Beer Epiphany Moments

New Glarus R&D Kriek, Damn that opened my eyes to sour beers.

Zombie Dust. Pale Ales should not be soooooo good.


Rochefort 10 made me buy every "trappist" beer i saw after that. delicious.

 

In order of when I first had each beer.
Gumballhead Fall 2009
Flying Dog Gonzo Porter Fall 2009
Parabola Summer 2010
Pliny the Elder Summer 2010
Kern River Citra Summer 2011
Stone 15th 2011 Summer 2011
Older Viscosity Fall 2011
Heady Topper Summer 2012
Dirty Hippie Fall 2012

 

I'm also a UFC fan (pretty damn hardcore into all MMA if you want to chat feel free to BM me).

I've had a few beers where on first sip you realize you are drinking something special.

Allagash Curieux about 4-5 years ago... when the only other barrel aged beers I had ever had were stouts there was this one. It integrated the bourbon in a way I had never experienced before.

Rodenbach Grand Cru... I guess it's the beer that "flipped the switch" in terms of sours for me. of the "mainstream" ones I had Duchesse, Vichtenaar and a couple others that tasted like simply malt vinegar to me before I had The Rodenbach Grand Cru.
Sierra Nevada's Celebration ale was the beer that really turned me onto hop flavors (rather than just hop bitterness).

As I got further into my beer-geekery....

beers like Everett from Hill Farmstead and Zoe from Maine Brewing have had that effect on me.

King Henry was another. First sniff of that beer and it was like "wow, this is something special"

And I'll even reach so far as to go to Sam Adams Utopias. one or two ounces of that and you realize beer isn't quite what you thought it was.

 

I envy my fellow BAs who have had so many ephiphanies. While I've had a number of amazing beers that I could list, I view an epiphany as something life changing. I was a "wine guy" for about 40 years before my daughter got me into sours - that made me willing to try more beer and be more open minded.

Then, a friend gave me a bottle of Duck Duck Gooze. Drinking the DDG WAS the epiphany. Changed my life. I sought out several bottles (and I mean I really got a nice number of bottles!) I thought $20-$30 a bottle at the time was a great deal having spent far more for wine on a very regular basis.

I was drinking a bottle of DDG as my regular beer, probably at least a bottle a week for months. Imagine my surprise one day when I found out I could not just waltz into a craft beer store and buy more! I was shocked! I was equally shocked when someone found out what I was doing and laughed his head off. He told me what a horses ass I was for drinking this very hard to get and expensive beer and I likely would never have the large availability again. (And boy, was he right!) Still, I very much enjoyed what I'd done and almost every bottle was shared with at least one or two people, if not more from time to time.

Anyway, I slowed down on my consumption of DDG which made it even more special; but, it did change my life. It was an epiphany for me. The rest (as my bank account will attest) is history. And, while the DDG has clearly aged and may not be at it's peak, I still open a bottle every few months, enjoy the hell out of it and remember "my initiation into the craft beer world."

 

When I was 15 a friend of my father invited me to sit in his yard with my dad and talk politics. He handed me a bottle of Shaefer. This was my first beer as an adult, and it tasted great.

 

Hate to be that guy but I am going to say Heady Topper. It was the first hoppy beer I've ever had that literally made my tongue tingle.

Also I'd say Yeti. Took me forever to try it and once I did I questioned seeking out super rare beers when something that delicious could be had off the shelf.

 

This is pretty weird, but I'm going to say St. Bernardus Wit. Another odd one with Fantome Chocolat.

 

Zombie Dust for the lighter side... and

Apple Brandy Huna and Parabola on the darker

 

DFH 60 Minute (entry to craft beer)
Stone Arrogant Bastard
Founders KBS
RR PtE
RR Temptation (first real sour)

 

I remember my first RIS...Ah Rasputin....you changed my opinion on stouts all together. Before I only knew of Guinness.
That was really it because it was the only beer style I had expectations for.

 

It usually takes about 3-4 beers for me to start having epiphanies.

 

When this happened:

 

Some beers that made me rethink their respective styles:
Pliny the Elder
Everett
Society & Solitude #2
Art
(do I see a pattern here?)

 

Closest thing I ever had to an alcohol related epiphany was when I purchased a bottle of Old Weller 50% alcohol whiskey. Had no taste for alcohol at that time and it stayed in my cupboard for around a year without being touched. After enjoying a bunch of hoppy and higher in alcohol beers I decided to revisit the bottle. To my surprise, I enjoyed the taste. And so it began...

 

Double Bastard was my first

 

The first time I tried Heady Topper I knew it was probably my new favorite beer of all time. The night I drank a fresh bottle of Founders Nemesis 09, I think I nearly cried tears of joy. Any of the Baladin Xyauyu's were mind blowing as well. There are a lot more out there too that are very impressive CBS, KBS, PtY, and many more.

Also Valeir Extra was very good in my opinion too.

 

September of 2011 I went to my first ever beer festival and had so many great beers I knew I had to drink more. The next day I went to my local bottle shop and bought a six pack of Stone Ruination and Founders Red's Rye PA
and never looked back.

 

Mine were BCBVS and Sang Noir for sure.

 

On the american barrel aged side, Adam from the wood was an epiphany. Nothing has topped it so far.

On the lambic side, Blauw was mind numbing. I havent had anything nearly as good.