Beers, Lagers, Pilsners, Ales, Stouts, Meads, Porters...????

[Felonious Monk/Fignozzle]

When it comes to brewed libations, I spent my formative years focusing on quantity rather than quality.
I could float battleships with all the Bud, Miller, Michelob, MGD, Plank Road, Busch, and early on, even some much gaggier swill that I consumed.


Seeking a much healthier, more balanced, more spiritual and sober lifestyle, I drank almost no alcohol for nearly 15 years.
On the order of maybe 1-2 beers a month.

That is, until I had a Newcastle Brown Ale.  
Is this the Nectar of the Gods?

So recently, I've been trying a bunch of imports and specialty beers.
Killian's Irish Red: swill.  Gag.
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale: Nice! Refreshing, light, fun.
Modelo Negro, Dos Equis Amber, Redhook Blackook porter: Ho-hum.
Redhook Nut Brown Ale: A little nuttier than Newcastle, but also delicious.

Are there others you REALLY like the taste of?  
Brews which, based on my preferences listed above, I might really enjoy?

Thanks,
Ben/Fig

[Justin]

Lots and lots and lots of really good stuff coming out of the micro breweries of Colorado.

Check out Fat Tire, 1554, and Loft from the New Belgium Brewing Company.
Flying Dog Brewery has good stuff, along with really excellent label art.
Breckenridge Brewery does good stuff as well.

Seriously, I could go on like this for a good half hour...

[Moondoggie]

My taste in beer centered around Coors and Heiniken although I've tried a lot of others....Hey, "First choice; FREE! Second choice: cold!"

I recently "discovered" Boulevard Unfiltered Wheat Beer brewed in KC.  It's now my favorite.  Check out their website.

[Felonious Monk/Fignozzle]

Moondoggie, +1.  Free, then cold was once the rule.

Now, the Newcastle and Redhook Nut Brown Ales are the only thing I really like drinking.
OH! and Sam Adams Cherry Wheat-- DELICIOUS!


What else?
I guess if it's a local or microbrew, it'll be hard to snag here in Alobammo.
Nationally distributed would be a GOOD thing, if you have something that you've found that rocks.

[esheato]

Newcastle is at the top of my list.

Some of my other favorites:

Dos Equis
Anchor Steam
Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale or Summerfest
Bass Ale
Red Hook variants
Yuengling

Guinness is good, but you really have to be in the mood for a meal...lol

Ed

[MaterDei]

If you like the Newcastle you should really try the Fuller's ESB, a fine brew.  Anything made by Stone is also good, provided you like the variety.  If you liked the Sierra Nevada and can handle a slightly larger beer I strongly recommend you try my favorite style, the India Pale Ale, a.k.a. IPA.  IPAs are basically juiced up pale ales.  Maltier and hoppier to survive the passage to India.  I love them.  In fact, I have one in my secondary fermenter waiting to be bottled.  Yum.

Some other styles you should try:

Imperial Stout - don't confuse this with Guinness.  Contrary to popular thought, Guinness is a relatively light beer, just bitter.  It's only about 4.2% abv.  Rasputin is good and available in many areas.
Oatmeal Stout
Barleywines are good but really big, not your after workout guzzle beer.
Wheat beers are good, light and refreshing.

I used to be an Import only guy.  However, there are so many excellent micro brewers in America now that I really don't think you can buy any style outside of the U.S. that is better than what is available domestically with the possible exception of some of the Belgian abbey ales, a rauchbier or a Lambic.

Life is too short to drink BMC swill.

[Felonious Monk/Fignozzle]

It may sound silly for a 40 sumpm' year old man to say it, but after a couple of Newcastles, I almost was MAD that I had lived four decades and NOT found this stuff.  
Just makes me wonder if there are any others out there I may be missing, that are close to the pleasure of drinking a Newcastle.

Mater Dei-- I HAVE seen the Fuller's ESB around here-- I'll try some next time I get out of the woods!
I also tried a Hefeweizen Wheat beer which was just okay.

Ben

[Sylvilagus Aquaticus]

As far as Imperials, you should seek out a B.J.'s Brewhouse for the Tatonka Stout. Not shabby.  

