Don't take beer advocates ratings as fact. I have found so many more beers that are superior than pliny in my eyes.
I believe it. The toughest place for me to get sucked in are beer stores. Guidance is essential. I have been tricked too many times by beer guys who I now don't trust. Obscure breweries may have zero reviews for great small batch seasonal beers, so your judgement isn't clouded. You have to try those. But for packaged beer, where do I turn? I've done entire seasonal blind tastings before with Oktoberfests, and winter beers. There, I liked a few that were under rated, and hated some that were in the 90s. But for the most part, the overall score was a solid indicator.
What's funny is, that BA score I found for the beer I was thinking about buy, it wasn't even the right beer. I bought something thinking it was gonna be very good. And it turned out to be even better. GI Illinois Imperial IPA round 2 coming up in a bit.
How was that? I saw it in the RH/Widmer/Kona branded variety pack. A friend decided on a Redhook variety pack and Sierra Nevada 4-way pack instead. Among the RH, I got to try an Audible Ale.. Not bad. Not amazing.. Just kinda there. Tasted like a Blonde Ale that didnt want to go too far in any direction with the flavors.
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Based Mod, what kind of stand is that at Bottle Logic? Was that for a party of 5-6? Or a Sampler of Pints?
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Mr. Marcus, Hit up a local brewery. Order a sampler tray of everything they got. That was how I was introduced to the world of beers. I went on a set of brewery 'tours' back a few summers in the North East. We went through 5-8 places. By the 4th place, I knew exactly what to order or stay away from. At the time, the two odd balls were stouts and IPAs. They definitely carry the most flavor and intricacies... Now I love them. Not that everyone will gravitate towards them eventually. But I know a few who have.
My pallet really opened itself up since then. Grocery stores and beer stores now sell single bottles of misc. beers. I'm even overwhelmed at beer stores. So take it slow. Others have mentioned variety 6/12 packs. Sam Adams is a solid choice to jump in with. Half of their seasonals seem to carry some type of spice (may carry some off flavors you may or may not like). But you gotta start somewhere.
Taste preferences change over day, months, or years. One IPA may not be like another breweries. Which leaves you essentially needing to try everything lol. It's a great problem to have. I remember thinking Boston Lager was okay, then it was GOOD, then it became weird when I liked other beers. Now since I've been heavily into IPAs and stouts for months, when I revisit it, it's a refreshing break and I can appreciate it. I seen it every time I go into a Total Wine type place. People are overwhelmed beyond belief. It's okay to feel that way. If all else fails, try to make an effort to try 4 new beers a month, and start off slow.
How can I forget BEER FESTS? Anywhere from 10 to 100 brewery events take place all over the US. You can sample hundreds of beers in a weekends time frame. I've seen beer weeks created where entire cities get involved. I've seen multiple types of beer events (cask only.... IPA only) take place.
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scrub0bk, check back about 10 days on this thread. I had a small review on it. I felt it was worth its BA Score of around 91-92 in smell and clarity alone. The mouthfeel was a bit thin for my taste. Throw in the crazy bomber price, and it just didn't seem all that worth it imho.
My gateway beer and still one of my top go-tos
