Do you remember what got you into craft beer?

I stumbled across this article last summer and I haven't looked back.
http://www.maxim.com/booze/the-10-best-beers-of-the-summer

I was mostly drink Bud Light and PBR except for the rare/occasional beer while having dinner at local establishments (Red Hook and Portsmouth Brewery). Once I began trying those summer brews from Victory, Troegs, and Anchor, I was on a mission to start branching out to new craft brews. Around the same time, a local craft beer shop opened up and I have been hooked on craft beer ever since.

 

I got into bourbon, but grew frustrated that buying small bottles made me feel like a chump and large bottles took forever before I could justify trying a new one. Then I discovered State Line's mix-a-six.

 

1997. Cousin's wedding. Bell's Best Brown. Never been the same since. I don't drink a lot of Best Brown these days, but I'll run into one occasionally. It's funny how tastes like that can take you back. Thanks, Larry.

 

SNPA!

 

If Fat Tire counts, then that's the answer. If not, I'd have to say having some FFF Dark Lord and FW Sucaba within a few days of each other did the trick. Not a difficult sale after that...

 

I started working at a liquor store. Then started working in the beer room

 

One of my earlier memories of craft was back in the early 90's, I remember a buddy drinking a beer from a funny looking bottle, as he was drinking it down I noticed the bottle was clear and I was shocked because the bottle was black as night when he opened it. It was Sam Smith's Imperial stout, after that I remember buying as many different beers as I could find.

 

The lack of taste and just plain awefulness that is every American Adjunct Lager I drank in high school and college.
I finally came to my senses (and had more money) and said, "if I'm gonna keep drinking this stuff, I have to find something that doesn't taste like stale piss." And so it began.

 

Sexy older woman bought me one, I pretended to like it more than I did, tryna look cool... now I can't get enough

 

Beer

 

The Brew Kettle put me on the path years ago. Prior to that I thought Labatt Blue was the best beer in the world. I've never had another one since then.

 

Olde Hickory Brewery Nessie's Scotch Ale.

 

It was probably my uncle Jim. He always brought a bunch of Mendocino Brewing Company beers to family gatherings. That kind of set me up for going to craft beer instead of BMC.

 

my friends ex-girlfriends father had this epic man cave / hang out spot in the basement of his lovely home and had this oversized beer fridge in the corner next to the homer simpson clock and a bottle opener mounted on the wall with a bucket underneath it to catch the caps. as far as i can remember he handed me one of my first "craft beers" which was the rogue dead guy ale. for one of my first, i thought it was quite tasty. then i started going over there more often and found myself also sleeping in her bed.

 

Mine was Bridgeport IPA; not the best example of the style, but nonetheless, I didn't know beers could taste like ths.

 

Working in a liquor store. The beer that started my forray into craft beer was the troegenator

 

That's a pretty good list except for the end hahaha!

 

I pretty much started with craft beer.

Well, not exactly. The first month or so I was buying stuff like Sam Adams Boston Lager, Guinness, Red Stripe, Heineken, basically stuff I'd seen commercials for that wasn't Budweiser, Miller or Coors. Then I was at the liquor store and the Weinstephaner Hefeweizen had a tag beneath it saying "Bros say 100". I bought it and it was the greatest beer I'd ever tasted. So that's when I started caring about beer ratings and craft beer.

 

I was looking to save money by finding something other than Scotch to drink. I figured beer would be cheaper (*laughter ensues*), so I went for a familiar name (Sam Adams) and a style I always thought a little "cooler" than adjunct lagers/BMC beers (though those terms were unknown to me then), and I looked for a stout...

SA's Imperial Stout, Imperial White, and Double Bock were my first experiences in the craft beer world.

 

A friend of mine gave me a Leinenkugel Summer Wheat and I thought, interesting... I didn't realize beer could taste like this. Then I had an Allagash White and I was hooked. Now I'm on a quest to try em all!