How Did You Learn So Much About Craft Beer?

Online forums and YouTube for me!

 

I was fortunate enough to start my journey overseas, so it wasn't as much "craft" per the American definition, but exploring all of the German styles and regional breweries, plus several trips to Belgium to try as much as I could. I found that back in 2011 when I started on BA, the info on European brews was pretty light, so I entered a lot of beers. Moving back to the states (2013), I had to adjust my palate quite a bit, as the NW IPA took some getting used to. While I found this and other sites useful, there's nothing like drinking with other people and discussing the beers and impressions.

 

I have an amazing brain and I know so many beers.

 

It's simple for me. Whether I'm drinking cheap vodka or Cantillon, the more I drink, the more I know.

 

Finally being struck by the realization that there is so little time. This site has been a great resource for information.

 

Beer Advocate.

Trying every new beer I could find for several years.

 

Never stop exploring

 

For me it was an IPA called Stash.....the first one I had actually had hop floaties in it.....damn I remember how much I hated the first sip of that bitterness gold .....but by the bottom I was hooked.

 

I've been on here for a long time (12 years - man, that went fast!!) and every day is a learning experience. In the forums, I constantly see beers I'm not familiar with so when that happens, I look them up, read the reviews, and then try to find them (depending on the realistic availability). Whether someone has been on here longer than dirt or new like yourself, everyone is coming up with new and interesting stuff and I sponge as much as I can.

 

drinking

 

I first learned by going to a beerfest trying all different styles, then going to a store and buying some of the ones I liked. Tried all different styles and then reading through BA and reddit posts. I feel like I got the basics from sampling and then the intricacies from the forums.

 

I learned by applying myself diligently to the subject. It was a job but I persevered.

 

Always buy every kind of beer that you see. Don't lock in on a favorite, not yet. Try the great world beers, try odd styles, and please do not concentrate only on US beers. Read New Beer Sunday all the way through, weekly. Find a list of world styles and begin to work at trying as many as you can. Read the great books about beer. With Google as an electronic encyclopedia, any info that you need is a fingertip away. Time is what it really takes. It is like grad school for the senses!

 

By caring.

 

watching Gregs Beer Reviews

 

Im they kind of guy who always wants to know why things work they way they do, you'll learn if you're curious enough

I'm this way with the golf swing and with beer. I always want to know what makes each great. I now brew at home. I read books. I drink beers and think about them. Drink similar beers next to each other to see what make me one better than the other.

It's fun to explore beer.

 

You said twice as much as I did in less than half the words. Well done

 

I used to only drink Miller High Life (it is, after all, the champagne of beers), but then a friend made me drink a St. Bernardus ABT 12, GI BCBS, and Heady Topper at gun point and BAM, just like that I was an expert.

 

Just by drinking as many different beers and styles of beer as possible, always reading the labels on the bottles and cans of what I was drinking to get as much information as I could about the beer I was drinking at a given time. Reading as much as I could from what people post on this site. Asking questions to knowledgeable bartenders about the beers their establishments served. Being friends with several home brewers and helping them brew well over 50 batches of beer, one who is one of my very best friends who has gone on to have a career in the alcohol beverage industry, including as an assistant brewer at an Ohio craft brewery and as a barrel aging operations manager at a California craft brewery. Being that he is in the industry, he's gotten me into places, events, etc., that the general public doesn't typically have access to, even on brewery tours, etc. I've seen a lot of behind the scenes stuff at many craft breweries over the past several years and have learned a lot from all these experiences I listed above.

Eric