Your first real craft beer experience?

Hello All. Let's take a lovely, comfortable and exciting trip back to 2020 (I hope you, my brew pals, can sense my sarcasm). I had just graduated college in December 2019 and moved to Chattanooga, TN to be around my friends. After the initial outbreak of Covid-19 and the short months of mandated quarantine I took an office job. I absolutely despised this job and I mean it wholeheartedly. I was not giving this job my best and was let go- Thank God. After my stimulus checks hit I decided to pay my rent for two months and take it easy. I needed time off. I started drinking gin and experimenting with mixed drinks. I grew to really enjoy well made mixed drinks. My dear friend told me to apply at a local bottle shop in town and I did. I walked in, talked with one of the managers and she offered me a job and I immediately took it. My initial plan was to focus on Gin, Vodka, Liquers and move my way into bourbons/whiskeys slowly as they were a little hardcore for me. When I took this job, I was a sales associate just hanging out with our customers, getting to know the alcohol world and having a blast. The beer director at time took me under his wing and taught me so much about beer that I ended up solely focusing on beer. Putting it away, helping customers find what their heart and palate was yearning for. I grew to love this brew trade and basically turned it into my entire personality haha. About 6 months later, the beer manager decided to pursue other avenues of work and after months of hard work, a few days after the position was opened, I was offered the Beer Director position. I was so excited. The previous director showed me all kinds of beer and my first ever craft beer experience was a line up of about 10 beers. I tried Stone, Living Waters, Bell's and many others. As soon as I tried the Living Waters Yosemite DDH IPA my body was teleported form the liquor world into the beer world and I never looked back. Absolutely amazing. So many aromas, flavors, crisp finish, lacing was perfect on the glass. Just a beautiful beer. I'll never forget that moment. As soon as the Beer Director at the time tried it he said "This beer F***'s". I say that every once in a while when a good brew comes my way, in remembrance of him lol. My favorite moments at the shop now are when my favorite distributor, JD, comes in with his bag. I know it's going to be a good day. Someday, JD and I are hoping to start a podcast to discuss this intriguing and wonderful world of brews. I appreciate Beer Advocate for all the insight and learning I will be taking in. You guys are the best. Thank you.

 

My memory is just a bit fuzzy on this, but.. I'm 98% sure it was my first Music Festival experience, Gathering of the Vibes 1999. Just two months shy of my 21st birthday and a I realized how many people were drinking Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. Many amazing things happen at these fests, but that was my genesis into this world.

 

What an interesting way to get into beer!

 

I was living in Germany (2015) when my now wife brought me a case of Heady topper right from the source in Waterbury... She lived in VT for over 20 years... Now we are married, and I am at beeradvocate!

 

I never would have thought that I would end up here. But I'm glad I did!

 

I live in Chattanooga, TN and one of my customers brings me one every once in a while. I can't wait until they get down here so I can get it anytime I want and for my customers to enjoy. I'm jealous.

 

I completely forgot about Henry's. I started drinking Henry's in late high school and college (81-83'). So, I guess that was my first craft beer! We used to call it "old wood" for it's different taste than standard US beer at the time.

 

I had my fair share of basic craft before my “real craft beer experience” (Stone, Bear Republic, Anchor, Sierra Nevada, North Coast…) but it wasn’t until 2011 until I had my first “wow” experience by having Pliny the Elder at Hollingshead’s Delicatessen in my hometown of Orange, CA. They’ve been around since the 60’s, and were the first account to have Russian River in Orange County. I sauntered in one day and asked the father (grandpa has since passed, and there’s also jr) if they had any IPA’s. Now, my biggest gripe with them forever was that they didn’t have a beer board. You had to squeeze through people to look at tap handles, or just ask them questions (which I did [they now have 2 nice big screen TV’s with their tap handles]). Anyway, he kind of went Foghorn Leghorn on me, “Do we have any IPA’s!? Do you want an Imperial, Double, or Single?” I went with a Double, and it was love at first sip. Hollingshead’s is a very interesting place; it’s a Packers Bar, and family ran. Decent bottle shop too. And you can also get an avocado sandwich for $20. Awesome!

 

As noted above, the Henry Weinhard brand was owned national "Big 6" breweries - by Pabst (#3 in the US in 1979) and then by Heileman (#4 - 1982) in that period and, as a million barrel brewery and with an AAL flagship (as was HWPR) even the independent (pre-1979) Blitz-Weinhard would not be considered "Craft".

 

Just because Henry's was good, I wouldn't call it craft. It was brewed by a sizeable regional brewery. In the 70s and 80s, lots of big and small brewers of standard lagers had "prestige" beers, some excellent, many not exceptional. These just weren't craft. A few examples of lagers that Henry's could be compared with: Michelob, Hamm's Waldech, Pabst Andeker, Huber Augsburger, Stroh Signature, Horlacher Perfection, Schmidt (PA) Prior, Schlitz Erlanger, Matts Premium, Lucky Red Carpet, Coors Herman Joseph's . . . . Also available, commonly in the east, were ales and porters

 

Samuel Adams Boston Lager and Leinenkugels Summer Shandy is what got me into the beer scene. I branched out to IPAs and such after that I believe the first IPA I really got into was Revolution Anti Hero.

 

Early/mid 1980's. I was drinking Heineken, Becks, St. Pauli Girl etc. I stumbled upon Sierra Nevada Pale Ale and it changed my drinking habits. I now wanted fresh beers! Not beers that were shipped over seas!

 

Friend of mine who worked at Binnys at the time handed me a Zombie Dust at a bbq in the city (Chicago) back in 2013. The next week I had my first BCBS.

Ripped the rear view off, and never looked back. My wallet has hated me ever since.

 

A friend took me to Pittsburgh's Pennsylvania Brewing Company in December 1995 where he introduced me to their St. Nikolaus Bock and Oktoberfest. Those were my first two craft beers that I recall trying. Three years in 1998 I made a new friend who had served in the US Army and was stationed in Baumholder West Germany in the 1970s. He developed a liking for German beers while there. We have been sharing different imported beers and American craft beers on weekly basis ever since.

 

Vaguely remember going to a college bar right after I turned 21 and tried both Leinenkugel’s Sunset Wheat and Stone Arrogant Bastard.

 

march 2010 came home from long deployment passed by this new brewery that popped up by the house called cigar city. There was a line out the door and down the block for something called Hunahpu. I stopped by bought a ticket, and walked in to the festival and it was game on.

 

Coors has resurrected Henry Weinhard PR at their subsidiary Hop Valley:
https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=henry+weinhard+private+reserve
I haven't tasted the new version (can looks authentic), or any other version in years. There are some reviews for the new beer that's probably quite a bit different from the Coors version.