ABV - Which Way Have You Gone?

I suppose that choice is partly governed by the simple availability of attractive low gravity beers. I'm lucky to be absolutely spoilt for choice in this matter. They were forced on the drinking public by shortages and high taxation but the brewers made a virtue out of necessity and found ways of making very tasty beers of quite modest strength.
I was talking to an ex Bass brewer at a function last month. He now lives in Michigan and finds that, although he loves the local beers they do not seem to fight their weight. I've found that with the few US beers I've sampled, good, tasty stuff but I expected a lot more for the ABV.This guy homebrews and his guests always assume from the flavour that his 4.5% stuff is around 6.5%. He put this down to choice of materials, the best malt he can get , hops no problem , but one factor often overlooked was the yeast.His brewery experience suggests to him that the local brewers are missing a trick by using neutral yeast strains and compensating by upping the ABV.Perhaps this explains why so many posters find low gravity beers watery. There will of course be many exceptions to this.

 

I tend to prefer higher ABV just becuase the beers I like most tend to be higer ABV. I do not typically drink more than one to two beers in a setting so even a couple on the higher side aren't terrible.

Had a night out with some friends last weekend and consumed several brews so I kept it to "light" beer from the big 3 but that is a rare situation for me these days.

 

When I first joined BA I gravitated to bigger/better/faster/more. Roughly 5 years ago I made a 180. Simple good and clean flavors started to appeal far more than boozy and strong ones. It doesn't mean I don't like a good imperial stout or massive DIPA here and there, but just a lot less often.

 

Right now my drinking is pretty evenly distributed across the abv scale.

 

*Higher.

*I used to drink BMCs for a short time, then SA's which were slightly higher. Then I just moved to hard liquors all straight or vodka martinis. When I was I introduced to microbrews I basically asked if there were high ABVs and where, I started there, lol. Lately I have been dabbling in 5% brews, like sours etc. They have been enjoyable but I just love big beers. /shrug.

 

It's mostly quantity over quality these days. I mostly drink 4-5% stuff for dailys & save the bigger stuff for special occasions.

 

Unless I'm specifically looking for lower abv (taking it outside or whatever), for purchasing issues it doesn't matter.

 

X is abv centered around 7%, Y is frequency

 

It's not part of my buying decision, but since I drink primarily barleywines, wee heavy, imperial stouts, DIPAs, strong/old ales, the ABV is usually on the higher end. My focus in on quality versus quantity. I got over the quantity part in my college and pre-marriage days.

Plus, I spent 25 years drinking low ABV beers. I'm trying to offset the first 25 years!

 

Every day brings a different beer preference and different ABV. My daily ABV line graph would look like a Geiger counter with an earthquake going on.

 

I just want to drink something that tastes good and has some effect.

For me, that seems to fall between 5% and 10% ABV. Below 5% and it doesn't seem the effort is worth it. Over 10% and I have to clear my calendar.

 

higher abv, especially with the darker stuff. can't quite get into session beers, i see the purpose it's just usually after 2 or 3 i call it quits regardless of alcohol content.

 

Definitely have been trending towards lower ABV beers lately. I'm all for the occasional BA Imperial Stout in the winter, but more often than not, I'm craving a really nice, light Session IPA or tart saison or low ABV sour. Sometimes it's just nice to have a beer that doesn't weigh you down.

 

I prefer higher abv beers, it seems as if there is more creativity with them.

 

I think it's an immediate jump for everyone as the Bud's and Miller's are 4% or so but after hitting the smaller whales (i.e. BT, BT variants, Utopias) it starts to drop a bit.

 

Higher ABV. I'm sipping some Dogfish Head - 120 Minute IPA, 18% ABV, right now.

But I wouldn't say ABV itself plays a factor. I just tend to drink beers in higher ABV range because those are the common levels present in the styles I prefer to drink (Stouts, DIPA/IIPA, etc.). Still doesn't mean I don't enjoy All Day IPA on a hot summer day.

 

Split 50/50, it also depends on the season. During summer I tend to drink lower ABV beers but during the winter I like to drink higher ABV beers like BA stouts and barleywines.