Recommendations? Relatively new to craft brew

No offense....but that question is the equivalent of walking into a supermarket and asking someone "Tell me what I should eat."

Sounds to me like fruited lambics might be your next best bet, since they basically combine the two varieties you discussed above.

 

My suggestion is you prowl your local forum and see what breweries near you people are excited about. IMO small local breweries tend to be the best

 

Welcome to BA and the world of craft beer. There are tons of great sours, including ones with fruits, but I would not recommend trying to hunt down some the top examples unless you want to see a lot of money disappear. Just start with looking for stuff that's local and see what is good. The Beer of Fame list is also a great way to start, lots of easy to find beers that are really good. Always keep trying new beers and new styles!

 

First of all, welcome to the Emperor of hobbies. Every novice should be encouraged, not talked down to for asking good if basic questions. The best fruit beer I've ever had, and one of the few that actually taste like the fruit they are supposed to contain, is Abita's Purple Haze. Real raspberry puree. Also try Abita's satsuma and strawberry beers if you can find them.

 

I've said this before. Try everything. Mix-six packs are the way to go.

I see you're in MN. Zipps in Minneapolis has a great build your own sixpack section.

 

Try Boon's out. They might not be the best for puckering factor, yet so damn refreshing. Cheers to your beer-Ventures!

 

You cannot go wrong by drinking anything from: Stone, Brroklyn Brewery, Victory, Dogfish Head, Bell's, Founder's, Flying Dog, Sierra Nevada, Greenflash, Goose Island, Bear Republic or Boston Beer (Sam Adams beers). They distribute nationally, brew reliable crafts and cover the gamet of styles.

 

Don't stop until you have tried them all!

 

Try a Lagunitas little sumpin sumpin ale.

This will open your mind up to what a craft beer can be.

 

Craft beer is Pokemon cards for adults; gotta drink em all. But seriously, go to the best store/bar that has craft beer in your area, and buy stuff you think you would like. Hell even if you think the label art is cool give it a try. You will quickly find out what you like and what you hate.

Welcome to the cult. There's no going back from here...

 

best advice yet

 

That is the ultimate trading quote.

 

Lindemans fruit lambics are pretty good for new people to try but they are expensive. Some people think they're so fruity that they're actually made for girls. LOL!


Anyhow... try these styles... lambic, flanders red, flanders oud bruin and wild ale. These are all sour beers. I would also suggest Saisons. they can taste kind of funky but it sounds like your palate can probably handle these types of beers.


Look at the BA list of styles and check out the lambics, flanders and wile ales...

here's a link... http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/style/

 

Most beers available for Sierra Nevada, Lagunitas, Victory, Firestone Walker, And Dogfish head are obtainable wherever you can find craft beer,are affordable, are good representatives of their respective styles,are high quality, and are tasty. Having said that, when in doubt just buy something you haven't heard of.

 

Find a beer fest where you can try lots of things and try to keep track of what you liked.

 

Another vote for mixing six packs. Go browse around your local bottle shop and if you have a smartphone, just look up reviews on here for anything that looks interesting. Get one of each so you aren't committed to a whole pack of something you might not like. Or hell, just get what sounds good if you haven't had a lot. Only way to learn what you like.

 

Google "best beer store in (your town here)" Also use the "Places" tab and enter your city. Try different styles, find what you like.

Above all, and NONE of us would "Abvocate" doing this, but DRINK A LOT OF BEER.

 

Pick a beer you like, look it up in the database here, click on the link that will get you to other examples of that style, click on the link to the most popular and then go to a good beer store shopping for any of the top 20 or so to find others you'll probably like. Alternatively, go to the beer styles list and read the description of several different styles you haven't tried. If it sounds like something you'd like, click the link to the most popular and go shopping for the top 20 or so to find beers to try.

Good luck! Enjoy!

Edit: Ignore the top 250 list for at least the next year or so. If you want to search out some of the best beers, use the Beers of Fame list.