Which Beer(s) Got You Started, Western BAs?

When I turned 21 in 2005 I finally got the chance to actually shop myself and see what was out there past the AAL scene and although I'd had a microbrew a few times, it was few and far between. Many of the same ones mentioned here did it for me; SNPA, Arrogant Bastard, Bridgeport Blue Heron, Mirror Pond, Pete's Wicked, Widmer Broken Halo IPA, Rogue Hazelnut Brown, Fat Tire being among the first ones. Also, I have to give a shout out to Full Sail during those first years of my BA venture as I feel like there was a stretch there in the mid-late 00's-early '10's where they were on their A-game and exposed me to a TON of styles that I otherwise would have not known about for years to come. Their Brewmaster Reserve Series opened my eyes to styles like Belgian Strong Golden, ESB, Brown Ale (besides Rogue and Newcastle), Trippel, Dubbel, RIS, etc. not to mention their annual Barleywine, Old Boardhead, which you could score for $4.99/22oz at Freddies/Safeway/etc and their LTD Lager Series, which opened my eyes early-on to craft lagers. Cheers!

 

Cool recollection and beer choice.

I primarily drank whiskey/bourbon, with beer limited to afternoons or Summer evenings outdoors. To this day I remember the epiphany on the casino floor at the Wynn in 2008. I saw several people with SNPA, the cocktail waitress said it was a nice piney California beer. I like the smell of pine, so I took a chance and really liked it. Funny thing is, I didn't realize it was available in Chicago or anywhere else beyond Las Vegas and California, but would always look forward to ordering it on return trips to Vegas, which I hit typically 2-3 weeks a year (still do, but now to visit family).

Fast forward to Thanksgiving Day 2014. My brother shared a Goose Island Proprietor bomber. I was amazed at how good it was, and loved getting the excellent blend of the stout, coconut and excellent bourbon barrel. Joined here a few months later, and have loved my journey ever since.

 

The beer that led me to become a full-blown beer geek (online, it led me to BA) was drinking Old Rasputin as a Guinness substitute at a Tony Roma's in Richland, WA. Still love OR to this day.

 

Old Rasputin for me as well. I stick to scotch ales,old stock and Russian imperial stouts for the most part.
Living in Los Angeles though, as @BigIronH knows and pokes fun at me for, i am guilty of drinking more IPAs than I'd want cuz it's easier to pull my fucking teeth out with .y feet,than to find a decent IRS out here most of the time at both taproom/breweries and stores.

 

Definitely Fat Tire. I wasn't really into beer until I moved to Denver in the early 90's and realized beer could taste better than the macro crap I drank in college. Fat Tire was everywhere in Denver at that time.

 

there's a bar here that always has it on tap. makes me smile.

 

One of the few beers that I get excited about when offered on nitro. Usually I find beers are more bland when on nitro, but Old Rasputin has enough going on to stand up to it.

 

I developed a taste for hops in college in the mid 90s on the east coast. Magic Hat Blind Faith was probably the first craft IPA I tasted. Brooklyn EIPA and Victory Hop Devil were early favorites. But even then, the real treats were from the west coast- Anchor Liberty and Celebration.

I moved to Calif in the late 90s and discovered Racer 5, Stone IPA and Hop Ottin, but still drank a lot of SNPA, Celebration, and Liberty ale. I remember stopping at Korbel on a wine tasting trip and being blown away by some early Russian River beers, but can't remember which ones.

 

The first crafts were the Anchor lineup of Steam, Porter, Liberty Ale and OSA in the late 70's. The next ones were SN (in single long necks), New Albion and what ever new beers showed up. It helped that I got a job at Liquor Barn at the time...

 

Early on it was SNPA, like so many others. But by about 1997 I had moved on to Firestone Walker Double Barrel Ale. It was all down hill for me from there.

 

Sierra Nevada Torpedo, Lagunitas Maximus, and the summer I spent interning in Boulder (when I wasn’t working, I was either hiking, exploring Denver, or at Avery brewing).