Beginner Craft Beers

Anchor steam is a damned fine beginner beer. Its approachable by a novice, but nuanced enough for the biggest beer nerd.

 

My go-to beer for introducing people to craft is Victory Golden Monkey, brewed right in PA so you can find it just about anywhere for an affordable price. Haven't had a single person dislike it yet.

 

Some of these suggestions are insane for somebody new to the hobby.

Try Sierra Nevada Stout. Trust me.

 

As a central New Jersey expatriate, I will say check out:

1) Victory
2) Yards
3) Troegs

In that order...

There are a few other good craft brewers about. Vault Brewing in Yardley is the first that comes to mind on the NJ/PA border. River Horse in Ewing is a other that is up and coming.

Check out Sierra Nevada as a widely distributed craft.

 

So OP, what have you found out in the last 6 weeks since you posted? Found anything good?

 

In PA, you have a ton of breweries to choose from. Victory and Troegs are good choices as well as some that aren't in PA such as Sierra Nevada and Lagunitas.

 

Theres a ton of great lagers and Pils brewed in Pa, Stoudts are brewed out that way, they make great beers. I love the style and if you like beer you'll have to like these, they just can't miss. I'm assuming you came over from Budweiser or Coors light, so small brewery craft Pils and lagers should be a see less transition.

 

For me, and many others, the gateway style was the amber ale. A moderate style that gets you used to the taste of hops, and can be very nice indeed. I would check out beers such as New Belgium Fat Tire, Mendocino Red Tail Ale, and North Coast Red Seal Ale. I'm sure there are many good local examples too.

 

That was my approach, to just try as much as I could using variety and mix-a-six packs and let my taste buds decide what I did and didn't like (rather than hunting down beginner beers that were supposed to be enjoyable for a newbie). Also revisiting styles helped me not write styles off as my taste buds adjusted and more importantly helped me not write off a style just because I didn't like a particular take on it. The first couple Pils I tried I hated, it wasn't until I had a SN Summerfest that I saw potential in the style.

It was a journey of discovery and adventure rather than a hunt to find a beer or two I could settle on and I approached it as such.

 

Visit some brewpubs in your area, if they are available.

Cheers!

 

Like Benny's on Eastern Blvd. in Hagerstown MD. Their Antietam Brewery beers comprise a wide range of styles.