coors Light. I had tried other “fancier” beers a few years later, but remember thinking that IPAs were too hoppy, wheat beers had a strange aftertaste and porters were too heavy. I guess it just took time to develop and acquire the taste for craft beer, because finally one day I tried a Founders Rubaeus (on tap, nitro, at their brewery) and realized there was a whole ‘nother world of beer out there...

 

I was never a beer guy... had only been familiar with yellow macro beers and thought everything tasted the same. One time I had Michelob AmberBock and thought it had a little more flavor so I started reading about Bocks/Doppelbocks and they sounded interesting. Stopped by a local beer place (Buddy’s Beer Barn in EP... literally a barn building that sells beer) and asked Buddy what Doppelbocks he had. He recommended Ayinger Celebrator and sent me home with a 4 pack. When I tasted it I was very surprised/impressed about all the flavor in that beer. Specially after reading more about the limited ingredients it’s made with. To this day, it’s one of my all time favorites.
So short answer: Ayinger Doppelbock

 

Mine was a Green Flash West Coast IPA at a Deep Ellum in Allston, MA. I can still recall sitting in a dark bar and ordering it without any real idea of what was coming my way. I may have had a Sam Adams or something similar before it that I could drink relatively easily and enjoy, but this was the first beer that made me sit up and think, "Whoa, THIS is what a beer can be?"

 

Bells Two Hearted. Used to visit the River of same name in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and always took a sixpack along for quaffing at the campfire. That beer was soooooo floral back in the day, palates change with their exposure, so many other more fruity and floral beers today. I still keep it in regular rotation of my fridge, and appreciate it more now than ever.

 

Moose Drool from Montana

 

For me it was a book. Our local BWS store gave away a book on beer as I was purchasing a premix whisky, I hesitantly said ok, read it over the next week or so, & HAD to try these amazing international beers. Back in 2008 our craft beer was very limited so I reckon I nearly tried everything available for the first year after reading that book. Now it's impossible .. Willie the author sold the beer sizzle amazingly so I had to give beer a go. Something I thought I would never have done given I didn't, & still don't like mainstream Aussie lagers . The first beer pack I ordered online (live a couple hours away from any decent beer store) which was 10 years ago this week, Included chimay, la chouffe, delirium .. yep I was hooked. Belgians were an amazing entry ...

 

Hoster Brewing Amber Ale, 1991, Columbus Ohio. Drink local!

 

Voodoo Ranger Juicy Haze IPA. My girlfriend was a strict IPA drinker and I said I never liked them, until I tried this. Still drink Stella, Heineken etc. but my favorites now are all IPAs. I finally get it.

 

Great Lakes Dortmunder Gold was the first, brought over one night by friends in Buffalo (couldn't get it in CT). Opened my eyes to the rest of their offerings - Burning River, Lake Erie Monster, Eliot Ness and Commodore Perry.

 

Sam Adams started me on my adventure to find a wonderful cornucopia of other great beer flavors offered by a multitude of breweries in this great land.

 

I remember the day! I was visiting Kansas City in 1997 and tried an Unfiltered Wheat from Boulevard. I later read that the owner of Boulevard, John McDonald, said his dream was for every town to have their own local beers. Each town would have a unique appeal that one could enjoy when traveling. That struck a chord with me. Cheers!

 

During the 80's made many a trip to the August Schell brewery in New Ulm, MN. The annual Bockfest in February was an introduction that there was some other great beers to be had at the time. So I will say Schell's Bock, along with Schell's Oktoberfest.
Also a close second was Summit Pale Ale.

 

Samuel Smith Taddy Porter, circa 1990. I thought I was ahead of the curve with Molson Golden and Moosehead, but that porter was the best beer I ever tasted, and porter is still one of my favorite styles.

 

Stoudts (Adamstown PA) Fat Dog was my epiphany beer. Prior to that I only knew Bud Coors Yuengling. it was on tap at a local restaurant and I ordered if based on the name. And I suddenly knew that beer could be good!
that started me on trying many local craft beers and then to start home brewing. I've been doing that about 7-8 years now and belong to a home brew club.
I continue to explore, but to be honest, there aren't many that surpass our club beers.

 

When I was old enough (In my older sisters mind) , she took me to a concert in the park with an eight pack of ponies to see Barefoot Jerry [ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barefoot_Jerry ]. I actually got a little tipsy 1976. Bell's Brewery in Kalamazoo, Michigan did it for me many years later. My brother's best friend claims that Bell"s is the best beer made anywhere...whatever.

 

Anchor Steam. The granddaddy of them all. Had my first when I returned from SE Asia in 1973.

 

For me it was around Christmas time 1995, I had just moved back to the US, living in Boston at the time. I took trip to Vermont to visit a cousin who was living in Burlington at the time.

Her former boyfriend was going to a local college and he came back home with a 6-pack of a local nano brewery that had just started, names Magic Hat. I remember it was a pack of Blind Faith.

My past experiences with beer was the local macro option in Venezuela called Polar, which is the Venezuelan version of Budweiser, that is what I grew up drinking when I lived there. I remember this guys telling me about the guys who made the beer and that they were his classmates, it made me curious to try.

The first sip I took completely took me by surprise, it was like nothing I had ever tried, it took me a few minutes to process everything that was going on with my palate. From that that on I became curious to trying all kinds of beer. After a few months of that I moved to Miami where unfortunately at the time there was nothing happening in Florida so my beer of choice became Miller High Life.

Fast forwards a few years and in 2002 I moved to NYC and that is where things got very serious for me, Belgian beers was what open my path. Orval was the first one to blow my mind, after that point I became completely obsessed with trying anything from Belgium, the Trappists, Saisons, Farmhouse ales.

 

Longhammer IPA from Redhook brewing. I was working on a friend’s house when we discovered some in 16oz singles. We decided to try them, and I was instantly hooked on craft ales

 

Probably 1988, a freshman in college. Someone in my fraternity was drinking a Samuel Smith Nut Brown Ale. For someone who had only drunk AB and the like it was a revelation!

 

SNPA