I've been on an experimental beer kick lately - I decided it was high time to deviate from the typical grocery store 6-pack beers like New Castle, Amber Bock, etc. Beeradvocate.com has been my faithful companion on this quest.

I wanted to see what beers some of our forum regulars love - even if it's just Budweiser. I've developed a quick obsession with Belgian Ales. I don't think I could imagine a better beer. It started with Chimay Blue, but the steep price tag ($5 for a 11.2 ounce bottle) forced me to find a cheaper alternative. That led me to Ommegang. Great damn beer. It's not quite on par with Chimay, but at half the price, I'm willing to overlook the subtle differences. It's not a true Belgian Trappist beer, since it's actually brewed in New York, but it's good nonetheless.

Some of my favorite beers so far:

Chimay Blue
Fat Tire
New Castle
Fosters
Guinness Stout
Ommegang
Fuller's 1845

My journey continues! I'm trying to sample at least 2-3 new beers a week. I'm gonna start on some of the Imperial Stouts this or next week. I've got a bottle of Stone's Arrogant Bastard and Sierra Nevada at the ready for some time this week until then.

I enjoy Chimay a lot too. The Blue is great. If you live near a Trader Joe's they have their own branded knock off of Chimay Red that's pretty respectable and a lot cheaper. A local bar here has a special on 22 oz. Fat Tires for $4, which is not bad considering it's 5.2%. Newcastle and Guiness are standby's (although the Guiness Extra Stout in bottles is a bit different than Guiness Draught). Have you tried Stella Artois? Lots of places have it on tap now and most good liquor stores. It's a Belgian, but lighter and still packs a punch. If you live in or near Wisconsin, all of the New Glarus stuff is great. Now I'm thirsty..

I know it's hard to find, but I love Kasteel. Kasteel blonde, Rouge, and Triple are all quality.
http://www.beersofeurope.co.uk/acatalog/Be...Kasteel_65.html

Also can't go wrong with Delirium http://www.pascalkolkman.com/delirium/

Otherwise, I will echo the promotion of New Glarus (Spotted Cow and Naked are my favs)

I had a Stella about a year ago and wasn't impressed, but I may give it a try again. Part of it might have been that it kind of "broke onto the scene" here in Atlanta the last couple years, and everybody and their dog started drinking it and raving about it.

Yeah, I'm definitely gonna have to try that Trader Joe's vintage. I read that they had their own, but wasn't sure how good it would be. IIRC, Ommegang brews it for them.

I was at the liquor store last night and saw this massive bottle of Chimay Blue - Chimay Ale Grande Reserve 50 ounces. My wife's going out to a girl's night sleepover Saturday night. I'm thinking it sounds like a great night to try it.

I know this is regional, but if you are ever in this neck of the woods you need to try the Smokestack Series from a Brewery here in Kansas City called Boulevard. Excellent beers, especially one called The sixth Glass. Careful though, it is 10.5% and one of those things that won't hit you until you get up off the stool. Their wheat beer is decent for a regular beer as well.

http://www.boulevard.com/smokestack/

There was a show, I believe on the Food Network, the other night about a beer tasting event held in Denver every year.

They interview a guy on there that has had close to 2000 different beers in 54 different countries. He keeps track of everything he drinks.

I drink Miller Lite most of the time but I also like Guinness, Blue Moon, Corona, Leiene's Red, Sunset Wheat and Original, Point, MGD Light, Pabst, Smithwicks, Harps, and Spotted Cow.

I'd say that most of my favorite beers were the favorites of my dad and grandfather - High Life(personal favorite and what I keep on tap in my kegarator) and Blatz. I do like Summer Shandy, Blue Moon-Honey Moon, and Spotted Cow.

I like La Batts Blue but drink Miller Lite regularly. Others that I've tried and liked are... Moretti (an Italian beer), Mamba(an African brew) and of course Red Stripe from my time in Jamaica mon!

I'm always psyched to see someone delve deeper into the world of beer! There's so much out there it's hard to tell where to start.

