What was your gateway craft beer?

I define "gateway beers" as those that get people out of the Miller/Bud/Coors habit and into experimenting with more complex styles. Examples of my gateways included Blue Moon, Sam Adams, Fat Tire, and SN's pale. Prior to those I was hung up on Bud Light Lime which I can hardly stomach at all these days. Funny how tastes evolve.

 

Actually... going back to college days (early 2000's), I did drink a lot of Shiner Bock and Killian's. Bit of Guinness, too. Do those qualify?

 

The early 80's Merchant du Vin portfolio of beers really opened my eyes and my palate as to what craft beer was.

 

Someone gifted me a bottle of SA Triplebock in that little blue bottle a LONG time ago...that gift made me realize what beer could taste like and 30 years later has cost me thousands of dollars...thanks a lot forgotten gifter!

 

Four Gateway's for me

Gateway 1 - Sleeman's Honey Brown & Newcastle Brown - probably the first craft beers I can say I really enjoyed (this is 15 or so years ago, so those were "craft" back then to me). These were the first beers I can recall actually enjoying, BMC always tasted like piss water to me with the exception of a very cold draught pitcher which was just so-so.

Gateway 2 - La Fin Du Monde by Unibroue, this beer was the first beer that really opened my mind to the possibilities of craft beer beyond the simple ales and a good intro to Belgian beer styles. Also my first higher ABV beer that I can recall.

Gateway 3 - Cascade tasting room, my first sour beer. Admittedly I had never heard of soured beers before, we strolled in here on a self guided tour and well basically threw ourselves right into some of the most intense sour beers out there. Been a fan ever since, but it's taken a while to be able to stomach more than a small amount in one sitting.

Gateway 4 - Hair of the Dog, my first barleywine/old ale. Same trip, same day as Cascade, I'd never quite had a beer like this and it quickly became my favourite style of beer! This was my first foray into double digit abv beers, again opening up a whole new world of beer.

 

For me it was a combination of Guinness, Pete's Wicked Maple Porter, Red Hook ESB, and Rogue Dead Guy.
Before those changed my opinion, I generally drank cider and the occasional High Life. Something about the High Life texture really did it for me.

 

Arcadia Angler's immediately comes to mind and was definitely on the short list of craft offerings available in the early days.

 

Not widely known here, but mine was a super tasty blanche from Quebec called Dominus Vobiscum Blanche by Microbrasserie Charlevoix. If you ever get the chance to try it

 

boulevard wheat

 

SNPA and Stone PA.

 

I admire dedication.

 

Maudite.

I'll be honest; I bought it for the cool label. But, man...that beer sent me down the rabbit hole.

 

Upland Wheat, Three Floyds Gumballhead, & Dogfish Head 60 Minute back in 2008

 

I really havem't drunk anything but "craft" beer since I drank my first underage pints back in the early 60s. They didn't call it that then (and I still haven't a clue what it really means) but it was the same stuff that is now beautifully brewed in small local breweries.We had three small local breweries with an admittedly limited range who sent out consistenly enjoyable beer to our local pubs. Happy days.

 

Nothing like a good never-ending challenge to perk up one's life!!

 

That's the one.

 

Well being from Texas I have to say I owe my obsession with craft beer thanks to Shiner in 2010. That eventually led me to St. Arnold's and Karbach and I haven't looked back since. Now I'm homebrewing and looking forward to hopefully owning a brewery in the future. So crazy and awesome where life and beer can take you.

 

It was summer of 1999. I was 20 and in Amsterdam. One word. Duvel.

A few years later when at the age of 22 I was back in that area of the world in Brugge, Belgium. Friend and I are drinking with some stranger from KC, he says we need to go to this bar called 't Brugs Beertje. Being drunk and unfamiliar with how medieval streets work, couldn't find it the first night. Next day he asks how we liked it, tell him we couldn't find it, so he comes with us this night. We get there and there are over 300 beers to choose from, all from Belgium. The menu was in a freakin' three ring binder. The amount of glassware they had behind the bar to match every brewery was incredible. Having no f'n clue what to order, we're honest with the waitress. She says, "Is money an issue?" We laugh and promptly reply, "Not tonight it's not!" She walks away and returns with a bottle of Chimay Grande Reserve and three glasses. Time travel four to five hours and too many bottles later and the deal was sealed. This was also the first time I ever had double, even triple vision, from drinking, and this was not my first rodeo by any means. Funny thing is, this was in 2001. I go to the website and 15 years later there are pictures of our waitress from that night receiving an of award in 2010! It's good to know some great things never go away. Moral of the story, if you are ever in Brugges, hit up 't Brugs Beertje.

 

21 year old here, so my story is still fresh. I was pounding a few beers in Philly as a young, underage kid with my two buddies at a local irish bar. After bringing up our conversations about our favorite beer my friend nearly had a stroke when I said I preferred the simple, but still great, Sam Adams, and have not really tried an international beer ever, he immediately shuttled us, a couple pitchers deep, took my to an amazing Belgium Pub in the heart of the city [whose name I will not besmirch and say they served a minor,which they did, a drunk one, and CI totally appriciated it guys.] to buy me my first Delirium Tremens. Great dude.

 

Lagunitas IPA opened the door for me.