I don’t always drink beer..

[Utah Bob #35998]

But when I do, it’s from a frosty mug under a blue summer sky. 
Stay hydrated my friends.

[Horace Patootie, SASS #35798]

I have a mug exactly like that one !

Horace

[Utah Bob #35998]

1 hour ago, Horace Patootie, SASS #35798 said:

I have a mug exactly like that one !

Horace

Got mine in Munich in ‘68.

[Rex M Rugers #6621]

Dos Equis Amber !! Used to be one of my favorites. Haven't seen one for several years.

Rex 

[Horace Patootie, SASS #35798]

3 hours ago, Utah Bob #35998 said:

Got mine in Munich in ‘68.

My family brought mine back from Germany.

Horace

[Birdgun Quail, SASS #63663]

The best beer I ever had was in Wildflecken, Germany, that was brewed by the good brothers at the Kreuzberg Monestary.  

How good was that beer draw from a large barrel you may wonder?   It has to be the beer the angels serve in Heaven! 

[Utah Bob #35998]

8 hours ago, Birdgun Quail, SASS #63663 said:

The best beer I ever had was in Wildflecken, Germany, that was brewed by the good brothers at the Kreuzberg Monestary.  

How good was that beer draw from a large barrel you may wonder?   It has to be the beer the angels serve in Heaven! 

Virtually every monastery had a brewery! Especially in Bavaria. And their worst beer beat the best American beers.

[Ornery Cuss, SASS # 76071]

At the risk of......well, chastisement....I am curious if our beer consumers have tried unchilled, or room-temperature, beer. I have, and I have to say it is a whole different experience. On trips to England and Ireland, a really good-quality beer has an amazing warm and substantive taste. I have concluded that the chilling of the beer actually diminishes the taste. Anyhow...just try it sometime with a good substantive beer and see what you think. And you're welcome.

[Rip Snorter]

22 minutes ago, Ornery Cuss, SASS # 76071 said:

At the risk of......well, chastisement....I am curious if our beer consumers have tried unchilled, or room-temperature, beer. I have, and I have to say it is a whole different experience. On trips to England and Ireland, a really good-quality beer has an amazing warm and substantive taste. I have concluded that the chilling of the beer actually diminishes the taste. Anyhow...just try it sometime with a good substantive beer and see what you think. And you're welcome.

The wonderful beer and  ale makes the difference, if from the tap only as cool as the basement from which it was literally pumped..  Bottles often taken off the shelf uncapped and served.  I can recall a wonderful small pub on my first visit, where the total ice supply consisted two trays in the top of a small fridge.  I suppose it has all changed, been a few decades since last I was there.  I will say, since we are in the Micro Brew era, things are much better here than in those days.

[Utah Bob #35998]

1 hour ago, Ornery Cuss, SASS # 76071 said:

At the risk of......well, chastisement....I am curious if our beer consumers have tried unchilled, or room-temperature, beer. I have, and I have to say it is a whole different experience. On trips to England and Ireland, a really good-quality beer has an amazing warm and substantive taste. I have concluded that the chilling of the beer actually diminishes the taste. Anyhow...just try it sometime with a good substantive beer and see what you think. And you're welcome.

The first time I saw a beer warmer was in a gästhaus in Bad Tölz, Bavaria. The beer was in barrels and got quite cold. All the tables had outlets on the wall and you just asked for a warmer. I put on 15 pounds while I was in Germany and it wasn’t from the pastries. The beer was not in the same category as American beer. Not even close.  

[Birdgun Quail, SASS #63663]

Different beers taste best at different temperatures.  American light beers best very cold.  I see recommended temps to serve beer on the internet and they say Pilsner beer should be served at around 40°F.  I disagree!  Like Ornery above pointed out, I found while stationed in Germany that Pilsner beers at around 60-65°F.  Heavier beers also best in the 60°s.   I let even my Modelo Especial lager beerswarm up after taking them out of the refrigerator.  Too cold and the flavor is masked.

 

 

 

 

.

[El Chapo]

9 hours ago, Utah Bob #35998 said:

Virtually every monastery had a brewery! Especially in Bavaria. And their worst beer beat the best American beers.

 

I find that hard to believe.  American beers win virtually every world beer event imaginable, and have tremendous diversity compared to continental European beers.  I think I'd rather drink flat and warm British beer than most continental European bears, not to say that there aren't good examples anywhere, but if you've missed out on the last 40+ years of American craft beer revolution, boy have I got some news for you!  We have long had the best beer on earth in almost any style.

[J.D. Daily]

23 hours ago, Utah Bob #35998 said:

Got mine in Munich in ‘68.

I didn't buy a stein when I was in Munchen for a day in 1971.  I did hoist a couple of liter steins in the Hofbrauhaus.  The serving wenches arm strength was very impressive.  1st Division Reforger 1971. 