Me, I like Shiner and Newcastle, not in that order, ncessarily.  Bass and Guinii, sure. With Mexican food, it's Shiner, Dos Equis Amber or Corona.

I even liked Lone Star before Miller took it over. Tastes different now, though.  I grew up in the shade of a Schlitz brewery. Can't abide that stuff now.

SWMBO makes a very nice mead in her biology lab classes for the ferm labs. I have a half dozen large bottles in the fridge now, mellowing a few more months.  One of these days I'll decide I need another hobby and start brewing. There's a great homebrew store around the corner and I pick up yeast cultures from them every so often.


Regards,
Rabbit.

[Ben]

I'm generally a wheat beer man when I imbibe, but somebody turned me on to a Fat Tire last month, and that's good stuff Maynard!

[K Frame]

Gin

[stevelyn]

My favorites are brewed here at home at the Silver Gulch Brewery. The Pick-Axe Porter and Coldfoot Pilsner Lager are to die for.

http://www.ptialaska.net/~gbrady/pages/main.html

My other favorites can be found at the Glacier Brewhouse in Anchorage. The Glacier Brewhouse also makes a bread from the spent barley malt that's awesome. For $7.00 you can purchase a 1/2 gal  growler of your favorite................... For $5.00 you can refill it.
Did I mention the food too?

http://www.glacierbrewhouse.com

[InfidelSerf]

If you like Newcastle.. then you will love most of Samuel Smiths devine brews..
particularly the oatmeal stout and nut brown ale  http://www.merchantduvin.com/pages/5_breweries/samsmith_nut_brown_ale.html

That said my personal favorite favorite beer has to be Mackeson triple XXX stout

[Greg Levy]

If I had to pick one beer to drink all the time, I think it would be Michelob Amber Bock...it just goes down smooth.

If you can find it in your neck of the woods, Alaskan Amber is quite tasty also.  

The only special requirement for me to enjoy a Guiness is it has to be cold, and I have to be breathing.  It's just so dang expensive compared to most other beers on a per 6/pack basis.  

If you like Brown Ales, Big Sky Brewing, out of Montana, makes their Moose Drool Brown Ale.  It tastes good, and heck, sometimes it's just fun asking for some Moose Drool.

Finally, while I guess they aren't technically beers, I can NEVER say no to a good Hard Cider.  Hornsby's, Wyder's, HardCore, are all pretty good.  My two favorite though, which I can't find out west here, are Woodchucks from Vermont, and Wood Pecker, which was an English import.  SOOOO  Good.

greg

[Moondoggie]

Priv8ter,

I hauled a truckload of Woodchuck from Vermont to a distributor in Lawrence, KS a couple of yrs ago.  The whse guy at Woodchuck said that college towns made up most of their business.

Sure was a pretty drive across VT into NY on some pretty marginal 2 lane roads till we hit I-87.

[The Rabbi]

Favorites?
Almost anything made in Germany.  Those guys know how to make beer.
Red Stripe, Jamaican beer.  Overpriced?  Sure, but goes great with spicy foods.
Belgian White.  A really refreshing different taste beer.
Pabst Blue Ribbon.  To go with my white socks.  Iced down it tastes great.  Good for those lean weeks.
I like Koelsch style beers, very hoppy and refreshing, in the summer.  Stouts and porters for the winter.

[SalukiFan]

Tetley's English Ale is about my favorite but it can be difficult to find imported.  It's a classic English "bitter", a light, smooth and easy-drinking ale that is, despite it's name, not actually very hoppy.

I agree that Mackeson's is a great sweet stout.  It has a lot of coffee and chocolate undertones.

St. Peter's Organic Ale is really tasty and can be found in some whole-foods stores and co-ops.  A smooth and clean taste.

Blue Moon makes a nice Belgian White that is a nice and refreshing and excellent with a slice of lemon on top.  It's wheaty, a little fruity, a little cloudy and perfect for summer.

If you like the taste of Newcastle, I would avoid Goose Island Hex Nut Brown Ale.  It tries very hard to be a good brown ale but it is decidedly funky.

