Guinness in Ireland. I liked Budvar better than Pilsner Urquell in Czech, but both are good. There was one called Eggert (or something like that) which is local to Cesky Krumlov. Also good!

Some Croatian beer I tried also wasn't bad.

I drank lots and lots of beer during my 4 months backpacking in Europe...which is probably why I don't remember lots of the brands I tried.

#1:(Czech)Krosovice

#2:(Brit) Bass ale

Give me Hansy Braeu from Vienna or any other Austrian brew. Zipher, Gosser, Edelweiss, even the dreaded Ottakringer on tap is excellent. The Austrians know their beer(they also produce top quality wines).

First pick for me would be a Jever Pilsner (German) from tap. A close second is Holsten Pilsner (also German).

BTW mp413: Beer sold within Germany generally is not pasteurized (exception might be Beck's Pilsner). That may cause the difference in taste.

Hi

lots of great beers.
One of Belgiums 500+ to try is Duvel (Flemish for Deveil !).

Peter
http://tlp.netfirms.com

There have been some inquiries and I'll attempt to respond to them.

Message: We've met Michael Jackson a few times. What's wrong with Wolfshoher or Murau? Or Warsteiner (if you get it in Germany, it doesn't travel well)? What makes them such pikers?

I don't know the first two beers and that's why I said the recs are "with a few exceptions" not trustworthy. Warsteiner is heavily-marketed and, as such, hasn't the character of a gutsy German pils like, say, Jever of Hamburg. That's 4-star beer with hops like a blast off the sea!

Someone mentioned "Rodenbach Grand Cru," a real classic sour brown from Belgium. Many Belgian beers are stunning because they present flavors and aromas from the past before "super clean" brewing practices eliminated wild fermentation effects.

Message: Perhaps Poppa, with his credentials, would enlighten us on the difference between beer and ale.

Well, you asked for it!

Think both yeasts and temperatures when distinguishing beteen ales and lagers. Note: Ales can be pale or dark as can lagers.

Ales are the forerunners of lager. They ferment at ambient temperatures and are, in most cases, served within 10-14 days of brewing, traditionally from a cask (rare except in England). As such, they have a shelf-life and are akin to fish and bread in that respect.

Lager (German word - "storage") yeasts work at temps from 40 down to almost freezing. Classic lagers are stored while the yeasts, slowly, work away at metabolizing the compounds (fruity flavors and aromas) produced by fermentation. Thus, a lager will display sensory effects dominated by the beer's ingredients (malt, hops) while ales will give the drinker fermentation effects (frutiness, nuttiness) along with the other two.

Of course, Budweiser rams their "lagers" through in 10 days although they do wind up with a very clean (some say, dull) product.

To really enjoy Belgium try Tim Webb's books. Both Tim and Jackson are highly knowledgeable about Belgian beer but Webb is more thorough. He be the man on Belgium.

And, of course, any beer in one's glass is the world's "best," but we Americans have been cheated of our heritage by
Prohibition that killed off thousands of artisan breweries. We have been tricked into drinking lawnmower beers and, in just the past 20 years, have we seen a brewing revival here.

Duvel, made in Belgium. Not sweet, ripened in the bottle so there are dregs at the bottom; pour slowly and carefully and leave the last half-centimeter in the bottle! It's GREAT.

I was under the impression that the original question was about the beers we found that WE liked while traveling?
Not what the experts think?

No big deal, but if I want to know what beer I should drink, I will read appropriate mags and books, but if I want to discover one that I may like during travels I just find some time to visit the local pub/tavern/bar and try something new. Sometimes it's a great surprise and sometimes it's a big disappointment.

As they say, the great taste of a beer is in the palate of the drinker :-)

I must respectfully disagree.

When I am in unfamiliar territory and thirsty, I don't have the time, patience, capacity, or money for a glass of "Old Futzenwaller" that tastes like aunty's pantyhose and smells like uncle's hip waders.

Pshaw! I want authors like Jackson, Webb, (or England's "Good Beer Guide") to place me in front of a bar at which there is a better-than-even chance at drinking something good or perhaps even transcendental.

Americans are fairly casual about their beer drinking. That's fine for some, but not for me.

Jackson once said, many people will go into a tavern and say, "Gimme a beer."
He went on, "To a Belgian or German that's like saying, "Gimme a plate of food'."

I am surprised such a beer expert like Poppa (the judge, award winning brewer, beer maven, etc. etc. etc. etc.) hasn't heard of either Murau or Wolshoher, both award winning beers from Germany and Austria. And so what if Warsteiner is heavily marketed? Big deal. When we just want to pop open a bottle and relax with a beer after walking the dog, we don't need anything "gusty." Germans like drinking it (a LOT), so I'm not going to feel inferior about liking it too.
No need to be so dismissive of other people's choices. We live in Europe and have the opportunity to drink a wide variety of beer and don't worry about getting the approval of beer snobs in the U.S. before pouring a glass of our favorite brew.
Drink what you like and forget the critics.

Poopa,

Perhaps I worded it wrong.

I believe that the purpose of this post was to let others know what beers we found on our own during our travels that for whatever reason stuck in our memory regardless if they are on some list or recommended by experts.