Miller Lite is my football/ hockey game/ fishing standby. Miller High Life for cooking brats and chili. Outside of those situations I'm always exploring too, but I do have a few favorite microbreweries that I always seem to turn to:

- Victory - Based in PA, they make a great pilsner called "Prima Pils" (it's relatively light and crisp but much more full bodied than fake pilsners like Miller Lite). "Hop Devil" is another good beer, not sure if it's classified as an IPA or a strong ale but it's great. They make an awesome Imperial Stout called "Storm King"

- Anchor - one of the older microbreweries in the country, based in San Francisco. Love their Porter, as well as their classic Steam Beer and Liberty Ale

- Smuttynose - out of Portsmouth, NH. Their Shoals Pale Ale is awesome, just a nice, balanced and refreshing ale. They also make a great Porter and their IPA is good too if you're looking for something unusual in the style.

- Geary's - based in I think Portland Maine - they make my favorite pale ale.

- Samuel Smith's - from Tadcaster, which I think is in the north of England. As far as I'm concerned they make two of the best stout's in the world - their Imperial Stout and Oatmeal Stout are second to none. You'll usually see these in 19oz bottles, cost about 3-3.50 each.

- Sam Adams - has macro capacity but with the mentality of a microbrewery. Their lager isn't my favorite but keep an eye out for their "brewmaster's collection" - they make a really good cream stout and black lager.

Anyway, I could go on but just some stuff to keep an eye out for. If you ever want to talk beer or have any questions about what to look for in certain styles etc. definitely PM me, I'm always up for it.

I don't know if you can get this in Northeast Wisconsin, but a decent beer to try is Keewanaw Brewing Co.'s WidIT'ow Maker Black Ale. It's brewed right here in the U.P.

I drink everything from Blatz to Guinness myself. So, needless to say I haven't found to many beers I can't at least get along with.

Whatever anyone does stay away from the "Beer 30" brand of beers. Clever marketing, but do yourself a favor and stay away.

Schlitz has come back with their original recipe beer and it isn't too bad.

To this day I'm still jealous of my brother. He had to work in Germany for a time and he got to tour the Beck's brewery.

Chimay is great. If you really want to get knocked on your butt try finding the triple. High octane. Fat Tire is really good too.

I'm on a Pale Ale kick lately and I don't know why. Bells Two Hearted Ale and good ol Summit. Love the Bells because they dont over-hop it with bittering hops....it's all late addition flavor and scent hops. It is awesome.

Have to get my stein ready for Oktoberfest. I'll be drinking the Spaten Ofest for that one.

EDIT; Sinatra I just saw that you have tried blue already. I thought you were talking about the plain ol red. Blue is the same abv as the tripel I believe, the difference is color and taste. I think I may prefer blue though, its hard to beat.

X2 on the Spaten. Damn you guys are making me thirsty and my Dr. Pepper just isn't cutting it.

I feel your pain. I'm getting a craving as well.

Lakefront Brewery in Milwaukee puts out a great Pumpkin Ale for the Fall. I love it.

I'll drink any Oktoberfest, too.

Aside from that, anything from New Glarus, Blue Moon, Sam Adams Cherry Wheat, Red Stripe (love it), Haacker Pschorr, HoeGarten, Boddingtons, Capitol Island wheat (from Madison), Negra Modelo are a few of my favs.

So much beer , so little time.Wisconsin has dozens of local micro-breweries,as do most states these days. Try whatever you can find, it's the only way, as everyones taste buds are different.There's some really good stuff out there.

I myself prefer pilsner style beer, but also love pale ales. Beck's, Heineken,Molson Canadian, Labatts, Pilsner Urquell, St. Pauli girl are all good pilsners. Bass is an excellent pale ale. I wrote to Molson when they switched to brown bottles and a guy from Molson called me on the phone. He told me that the skunky, tangy taste that I like is caused by age and happens faster in green bottles. He suggested I continue to buy Molson and store it for six to twelve months until the freshness wears off. I laughed and said "Store beer, around here, what are you, some kind of communist."

My beer bottle collection is over 200 different bottles now. Experimenting on any different beer that I haven't tried is part of the fun. The best part is that it's always fun even when you don't like the beer.

