Your first real craft beer experience?

I was on my way back from the Smokies in October....we stopped in Nashville at a Publix....I wanted a German Oktoberfest and picked up a sixer of Paulaner Oktoberfest Marzen....I haven't looked back from that point back in 2007....it's still one of my favorite beers and every time I buy or drink it, I remember that moment....

 

I helped a buddy move to Massachusetts in 1989 and I encountered Sam Adams Boston Lager and Lighthouse also from Sam Adams.

 

Sitting around a campfire circa 2010-2012.. had been drinking Red Stripe and Leinenkeugels as alternative to macro lagers.. grabbed a Sierra Nevada Torpedo for that night and the intense bitterness turned me on.

Went entirely down the rabbit hole for years after that. Now i drink less beer and more bourbon. I live in Indiana so most of my beer consumption is just fresh 3 Floyds

 

I had both anchor steam and snpa in the 80s but it didn't click for me until a decade later. And it was German beers that started me to something better. Hefes and lagers at a German brahaus started the itch. Then dogfish head, dales ,Brooklyn etc

 

Is there any connection to Henry Weinhards Blue Boar? That was a cream ale by the early 2000s

 

Well, it's the same brand (the Henry Weinhard label went from Pabst to Heileman to Stroh to, finally, Miller in 1999) who knows what changes were made to the recipe. "Cream Ale" didn't mean much to macro brewers* by the 1960s (if it ever did), some were very light and low in IBUs, others were hoppy. Repeal era recipes called for 1-1.25 lbs/bbl., Genesee says their cream ale today is 9 IBUs.

When Rheingold began bottling McSorley's in the 1970s, they labeled it "McSorley's Cream Ale" to ride the short-lived cream ale wave created by Genesee, but it was among the hoppiest US ales of the era. Here's M. Jackson's description of it as a C. Schmidt's & Sons beer a few years later:

(Yeah, 30 was high circa 1980 - tasted fine to me).

* Of course, now that I think of it, "Cream Ale" means even less to some "craft" brewers - I see some label nitro beers "Cream Ale" and, recently, another uses the term for a beer that taste like a "Creamsicle" - vanilla- and orange-flavored, others use it for coffee-flavored beers.

 

When I began drinking in the 1960s the normal pub beer was what we call "craft" now. Small local breweries taking immense pride in what they did.My local town had two main breweries and another one a few miles out. Cask conditioning was the norm and it was great fun going from pub to pub drinking what were theoretically the same brew but distinctly different because of the cellaring and cellarmanship in each pub.

 

My first experience with a "craft" beer was when I was 19 with a girl-friend, not sexual, but an acquaintance going to see a band called Once Fish, then Hex Belt at a bar. Forget the name.
Everyone was drinking the same beer which I didn't recognize, but ordered one anyway, just to fit in.
The beer was Blackened Voodoo from Dixie.
Man, what a world changing beer that was at the time.
After that it was Whitbread, Bass Ale Pete's Wicked Ale, Dock Street, Sam Adams, J. W. Dundee's Honey Brown Lager and the list goes on.
I was drinking local Yuengling Premium, Reading, Leibotschaner Cream Ale and a few others for the 16oz returnable bottles for which to put my homebrew. None of those had much character, other than being something cheap to drink while on college funds. Plus, the local beer store owner never carded me.
I was home brewing at 18, but back then, what I brewed was drinkable for being poor, but definitely wouldn't win any awards at any competition.
5 gallons of beer for $20! Duh.
Then, after a trip to Maryland, where you could mix n match six packs with just about anything I really discovered beer.
Cave Creek Chile beer, Alimony Ale, Pete's Wicked and many more that I don't recall.
I then found Country Garden 6 pk in Lebanon,Pa locally and my world of beer expanded from there. After I turned 21.
That place had everything, and being young with no real responsibility or big bills, I tried my hardest to try them all.
I also found Shangy's in Emmaus, Pa.
The Mecca of beers.
Got a 50l keg of Jenlain biere de Garden & Paulaner Salvator.
Plus, many cases, as six packs were not yet allowed for sale, of many fine beers that were not available to me in my area.
I used to go to Baltimore Inner Harbor at least once a month to go brewery hopping.
My bestie college buddy & I would often split a case, often times a variety pack, to drink while playing Mortal Kombat, shooting pool and watching Beavis and Butt-Head on TV.
I have not looked back since.
Those were golden years for great beers and better times.

