First WOW beer

Chimay Grande Reserve. Stanton Public, NYC. Fall of 2006. The beginning of my journey and a night I think I will never forget.

 

First Wow Beer Apocalypse Cow FFF

 

Delerium Nocturnum. A tavern in Washington, D.C. First beer I'd ever had out of a C and C bottle. Completely new experience for me. Tasted like fruit cider from heaven. They told me it was from Belgium. When I got back from the east coast I looked up a brewery called New Belgium that happened to be a few towns over in Colorado. The rest is history.

 

Anchor Liberty Ale. Really opened my eyes to hops, at the time of course

 

North Coast old stock cellars reserve 2011

 

Fat Tire. I was 17 and it pretty much ruined college for me.

Why would anyone want to play beer pong with natty ice?? Oh yea because we are broke college kids.

 

Pseudo Sue...I drank quite a bit of craft before that, but PS is the beer the got me to understand different flavors in a beer. I still remember that first bottle.

 

Delerium Tremens. It helped me understand those funny looking beers with corks in them.
Heady Topper. Taught me that an IPA is not just a bitter mess.

 

I got a 3-pack of hefeweizens Benediktiner from a food importer like 12 years ago, when import beer and craft beer did not come to Mexico. That wowed me and started my search for craft.

 

Proabably SN Bigfoot. Came out in a snifter (this was probably 1996). Still holds its own, but was just off the wall compared to other stuff I was drinking at the time. I can't imagine what people thought when this came out in 1983. More recently Parabola rekindled my interest in beer in a big way.

 

Bourbon county coffee

 

When Georgia raised the ABV limit in 2004, I had St Bernardus Abt 12 on draft at Brick Store. It was so much more complex than anything I'd had before.

 

Delerium Tremens for beer in general. Maine Lunch for hoppy beers.

 

Anchor Steam about 15 years ago. Until then, I thought Honey Brown and Amber Bock were craft beers.

 

For $5 per 22oz, why is it only for special occasions? Life's too short to not drink what you love.

 

My first WOW beer was Alpha Kong (Kong not King) by FFF brewing. It was about 10 years ago. I was having dinner at Jerry's Sandwich Shop in Chicago.

That was my gateway beer.

 

Sierra Nevada pale ale in 1992. We had no words to describe hoppy as we had never really tasted hops before and I think all we could do was stammer "smooth!"

Cantillon Iris was another eye-opener years later.

 

Bell's Two Hearted circa 1994. Prior to that is was Busch, Beast, Natty-Light, etc. Needless to say, the worm turned for me!

 

Arrogant Bastard was the first one that made me go whoa. First beer that really blew my mind was BCBCS.

 

Founders breakfast stout for me. I've had a million others I like more, but when i first got into craft beer (3 years ago) it blew my mind and opened the flood gates!