Yep, the Blue is the Tripel (EDIT: Dubbel or Quad, actually). They call it Chimay Blue in the 11.2 Oz bottles, and then Grand Reserve in the pint size and larger. I was totally blown away when I tried it - it's my consuming goal now to try the various Trappist beers. I'm gonna grab some Rochefort 10 and Westmalle Tripel tomorrow.

If you love Chimay, check out Ommegang if you haven't already. I have a fairly novice palate, but the two taste nearly identical to me and the Ommegang is less than half the price. I was pretty damn thrilled when I discovered it. I still have some Chimay at the ready, but Ommegang is gonna be my go-to 'high class' beer for now.

I hit the liquor store at lunch today and bought Three Philosophers, Sam Smith's Imperial Stout and Sam Smith's Nut Brown Ale. Looking forward to trying them all.

EDIT: Just did some research. Apparently Tripel's are usually more like blond ales, and Chimay could be better described as a Dubbel or Quad, if anything. I'll know more about this tomorrow when I have my first proper Tripel.

Major Goolsbys used to have Murphys Irish Ale on tap. That was the best beer that I ever had. I don't know what happened to it, but after that I couldn't find it. The only beer that I could find was Murphys Irish Lager. A good beer, but not as good.
Otherwise my favorites are Bass ale, Fosters, Guinness, Labatts Blue, and Harp.
Not a fan of Blue Moon or New Castle (too perfumey)
Also no fruit in my beer, and hate that berry crap!! But thats just me.

I'm a big fan of beer. Wherever I go, I'm always sure to try the local suds.

It's a little known fact that Jimmy Carter's decision to loosen requirements on home and small-batch brewing is what's led us to this golden age of microbrews that we're in at the moment -- up until then, getting into brewing on anything but a mass scale was very difficult.

My personal favorite beer is Chimay's white-label. Excellent taste, feels good in your mouth. It has depth of flavor, is best served in a cool-looking chalice-style beer glass and still goes well with pizza. I've never found anything quite like it.

My wife prefers a similar Belgian beer called Westmalle. I don't think it has quite the same pop, but that's taste for you.

Couple of recommendations:

• Surly Brewing Company's CynicAle - Surly is a smaller brewery in Minneapolis. You can find their beer in stores around the Twin Cities or in western WI. My father-in-law brought me two cans of CynicAle for the tailgate before Packers/Cowboys last year, and I've been a devotee ever since -- it's a Belgian-style ale. Their other beers aren't bad either.
• Spotted Cow - You know about Spotted Cow in Wisconsin, right? Haven't seen it mentioned. It's impossible to get anywhere else, you greedy SOB's -- I'd be more ticked if I didn't know they're like 300 calories a bottle. Great beer.
• Spaten's Oktoberfest - I enjoy 'fest beers generally, but Spaten's is my favorite. Smooth and easy to drink without being boring.
• Any Beer from Lagunitas - Brewery up north of the Golden Gate bridge. These folks do everything well, which is just flat-out unfair when you're trying to select a sixer.
• Sol - If you're ever tempted to buy Corona (and despite what some beer snobs might tell you, it has its place -- what good is decent Mexican food without a Corona-style beer?) get Sol instead. It's like Corona's smarter, better looking and more successful half-sister.
• Trumer Pils - A pilsner, sort of in the Stella range of beers but with a little more bite to it. A great hot day beer.

I could go on and on, but I gotta get back to work.

I'll have to try the Chimay White. I went straight for the Blue because of ABV.

It's funny that I actually work at a beer store (complete with growler station and 3 windows just for imports), alas it's in New York so some of these beers you guys wouldn't be able to get a hold of unless you ordered them from the brewery. My favorite microbreweries include: Dogfishhead, Victory, Lagunitas, Southern Tier, and Great Lakes. However, one of the best beers I have ever had is Southern Tier Pumpking Ale, if you never try any beer from New York, atleast try this one.

Is this it? http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/3818/38394

I'll have to check for it at my local store. Perfect timing on that suggestion, btw. Autumn just around the corner.

That's it

Thats what I was referring to...it's called Tripel White. The blue is about the same ABV, just different taste- the carmelized malt gives it a different taste.

Chimay White is very good, I concur. I love it that Lagunitas brews a series of Frank Zappa beers. They put a different Zappa album cover on each type. I had the "We're Only In It For the Money" and "Lumpy Gravy" varieties while I was living in Northern Cali last year.

