My introduction to American beer came in 1980 when I was visiting a cousin in southern Alberta, the local brewery was on strike at the time so the only stuff available had been imported across the border - Miller “The Champagne of Beers” it said on the bottle.
Hell no I reply, it had little taste and was only 3.x% abv - switched to red wine for the rest of my stay.
Fast forward three years and I find myself in a bar in Waikiki one afternoon, too hot to be out in the sun (beaches are for walking on not for lying down). It is a fine bar, cool sounds on the jukebox, free pistachios and friendly patrons. Spend around four hours drinking what I think was Olympia (cold, marginally more tasty than the Miller) but apart from have to visit the toilet at regular intervals the beer had no effect on me. After however many that I had I should have felt something when I stepped out of there - but no, nothing - could have been drinking lemonade all afternoon.
Now starting to think that American do not know how to do beer, but lo I am saved. Get to San Francisco and discover Anchor Steam beer - wow, proper colour and packs a healthy 4.5% abv - and even more important it tasted great.
The one other “find” on that trip was called (if I remember correctly) Henry Weinhard’s - we got it in Northern California/Southern Oregon and it was also very drinkable. Dark in colour with a great taste, ideal at the end of a days road trip.
From what I read that has all now changed and while there are still mega breweries turning out bland products, the country is now festooned with micro breweries turning out some very interesting products. Must be time for another road trip
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There are a lot of great microbrewery beers. Two of my favourites when I was living in Cleveland was one from Thirsty Dog Brewery called "Old LegHumper" (there's a picture of the label on a previous post. . black lab staring at girls legs), which is an award winning porter and another porter I liked from Great Lakes Brewery called Edmund Fitzgerald Porter.
Most of the standard stuff is pretty bad. I really like beer, but I'd pass if you offered me a Miller or a Coors. Growing up in the Pacific Northwest it was Hamms, Rainier and Olympia, the first two known for their hilarious commercials, as much as for the product.
Ditto what Skywriter said - there's an embarrassment of riches in the American beer market now, if you know where to look. As for the major breweries in the USA that churn out that nasty, insipid stuff - they should have left all that in the horse, frankly. Ew.
I am pleased that things are a lot better now for you beer afficianados in the US.
It is no surprise to me that when you get people working on something that they feel passionate about, then the end results almost always turn out being something really worthwhile.
Anchor Steam and Sam Adams led the US Brewing Industry out of the Sinai and into the promised land.
In the late '80s/early '90s, on a national level, you could get Anchor, Sam Adams, or crap.
But as others have said, it's a whole different beer world nowadays. I think I'll go drink a Ruination to celebrate.
(You know it's going to be good when it says "A liquid poem to the glory of the hop" right on the bottle.)
Tam, had to look up Sam Adams and Ruination as I had not heard of them.
Sam Adams can be obtained over here so I will have to try some.
Ruination could be harder to track down - loved the design on the bottle and the descriptions make me want to try some, will have to settle for the Leffe Brune tonight!
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