[Birdgun Quail, SASS #63663]

24 minutes ago, El Chapo said:

 

I find that hard to believe.  American beers win virtually every world beer event imaginable, and have tremendous diversity compared to continental European beers.  I think I'd rather drink flat and warm British beer than most continental European bears, not to say that there aren't good examples anywhere, but if you've missed out on the last 40+ years of American craft beer revolution, boy have I got some news for you!  We have long had the best beer on earth in almost any style.

I'm 75-years-old and I've loved beers most of my adult life.  I've been to the beer gardens, fests, and specialty houses in Europe and America.  But El Chapo, I'm going to have to disagree with you.  Not to say there aren't great American craft beers, but Germany had some of the best beers that I ever tasted.  The store-bought beer I currently keep in my refrigerator is a Mexican beer; Modelo Especial pilsner style lager.   Modelo comes closest to the fine beers I remember in Germany.

 

Also, I rarely drink beer from the can or bottle.  Beer should be drank from a mug, stein, or glass so the beer's aroma can be smelled to enhance the flavor.

 

Modelo Especial in a German cut crystal stein.   Drinking it now on this hot day.  Delicious!

[Birdgun Quail, SASS #63663]

Some of the steins I brought back from Germany. 

 

 

[Buckshot Bear]

[Utah Bob #35998]

17 minutes ago, Birdgun Quail, SASS #63663 said:

Some of the steins I brought back from Germany. 

 

 

 

In the local gästhauses they had shelves for the local’s family stein. Fritz Sechspak and his buddy Hans would come in and the bartender would fetch their steins and fill em up. Some of them were 200 years old and more. (The steins, not the locals)

[Birdgun Quail, SASS #63663]

Germans take their beer seriously.  Heck, I even saw babies in their baby carriages sucking on beer right out of their baby bottles!   On my last tour in Germany (1984-1987) I was stationed in Schweinfurt and we had weekly delivers of beer right to our front door.  Just like when I was a boy and the milkman made regular deliveries.  The beer I had delivered was from a local brewery called, Werner.

 

[Utah Bob #35998]

Good times. 
 

[Birdgun Quail, SASS #63663]

Bob, remember drinking from a glass beer boot.  Best was watching the new guys drinking from the boot with the toe up! 

 

[Rip Snorter]

Wait, have you ever tried a Yard of Ale?  Requires a certain spin.  Still have one from past party days long gone.

[The Blarney Kid]

Not familiar with German beer, but I really enjoy the Scottish and Irish beers, especially the ales, stouts and porters,  having spent three years over there while in the Navy.  I have also enjoyed some of the Asian beers, such as Tiger, Singha and San Miguel. 

[Trigger Mike]

I'm wondering why when I drank dos eques beer I didn't become interesting. 

[El Chapo]

7 hours ago, Birdgun Quail, SASS #63663 said:

I'm 75-years-old and I've loved beers most of my adult life.  I've been to the beer gardens, fests, and specialty houses in Europe and America.  But El Chapo, I'm going to have to disagree with you.  Not to say there aren't great American craft beers, but Germany had some of the best beers that I ever tasted.  The store-bought beer I currently keep in my refrigerator is a Mexican beer; Modelo Especial pilsner style lager.   Modelo comes closest to the fine beers I remember in Germany.

 

Also, I rarely drink beer from the can or bottle.  Beer should be drank from a mug, stein, or glass so the beer's aroma can be smelled to enhance the flavor.

 

Modelo Especial in a German cut crystal stein.   Drinking it now on this hot day.  Delicious!

 

My response to you is pretty simple: there is more to beer than light lager.  That's not to say there aren't excellent lagers out there.  But if all you drink is light colored lager, I'm not surprised that you would enjoy Europe, because breweries that specialize in craft lagers are pretty rare here in the United States.  I don't have enough experience to point you to one, but they do exist.

 

Mexican beer, as you have correctly figured out, is the same styles that you commonly see in mainland Europe.  With us being the "new world," brewers from over there brought their skills and their yeast over here for the last 500 years.

 

I still think it sounds like you missed the last 40 years of the American craft beer revolution, though.  I can't tell you exactly which brewery makes the very best German Pilsner, but I would be willing to bet that it isn't in Germany--it's in the United States somewhere.  The last 40 years have been really good to our brewing industry and we have cultivated a ton of talent.

[Utah Bob #35998]

While I try to avoid Denver, there are close to 100 breweries. The great American Beer Festival will be held there in October.

There is virtually every kind of beer imaginable available. Some crafted in old world fashion and some weirdly nouveau.

The craft beer industry had in fact grown tremendously in the past few decades and I suspect some of these beers will approach the brews I sampled in Germany in 67-68. 
Of course at that time the only American beer available came from the mass producers and the very best fell far short of German quaintly. 

I shared a story here once about the time several of us gave some Schlitz, PBR, and Bud to German bar owner who insisted he wanted to taste some US beer. It was a mistake.