Here's a tip for those who like to make a little adventure out of beer tasting, especially if you're into Belgian beers like Trappist ales and Lambics:

On the way from Green Bay to Door county there's a little known gem. They recently re-routed the highway and expanded it between GB and Sturgeon Bay. The old highway used to go right past a little place along side the road just before you get to the town of Brussels, in a wide spot in the road called Namur. It's called the Belgian Bar (slick name, yes? Anyway it's a little, old fashioned place run by a little old Belgian woman who's house is attached to the back of the bar. When you go inside it's like a flashback to 1962, since it looks like that's when it was last remodeled. Anyway, they have a really great selection of Belgian beers of all sorts. Trappists, and a nice variety of fruit flavored Lambics. Now, I hate fruity beers as much as anyone, but these are different. The Belgians KNOW how to make a fruit flavored beer. Rich flavor, complex, and complimentary to the flavor of real beer. The lady who owns it is as sweet as can be and loves to talk about Belgian beer and chocolates (which they also sell). I have stopped in there on weekend afternoons and had a really great time. One time she even sent us home with some fruits and veggies she grew herself. I highly recommend it of you have some time to kill on the way to or from Door County. I just don't know how often it's open or what the hours are, she is an older woman after all. To get there, you have to take hwy DK, which is the old highway, and goes through Dykesville, etc.

...and Sol doesn't smell like a skunk.

Most of my favorites have been mentioned, but a couple others I like a lot are Leffe and Duval.

JASIII - I'm going up to Door County in a month and I'll have to try that bar. Thanks for the tip.

You are now my best friend.

1. Love Zappa! And as much as I hate to head to Cali will definitely track some down.

2. We are staying Door County before the Detroit game. I will have to check this place out.
EDIT- Went to find some more info on it and found this. Are you sure it is still open?

Thanks so much! Today is going to be a long day and you started it out great!

LOL, no problem! Last time I went past it was open. That's too bad they're trying to sell it. I hope the new owners keep it open. I would imagine that their business took a hit when the new highway bypassed them. It can be hard to tell if they are open when you drive by unless there are cars parked there, because the owners' living space is attached to the back, so they just come up front when someone walks in. It's worth a try, especially if you are going past on a weekend.

One I think is in season now and I've heard is really good is Lagunitas Sirius Ale.

Might pick some up for the game this weekend

Nothing SHOULD smell like skunk if it was handled right. Thats what happens when a beer has been exposed to UV light too long, called 'lightstruck' beer. It's a defect.

Beer in the dark brown bottles never really suffers from this. But you get anything imported in clear or light green bottles and you run the risk of getting skunky beer.

If you buy Heineken, try to find little keg cans they sell them in now, in six packs. Won't be skunky and tastes great.

Which is why you can't drink Corona without a lime. I prefer salt too, personally.

That is exactly why I like High Life out of the can/keg Vs. the clear bottles. I think the bottles they use are cool and all. But, the light factor can play games with the taste IMO. That and they get warmer faster it seems.

The one clear bottle beer I'll drink regularly is Newcastle. I've never really had a bad experience with it. It's probably my favorite of the grocery store 6 packs.

I've had a lot of skunked Newcastle, especially in bars where God only knows how long it's been sitting.

A good, fresh Newcastle is among the best beers out there. It was actually the first non-Bud/Miller/Coors beer I ever had, one of my friends insisted that I try it.

I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that I almost always buy it in 12-packs - the 12's are enclosed in a box, while the 6's are in your standard exposed 6-pack case.

Agree totally, I always thought Heineken is terrible until I had it out of the mini-keg. It was really good. I usually don't like beer out of clear bottles myself either. Especially imports.

Every time I look at an imported beer in a clear bottle I just get this image in my mind of that bottle locked in the hold of cargo ship and bobbing around the North Atlantic for week before it's transported to the local store and has to sit out under flourescent lights for God knows how long. No wonder they usually taste lightstruck? lol

Florescent light in particular is bad for beer. Funny thing about Heineken, is that early on I got used to the skunkiness and kind of like it. That what it is 'supposed' to taste like to me. When I drink it on tap or out of a can it tastes like it's missing something to me.

