Mispronouncing an easy brewery name

lagunitas ... i have heard ppl pronounce it like Lage- A- knight- us ... like its some greek philosopher

 

Easy is relative. Having grown up in Quebec, albeit as an anglophone, the pronounciation of French brewery names is pretty straightforward for me. French pronounciation is difficult for many non-native speakers, even if you know how you are supposed to say the words. I hear Dieu du Ciel! mispronounced by every second person I hear utter the name around here. Too many vowels that aren’t often together in English words.

I like hearing the ridiculous ones. At a festival this past fall, I was in a line waiting for a pour of Cantillon Carignan.
A couple guys were walking by when one stopped the other and said: “Oh! This is supposed to be awesome, CAN-till-eon CAR-dih-gan. Made me chuckle, but it certainly isn’t an easy one for everyone, particularly someone new to Cantillon.

 

Hah. And I won't say that I see what you...

 

Everyone -- repeat after me: Vyen-shtefaner -- Pow-LAHner -- Lewrvfen-broy.

 

I have a friend who calls Tree House brewing Tree tops, and he almost always has some in his fridge when I visit and he always tells me to help myself, so I naturally don't care what he calls it.

 

When in doubt point to the bottle and say, "gimme wonna those".

 

Schafly, Lagunitas

 

It was "La-GOO-nih-taas" the first time for me.

Schlafly I learned about pretty early on. The German names come to me a bit more easily--I studied German for a bit--than the French ones. Dutch names are really hard, but I learned how to pronounce most of the more popular breweries, beers, and beer styles.

One that might come as a surprise to a lot of people is Mikkeller. I always thought it was "Mik-KELLER" with the accent on the second syllable, like the German word "keller", but it's actually pronounced "Mickel-(like 'nickel')-er." I only just learned that last fall.

 

Is the "C" in Chimay hard or soft? I once had a condescending waiter who I guess was not working for tips that night correct me.

 

I would never have pronounced Weihenstephaner correctly if I didn't look it up.

 

You mean like Da Shootz?

 

There's a local brewery named after a local river. It's funny when they ask for a SKAY-git River beer instead of a skaj-IT. Skagit county is the next county south of mine, Whatcom.

 

Locally we have Turgua Brewing .... sometime I don't even recognize what brewery they are talking about.

Another is Guidon, and the only ones that pronounce it correctly have been through basic training in the military.

Not to mention Cursus Keme or Eluvium Brewing or Boojum Brewing or Currahee Brewery

 

I can't help but laugh when someone asks if they have "Can-till-e-on-s".

Bro, it's pronounced "Can't-a-Loon", but if you're cool you say "we drinkin 'loons".

 

I get made fun of a lot, because wooder is a proper word back home.

 

I was once in a Chicago bar when a guy who looked like a defensive tackle leaned over the bar and said: to the bartender: “Gimme a Chimmy.” He was promptly given a 330ml red label Chimay which he downed from the bottle in about 20 seconds. From that point on it has always been Chimmy for me!

 

Weihenstephaner. Put the German on it.

 

Pretty sure that if the nearby towns of Cairo, Shawangunk, and Accord had self named breweries every out of towner on the planet would mispronounce them.

 

I never would have guessed Lowenbrau was pronounced like that. That third one is Lowenbrau, isn't it?

 

Iechyd-Da Brewing in Elkhart, IN. Go ahead and pronounce it. I double dog dare you.
Hint: say it exactly as you see it.