 

For me it was Blackened Voodoo also... Around the same time, |I was 15 or 16 years old, so 1990 or 91, I guess. I knew about beer from commercials on TV, obviously, and from my dad, who would drink Molson's |Brador, imported from Montreal a couple cases at a time - he grew up there, so whenever we went up, or his parents came down, a supply tagged along, or something else from Molson he got around here. So on and off I'd had a sip (or more) of that stuff, and didn;t like it. A friend of ours owned a little store, and carried these "weird" beers.
So they were visiting and brought a couple. The Voodoo was a major shift, in that it was dark beer, actually tasted good, and the label art was great (I actually still have that original bottle in my homebrewery.|)
That started my journey, so to speak. I still didn't drink much until I got to college, but avoided what almost everyone else was drinking - the unofficial beer of the school was Natty Light Ice. $5 for a case at the time...
|When I got to the point |I could buy my own, I went nuts, but was mostly stouts - I thought that if you could see through it, it wasn;t worth drinking. Odd that 25 years later, here i am appreciating Pilsners and such... after a journey through hopheadedness, BBA, |Sours and so forth.

 

The first contact with craft beers was unaware with the first Schneider Weisse (Tap 1, Tap 2, Tap 3 ...) taken out of curiosity from the old "Blockbuster" film-rental chain, when cassettes and DVDs were still rented.
Subsequently, I travel to Monaco there too, although far from the concept of craftsmanship, I savored tastes never heard before and different from the same labels I found in Italy (I didn't have the slightest idea that some of those beers I found in Italy were produced by factories Italian, I was unaware).
Then I'm old, but not very old, so it was in the 2000s, in which our young school "exploded", in which I began to get passionate about and deepen the discourses relating to the themes of craft beer and so many different styles, even thanks to the good guides I found at the counters and in the beershops which were still very limited in number.
Now they proliferate, but the knowledge (is competence offensive?) that you find inside these activities is inversely proportional to the growing number of openings.
Often, but fortunately not always, there is no passion... Yet working with craft beers should above all be a job that you should be passionate about and pass on your same passion to the customer.
I have found that, especially with the new ones, all this is not there. Zero depth, very little information on what is being sold.

 

German lagers led me to Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. SN Pale Ale led me to Jai Alai. Jai Alai led me to a real craft beer store where I found Equilibrium mc² and Maine Lunch.

I do remember I finished that first sixer of SN Pale Ale rather quickly. Could not believe how drinkable yet flavorful they were. Believe I grabbed another pack of it along with my first pack of Jai Alai next beer trip. I did fall in love with Jai Alai at first. I was hunting fresh packs when I found Craft Beer Cellar, I had bought up all the available packs at my local Total's.

 

Greg Noonan's Smoked Porter from Vermont Pub & Brewery, Burlington, VT in 1989. He helped more than a few of us cultivate a passion.

 

My first craft beer experience was from a guy that I worked with. He was a trader and I worked in shipping and receiving for the company. I would deliver approximately 10 to 12 boxes a week to his office and he would ship out about the same every week through his FedEx account.
I didn't know then he was trading beer but I offered him a cheaper alternative for his outgoing boxes. In return he would throw me beers every so often from his trades. Up until then Blue Moon was what I considered craft beer. The first beers he gave me were Heady Topper and Focal Banger, I guess I started out at the top of the list. Over the next couple of years he gave me so many great beers I lost count. He definately got me hooked and encouraged me to try different styles. Cheers Rich!