Here's a couple for ya fellas to try:

LakeMaid (Lager that is REALLY GOOD!) That and the fact there are a series of different chicks on each bottle... mermaids really, and all have different names (example: Ms. Smallmouth Bass) A Minnesota Beer

MooseDrool... Montana beer Yummy dark ale

Thats exactly what I think also. Heineken can ONLY be drank out of a bottle. On top or a can it tastes watered down.

Red Stripe is good also.

I meant to say on TAP or a can.

I dont know what I would be doing on TOP of a beer.

LakeMaid makes for a fun drinking game as well.

Each bottle shows your catch under the cap. Everybody throws in a $1, whoever gets the biggest catch takes the pot.

Spotted Cow is the beer of choice at my house. My wife likes Miller Lite. I enjoy Leinie's Creamy Dark, New Castle, Blue Moon. Schell Brewery in New Ulm, MN makes a great Stout, one of my favorites. Just got signed up for the beer of the month club as a gift and get 4 micro-brews mailed to me each month. Great way to try some new brews. Homebrew is a great way to go as well.

My favourite beer is a Munich wheat beer - Hacker Pschorr Heffe Weisse. It's hands down my favourite weisse (bottom fermented wheat beer). Schneider Weisse and Erdinger are great representatives of weisse also. I pretty much love any beer the Germans make.

My second favourite is Innis and Gunn, a scottish malt brewed in whiskly casks. Its a little expensive but amazing beer. I recommend it to anyone who loves beer. They also have a blond and release special editions (in 2009 they released a 'Canadian cask' due to the popularity in Canada.

Other favourites are Fiddlers Elbow, Warsteiner, Kronenbourg 1664, Grasshopper, Czechvar, Sleemans Steam Ale (sadly discontinued), Stella Artois, Creemore Ale, Grolsch, Kilkenny, and even Guiness if I'm in the mood.

Canada also has a ton of micro-breweries and I love to try anything new I find.

Czechvar is a good beer, the 'original' and I think superior, Budweiser.

What's this beer of the month thing? How do you join? Beer of the day would be better but this could be fun as well.

Here's my beer list so far this weekend:

Samuel Smith's Imperial Stout - Excellent stout. Goes down easy and got better as it warmed. If you're into stouts, give it a try.

Westmalle Tripel - I'm unimpressed, but it's mainly because I'm not a fan of this type of beer. I prefer darker, amber beers. However, it is an excellent tripel. If you're a fan of Stella, Heineken, etc., then this will completely blow your socks off.

Samuel Smith's Brown Nut Ale - Absolutely phenomenal brown ale. This has become an instant favorite of mine. I plan to always make sure I got a couple on hand. If you like Newcastle, then you'll love this. Nice nutty aftertaste.

Arrogant Bastard Ale - Wow, this is an assault on the tastebuds. Perfect beer for you hopheads out there. It definitely lives up to its billing. If you're looking to be challenged by a beer, give this a whirl. Intense, but smooth.

Rochefort 10 - EXCELLENT beer. This is right up my alley. Nice deep, dark ale. Rich taste, very smooth. Another one that I plan to keep in stock.

Three Philosopher's - Very good beer, but not my cup of tea. I felt like the cherry flavor was a bit too dominant - it's all I could focus on. It's a great quality beer, but not really my thing.

I'm actually brewing a batch tonight -- Cranberry Rye Heavy Stout. The cranberry's should add a touch of bitterness and body to it... not that a heavy stout needs that. We'll see how it goes.

Sinatra, do you like beers from Unibrou? Similar to Chimay's, but American and much cheaper. I really like La Fin do Monde and Trois Pistoles.

I actually haven't tried Unibroue yet. I've never seen it around here, but I haven't really looked diligently. Right now, Ommagang is my go-to budget version of Chimay. I'll probably look for Unibroue some time this week.

Turns out the place does have Unibroue, so I grabbed a bottle of Trois Pistoles. Probably won't give it a try tonight, but will get around to it sometime this week.

Awesome, can't wait to hear what you think of it.

Sorry guys, but all I need is to sit back by the fire with a jigger of Makers Mark or Redbreast...