 

But in spite of the improvement in American beer, I have never tasted anything as good as the golden elixir I had as a young man on the banks of the Isar River in Bavaria. I always felt it deserved a better, more descriptive and regal name than simply “beer”.

[Utah Bob #35998]

[Tennessee williams]

[watab kid]

i drink way more beer than other intoxicants , i rather like it - most any will do but i tend to porters or stouts as a preference , a good lager is never rejected , im not fond of the IPAs but hey , if thats all there is 

[Ornery Cuss, SASS # 76071]

Speaking of beer......this may be a well-known thing, but, 25 years ago, my wife and I were in Germany and German friends introduced us to the German Radler (sp?). It was a combination of half beer, half lemonade!. Sounded terrible, tasted fantastic! The colder the better. With temps at 90 + this is the most refreshing, satisfying summer drink I had ever had, then or since. All our friends here sort'a gagged when we suggested it but loved it when they tried it. I think there are now some commercial versions of this available, but, as is often the case, nothing beats homemade, A good-quality beer and a good-quality (preferably homemade) lemonade, and you can vary the proportions to suit your own taste, which we did, but 50-50 works best for us. A bonus is that in the course of a pleasant conversation with friends on the porch or deck in 95 degrees, you can go through a quart or a half-gallon without feeling bloated or tipsy. But please, if you haven't already, try it. And, you're welcome.

 

Ornery Cuss

[Rip Snorter]

They call it a Shandy in England.  Great on a hot day after exercise.

[Birdgun Quail, SASS #63663]

Skankiest beer I ever had was when I was stationed in S. Korea (1972).  At the time, there were two S. Korean brands I tried; one I believe was called Crown and the other I can't remember.  What I do remember though was just how nasty those two Korean brands were!!  They made even the worst American brand beer of that time taste great!!

 

edited:

I found a photo of Crown beer.  Makes me shutter just looking at the picture.

 

 

 

.

[Utah Bob #35998]

And don’t get me started on Glüwein!  That stuff was responsible for my frosbitten feet! 
(okay maybe I was a bit responsible)

[Ornery Cuss, SASS # 76071]

Must be an interesting story somewhere in there, UB. But actually, we loved Gluwein. We went to a Christmas Market one night in Austria and visited the Gluwein booth. The first sip attempt was like getting punched in the nose, but once you got the hang of it, it was wonderful. As I recall, a ceramic cup of Gluwein was just a few marks. And the cups were all individually painted in German folk mode, each one different, and you got to keep the cup for the price of the Gluwein. During the course of a couple weeks visit with our son's family over Christmas, we brought home a large collection of beautiful Gluwein cups, but unfortunately let them get away over the years. You can still buy the Gluwein mix at any Aldi's grocery store here in the states.

 

Ornery Cuss

[Utah Bob #35998]

30 minutes ago, Ornery Cuss, SASS # 76071 said:

Must be an interesting story somewhere in there, UB. But actually, we loved Gluwein. We went to a Christmas Market one night in Austria and visited the Gluwein booth. The first sip attempt was like getting punched in the nose, but once you got the hang of it, it was wonderful. As I recall, a ceramic cup of Gluwein was just a few marks. And the cups were all individually painted in German folk mode, each one different, and you got to keep the cup for the price of the Gluwein. During the course of a couple weeks visit with our son's family over Christmas, we brought home a large collection of beautiful Gluwein cups, but unfortunately let them get away over the years. You can still buy the Gluwein mix at any Aldi's grocery store here in the states.

 

Ornery Cuss

Yes. It’d delicious! That was the problem.

[El Chapo]

22 hours ago, Ornery Cuss, SASS # 76071 said:

Speaking of beer......this may be a well-known thing, but, 25 years ago, my wife and I were in Germany and German friends introduced us to the German Radler (sp?). It was a combination of half beer, half lemonade!. Sounded terrible, tasted fantastic! The colder the better. With temps at 90 + this is the most refreshing, satisfying summer drink I had ever had, then or since. All our friends here sort'a gagged when we suggested it but loved it when they tried it. I think there are now some commercial versions of this available, but, as is often the case, nothing beats homemade, A good-quality beer and a good-quality (preferably homemade) lemonade, and you can vary the proportions to suit your own taste, which we did, but 50-50 works best for us. A bonus is that in the course of a pleasant conversation with friends on the porch or deck in 95 degrees, you can go through a quart or a half-gallon without feeling bloated or tipsy. But please, if you haven't already, try it. And, you're welcome.

 

Ornery Cuss

 

22 hours ago, Rip Snorter said:

They call it a Shandy in England.  Great on a hot day after exercise.

 

My understanding is that radler is shandy, only with lager yeast.  I usually make a very simple 10 ibu wheat lager to mix with lemonade.  My version has homemade beer + store bought lemonade; the thought never really crossed my mind to make the lemonade.