[charby]

I like Saint Paule Girl (German), Boulevard Unfiltered Wheat (Kansas City), Spotted Cow (New Glarus, Wisconsin), Lech (Polish Beer from Poznan), Blue Moon, PBR and Point Lager (Steven's Point, Wisconsin) and countless others but these are probably my favorite.

Charby

[Sindawe]

Regular libation is Paulaner Salvator, a very nice Double Bock.  If the liqour store don't have it, I don't buy anything.

For gaming days, I tend rotate 'tween the Paulaner, Tommy Knocker Butthead, or something new and different.

Michelob Amber Bock

I'll pass on drinking there.  But save me a bottle for the Green Chile, it works GREAT when added at the beginning of the slow cook phase.

Since the OP mentioned Mead, I'll vote for Redstone Meadery.  Brewed here in Colorado, comes in a lovely blue bottle with a resealable Grolsh type cap.  No added sulfites. http://www.redstonemeadery.com/  Of course, that only applies when I've none of MY homebrewed available.

[StopTheGrays]

Most any kind of pilsner does it for me, then lagers, and American beer. When drinking American beers I like the malted ones like OE 800 or Micky's buzz bombs. Every now and then I like a bottle of Hoegaarden (white) as well.

[Strings]

ok... I opened this because I saw meade menioned, and all y'all've done is talk about pee-water... :neener:

 Just a point of interest: meade isn't anything related to beer in any way. It's more along the lines of wine. And easy to make at home...

[El Tejon]

Back Road Brewery's Blueberry ale.

Anything by Upland.

Pyriamid's Apricot.

O.K., O.K., so I like fruity beers, so sue me.

[Stickjockey]

Most of my faves have already been mentioned, but I will add:

Rogue Breweries DeadGuy Ale. Also their Arrogant Bastard, if you're in the mood for something aggressive.

If you're in the mood for something really different, see if you can't find Old Peculier. There's nothing else like it that I've tasted.

[grampster]

I like Red Stripe in the stubby little bottles, but only if they have been nesting in a galvanized tub of ice.   Labatts and Foster's too.   I used to drink a Mexican beer, but I can't remember the name of it.  Maybe I drank too much of it.  Dang.  When you took off the cap, it sorta smelled like a swamp.  But it had a very distinctive yummy taste.  It did not taste like the smell.  Produced a nice happy buzz after 3 or 4 bottles.  I saw a few bottles in the states once several years ago, but it was not the same taste as the stuff in Mexico.  Now I'm not gonna sleep tonight trying to remember that dang beer.  Did it's name start with an M?  Dang!

We have some micro brews made here in W. Michigan.  A 7 malt ale and a champagne ale made at the brewery in The BOB a multi joint building in downtown GR are really good. Hockey starts Saturday, so I'll be at The BOB before the game.  I like malty beer.  The hoppy stuff I do not like.  Sam Adams makes my skin crawl.  Black and Tans are a favorite.

[Gewehr98]

If I can't sip Red Breast Pure Pot Still Irish Whiskey, then I'll go for beer.

Being a native Wisconsinite transplanted to Florida, I fill my pickup with lots of hometown brew once a year and stock the garage/shop fridge here in Florida.  If I open the door right now, there's Hamms, several varieties of Leinenkugel, plus Schlitz, Blatz, Pabst Blue Ribbon, and New Glarus Spotted Cow.  There's also a 12-pack of Old Milwaukee, but that's strictly for soaking bratwurst in.  

My wife's been a manager at the local Miller distributor for the last two years.  I used to buy Michelob Amber Bock, until she turned me on to Yuengling. It was a good trade, sorry, Anheuser-Busch!  She can also get me Shiner Bock, something I discovered when on assignment in Texas a few years ago.  I'm almost upset I spent so many years not knowing about Yuengling and Shiner Bock.  

I've got a case of Woodpecker hard cider from my last trip to RAF Mildenhall and RAF Lakenheath.

[Antibubba]

I hope you're drinking the Newcastle from the tap, and not the bottle; it's a whole different world.

Priv8ter-Two Rivers Pomegranate Cider.  It may be hard to find, but oh so worth it.

And in honor of the holiday upon (some of) us, I'm enjoying a Genesis Ale, courtesy of http://shmaltz.com