 

My first craft experience was with Leinenkugel's in the early 80's. A friend had brought some back with him from Chippewa Falls. In the mid 80's, Leinenkugel's started showing up in liquor stores in my area. So I was a Leine's drinker for quite awhile. Original Lager, Northwoods Lager, and Big Butt Dopplebock were my favorites. Original was year round, the other 2 were seasonal. They were sold to Miller's in 1988, long before the big stink when craft breweries were getting bought out by big beer. The Leinenkugel family is still involved with the brand to this day. I still drink Original from time to time. I've recently had a few new ones that I've also enjoyed. Toasted Bock and Lemon Haze IPA. Of course, when I got ahold of SNPA and Anchor Liberty Ale my love of hoppy beers started. So Leine's took a back seat. Still drink SNPA, but sadly wasn't able to get Liberty Ale for years, until it showed up recently in a mixed 12 pack of Liberty Ale, Steam, California Lager, and I can't recall the name of the 4th beer. It was in an orange can is all I remember.

 

A close 2nd to Leinenkugel's is Millstream Brewing Company in Amana, Iowa. My wife, In-laws, and I took a day trip there in 1985. It was the first year of operation for the brewery that still is there today. Schild Brau Amber Lager was the beer I remember most. It was a tasty Vienna Lager. Brought home a couple six packs of that and a sixer of a wheat beer. Schild Brau is still brewed to this day and is available in my area. So now and then I'll pick some up for old times sake.

 

Well, Leinenkugel was not considered a "craft brewer" (aka "microbrewery") in the 1980s, being too large (nearing 100k bbl/yr in '87), dating from the pre-Prohibition era (only Anchor in that segment was considered craft) and having a traditional US AAL as its flagship beer.

There was enough concern about the purchase of one of the few remaining small/regional US breweries (only around 25 left by then) by Miller that they took out near full page ads in newspapers in MN and WI.

 

I was always the guy who drank hard liquor at parties in high school and college. I’d dabble in a little beer, mainly BMC stuff, but nothing more. I had a magic hat #9 when I was in my senior year of college and was like, “whoa! Beer can be good!?”

After that, my taste for beer was acquired, but I was still broke as shit. I was then drinking tons of beer, but mainly rolling rock, high life, and Narragansett. I would enjoy the occasional snpa or Sam Adams when I could, but it was rare.

Side note, I love to cook. Especially love making stuff I really liked from scratch. So I was naturally interested in home brewing. Shortly after college was done I started getting into home brewing, which was the catalyst for me trying new craft beers (I often see it the other way around on BA, with people falling in love with craft and then home brewing as a result).

I became less afraid to try new beers the further I got into craft. I also stopped just being excited by the higher abv of craft and wanted to truly appreciate more. Then, one night, circa 2007, what would become my future wife (and future ex wife) and I went on a date to Julian’s, a well known restaurant and craft beer spot in providence. I ordered a pint of Laguanitas Hairy eyeball based on the name giving me a chuckle. I took a sip and was like, “what the fuck is this!?!?” I was completely blown away. I was off and running after that.

 

Some great stories here! Mine is fairly simple: Go back to the year of 1986. Boston. It was Sam Adams Boston Lager. In Aug turned 21 yrs old and went to a little beer store essentially across the street from Berklee College of Music on Mass Ave. I was so excited that I could now get my own beer to take away (a couple a racks of beeah from the packy) and that I could go to any pub...so instead of getting "party beers" ie Bud, Rolling Rock, Gannsett, I got two 6pks of Sam Adams. The guy behind the counter didn't ask for my ID. Bought it but I was truly bummed out that I didn't get carded on my 21st buying craft beer. Fun to think about those days! when Sam Adams was difficult to find and brand new.

 

Well, then technically, Millstream was my 1st craft brew experience. Strike that 1st experience from the docket. Just knew Leine's was a new to me beer with flavors that weren't available to me at that time. Thanks for clearing that up.