I've been drinking, and learning about, quality beer for about a year now. Honestly, my process of trying new beers has been very hit or miss, and without much fine tuning going on. I've had some great beers, some okay beers, and some nasty beers. I feel like I've been running in circles around the many varieties of beer that exist, and I want to be able to hone in on some "structure" amongst the styles, and hopefully systematize a helpful way to try more and more delicious beers (and to figure out my own preferences). Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated!
I'd suggest traveling to Germany to learn what perfectly made lagers can be all about. Hope that helps! : )
What I did was try styles from bigger craft breweries (Sierra Nevada, DFH, New Belgium) and if I like that particular style I'd try it from any other brewery I could find. I love IPA's and my first IPA was ranger then went to 60 minute, to 90 minute and so on. Just find what styles you like and look for similarities from other breweries. There really isn't a science, just hit or miss.
Take the travel expense money and put it towards buying locally available. You can buy a lot of GREAT beers (go USA!) for the price of a European flight hahaha, enough to be pretty silly.
Yea, that's more or less how I've been taking it. I've been really enjoying stouts and IPA's for awhile now, but I'm trying to branch out more. I tried my first barleywine the other night, and it was totally different than anything I've ever had. So in my mind, I'm thinking "Hmmm.... Should I try lots of different beers within a given style, or go for a wide variety and just take longer to really fine tune my preferences?"
It's really all preference. I used the method I described and then once I found my niche in the IPA/pale ale world I started appreciating stouts. It's a fun and interesting journey in the beer world. Enjoy yourself!
Try reading this website on a regular basis. Everyone here is all about quality beer. Try everything you can and find what you like. As you grow older your palate will too. Beer is life. Fuck Europe, American Craft!
If you can find it at a beer store near you, the "make your own six pack" option can be very helpful in trying a wide range of styles without breaking the bank. It can also help to do a little recon beforehand by looking up reviews on beers you might be interested in purchasing to make sure it's something you'll like. I agree that picking beers from a larger craft brewery is a solid option when starting out. Hopefully you can find a few styles that you really like and branch out from there.
visit your local brewpubs, try multiple examples of different styles from a variety of brewers and eventually focus in on the styles you enjoy more than others. there's a ton of great beer out there, and most of it isn't hard to find.
If you like stouts and IPA's, then I'd say look at the top beers for each catagory. Branch out to similar style...DIPAs, porters, barleywines. If you weren't aware: www.seekabrew.com shows national distribution, and can help you locate some beers once you've landed on ones you want to try.
I landed a random job in the business with my favorite beer being at the time Franziskaner, which is still a pretty a decent beer in my opinion. But being in it for over a year now i've learned that franziskaner is just the tip of the berg. to get myself enthralled in the beer world I tried everything and anything. I hated my first barleywine but went back and revistited and came to love. My suggestion would be to try everything. I found myself to have preference to pale ales and imperial stouts, but have come to understand, respect and enjoy every style for what it is by trying everything avalable at my local store.
My personal opinion is this is a good thing. Simply seeking out the highest rated beers isn't going to educate you as much on styles, help you develop a palate, or figure out what you prefer and why. Most people will suggest buying singles and just keep trying new things until you find something you like. For the most part I agree but if you are buying singles I would recommend a couple of each beer instead of 1. Plowing through as many beers as possible isn't the answer. Keep trying new beers, try and mix up styles/breweries and find out what you like/dislike about them and over time revisit some and see how your thoughts have changed.
If you found that you like Barleywines try some quads or triples. They are very similar styles, if you line ipa,s try some pale ales. Just small variAnts from what like. Baby steps
If you want "structure" in the styles, take a peek at BJCP.ORG, a site for the Beer Judge Certification Program. Don't worry about becoming a judge, but take a look at the style guidelines. Even if you are just trying to tune in on what you like, it helps to see how the styles are defined. That said, there are a lot of craft beers out there that transcend styles - the style guidelines are constantly being revised to "catch up" with the innovation in the craft beer community. The fact is, there is a lot of exciting stuff going on in craft beer, but not every beer is a winner. There is some nasty stuff being sold out there. A look at the guidelines can help you zero in on understanding what you like and dont like about a beer. The second thing Id say is that Ive noticed that my "favorite" styles change over time. Ive been through a stout phase, a few hop head phases, a malt phase, and a belgian phase or two. So dont stop trying things outside of your comfort zone.
Honestly, none of us here on this site can say weve done it perfectly. Weve all misfired a few times, and you misfire more the longer youre in the game. its not about trying to do perfectly, never missing, or never being wrong. Its about learning which styles and specific beers you enjoy and drinking those.
