Anyone reach "the point?"

new beers or new to me beers or old beers(beers ive consumed more than ive cared to count) or reworked beers ... all get my attention

 

I don't think I will ever reach the point on trying new beer. However, I have reached the point when it comes to marketing and hype over lackluster swill. While I enjoy a growing beer industry , I feel a lot of breweries even large ones are forced to just produce something liquid to stay in the market.

Recently I have vowed to not buy a 6ixer until I know. Fortunately my bottle shop has a $1.99 single section of newer stuff. I have been going that route, or a single on tap.

 

I buy a new beer every time I buy a classic...half the fun of drinking craft is trying something new and different.

I still listen to new music, buy new styles of clothes, try different types of foods, travel to different vacation spots and keep adding new beer to my "to do list"...

Variety is the spice of life...

 

"The Point" for me now is brewery related. I reached the point with Stone a long time ago. Rogue even longer. Hard for me to pinpoint a percentage. I'm always going to try and get KBS, Darkness, BCBS, etc and I usually try and buy Two Hearted plus local offerings from Upland and Sun King. I seem to buy more seasonal release stuff (FIS, FBS, Expedition) than year round offerings.

 

8 years strong in my craft beer journey and i never tire of trying new beers

 

I usually buy something tried and true along with a single or Bomber of something I've never had. It was the only way to discover what styles I do and don't enjoy. If I like, then usually on the next go around I'll by a sixer or so.

The lesser expensive way of exploring new beers. Both my bottle shops will break up any 4-6 pack into singles and the Bombers I usually get are the " pick of the week" specials, on sale, and usually something new.

I've noticed I come and go with beers. I will settle in for a while with a particular beer or two and then something new takes my attention. I used to drink Edmund Fitz like it was a beer for a God. Now I walk past it for a Victory at Sea. That will eventually change.

 

I keep the old favorites, two hearted, SN pale ale in higher quantities for most drinking days but look for limited releases and bombers for weekends or special events. There are so many choices now that I tend to do some research on BA before making purchases for expensive stuff. This site is helping me with my cellar selections a well, Cheers

 

Maybe it's like working out where you have to break through a plateau, at least that was it for me a few times. I did get to where I was sick of the hassle of wading through a sea of new stuff that may be good or bad (Schrodinger's beer?). I also wanted to cut back on spending a few times, so sticking to the devil I knew was the plan for a while. I am currently back on the "try a bunch of stuff" train, but as summer nears and time to sit inside dwindles, I can see getting back into lawn mower beers and save beer time for tried and true DIPAs, stouts and Barleywines. So to answer your question, I think your current discovery may be a phase.

 

Given my relatively short forray [~2 yrs] I don't think I'll get there anytime soon. There's a gazillion U.S. breweries you hardly have access to over here. There's a ton of U.K. breweries, a relatively new scene in Italy, tons of stuff in Belgium, quite a few new additions here in Germany plus recreations of historical styles, quite a few interesting things from the Dutch and the Scandinavian scene. And honestly? I like that it that way. Keeps thiings interesting, you don't run out of stuff to try and makes it easier to find a substitute when you can't get something specific.

 

After 25 years, I still try new beers all the time. Drink in a bar, not on the couch.

 

I certainly flirt with this idea from time to time. I love the pursuit of the next favorite, so I will typically drink a few new beers in a session before returning to favorites. Every now and again I'll hit a streak of 'why did I buy this' beers and start to swear off trying so many new beers. Sometimes it's literally hard to swallow the cost associated with a new work-to-get-through beer when you have favorites to compare against. But ultimately, the feeling fades rather quickly and I return to the normal pursuit for the next great one.

 

I'm generally always trying new stuff, sometimes going back to an old favorite once in awhile.

I've also noticed that I've become disenfranchised with some breweries (Rogue & Stone, for instance) to some degree or another... and rarely buy their beers, if ever now.

 

Anytime I'm out at a restaurant or pub, I try to find something new to drink on tap (easier said then done). But at home I usually stick with my old stand-bys.

 

When I'm at a bar, I used to hate when people ask for samples...but I've recently become that guy. I usually will ask for a description of the beer from the bartender before ordering but 9/10 it's a terrible description or they have no idea how to describe it. After wasting $5-8 on full pours over and over, I'll just stick with what I know.

As far as bottles go, just depends on what kind of gambling mood I'm in. Price used to not matter when I first started drinking craft but after $20 flat Lost Abbey bottles and BA sweet stouts with fruit and shit that are awful, I am much more cautious now.

 

The new IPAs have gotten too "juicy" for me. I know lots of people like them, but I don't. Therefore I have been pulling back from the newer IPAs and buying more stuff that I know I like. On the other hand, I have really enjoyed new Stouts/Porters/Barleywines/Belgian-style stuff, so I have been branching out more into those styles. I guess I just like the older style stuff better - older meaning a couple years old (or more) at this stage. I'm more of a beer of fame guy than a top beer guy.

 

Here you go!

http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/34208/152023/

It's friggin' delicious too!!

 

No.

 

I rarely buy old stuff in bottles/cans anymore. I'm constantly hitting seasonal/special releases, or driving to NC to try new beers, or buying on-line, or trading (still new to that)....the only time I drink old standby's is when I go out for a beer...that's when I have Bells/DFH/Lagunitas/SN, etc

 

50/50. Each week I buy something new that I have not had before, and also get my regular(s).

 

I fluctuate a little, but I'm fairly certain I average around 70/30 known to new, with "known" a bit higher if it includes beers I haven't had yet from breweries which have proven themselves consistently good as far as I'm concerned. A lot of the "new" section involves stuff I pick up on road trips to visit my girlfriend's friends and family which I can't get near home, as well.

Most of my trying of new things also happens when I go out for a beer at a bar - it's easier to justify $4 - $8 for a single pour of something new (provided a sample alone wasn't enough to turn me away) than $15 - $20 for a bomber's worth. If it passes muster that way, I'll consider dropping more on a bottle of it later.

If it's $15 for a pour at a bar...well, I'm now not interested in that beer. There's plenty out there I already know I love that comes way cheaper than that!