Your post are informative and interesting, I just think the OP was looking for something different. :-)

Sorry, I meant Poppa :-)

The first beer I ever tasted was Rauchbier in Bamberg, Germany over 40 years ago. It's still my favorite even though I only get to taste the real thing once every 5 or 10 years..

I love beer - and several years ago we embarked upon "Liz's Beer Tour Of Germany and Holland". In a "Who's on first" type of moment in a bar in Delft we were really enjoying our beer and asked the bartender (who seemed to speak perfect English) "what is the brand of beer?" He responded "brand". After several Lady Astor-like moments (keep repeating the question in English loudly) we came to realize the brand was Brand! Ooops! It was delicious!

Once again to my erstwhile critics and legion of friends, it makes no sense at all (to me) to drink poor beer.

For example, Rauchbier from the Bamburg region is a marvelous oddity that survives because Germans are serious about beer. What would it be like to travel there and miss it?

Or miss the Altbiers in Dusseldorf or the Kolsch in Cologne?

To put it another way, let's say rauchbiers and straight lambics (Belgian) are classics. Let's say Joe American tastes them both and spews them all over the bartenders because one tastes of smoke and the other is as sour as hell.

Suppose Joe American the calls for a glass of Warsteiner to wash out his mouth rather than educate his palate?

Bad news. Sorta like going to Paris and eating hot dogs or making the trek to Venice and longing for the sound of automobile horns.

Ah, but I mix my analogies. Self-indulgence again.

Warsteiner in Germany and Warsteiner stateside:

The German beers MUST contain only malt, hops, yeast and water.

Export versions may include adjuncts such as corn and rice. That may be the reason your hubby likes German Warsteiner.

Sniff your Budweiser ... it's like a whiff of the Kelllogs factory.

I am not a beer drinker but my husband favours Stella Artois (Belgian).

Hi Faina: Thanks for the tip. I live in LA so I haven't tried the place in SF, but I have asked beer warehouses around here.

Also, when I worked as a grocery checker, I asked a man who was a beer distributor for our liquor department if he could get it for us. His company already supplied us with the fancy Belgium beer that tastes like berries (and peach) and other micro-brewery beers. He hadn't heard of it. He asked his supervisor for me and he was told that it wasn't available. So I just assume that they don't export it.

It has a rather high alcohol content compared to American beers so I imagine that they'd have to change the recipe to fit our standards. Just another great excuse to go back to Italy!

The beers referred to are fruit "lambics." These beers are brewed using wild yeasts that are actively sought by exposing the new beer to the open air.

From producers like Cantillon, they are superb, challenging mixes of fine beer character with fruit overtones. The most traditional is cherry or "kriek" Whole pie cherries are used for the dosage. The "framboise" employs raspberries.

But, beware, there are many "crossover" fake-ola lambics produced by reputable brewers such as Lindemann who market cloyingly sweet export versions to us.

I don't see my posting on here, so I will try again. I don't know what is wrong with this screwed up message board!?

Anyway, my favorite is lambic beer, but it almost doesn't count, because it's like drinking carbonated fruit soda. My favorite "regular" beer is the very dark, almost black (cerny) Czech pivo. Nothing sold in America comes close. It MUST be fresh from tap. Great stuff, and I am NOT a beer drinker..!

But fruit lambics don't HAVE to taste like "carbonated fruit soda."

The good ones are to fruit soda as Kraft American Slices are to fine Gorgonzola or Brie.

Anyone tried Brains Bitter, Dark or SA?
(SA is fondly known as Skull Attack)
These wonderful brews are available and brewed in South Wales,but they don't travel too well.
The furthest I found them was Padstowe in Cornwall.
If your ever in Cardiff try them all out.
Muck

I'm not a beer drinker but I try in areas famous for theirs. I liked : blond Affligem

I prefer Leffe Blonde and the Chimays from Belgium. I was pleased to find them after we moved from Belgium to Frederick, Maryland.

My husband is partial to hefeweisen.

Some beer links:

http://www.beerfestivals.org/

http://www.dma.be/p/bier/beer.htm

There are many more websites with beer festival info - just do a search on Google.

Perhaps I'm spoiled as my local shop carries over 500 well selected European beers. My current favorite is Urboch 23 (Austrian). In Europe, I always go for draft and often go with a bartenders reccommendation.

This is "Eggenberger Urbock?

The first name is the brewer and the second is the style.

"Ur" means old or traditional.

"Bock" is a style.

Michael Jackson loves the beer, too.

there seems to be some "attitude" about poppa's posts. i think that if he's an authority (and he certainly seems to know his stuff), who's to quibble?

i wouldn't think of challanging maribel's information about madrid or ben haines' about london. hell, i like most of ira's stuff on italy and he's from georgia.

americans have this anti-intellectual misunderstanding of pedantry to such a degree that the word now has a pejoritive connotation.

i've learned a lot from poppa's contribution on this topic and i drink a couple of beers almost daily.

my world collapsed when the ballantine co. was bought out by falstaff and they closed the newark, nj brewery. both ballantine ale and the sublime "india pale ale" were lost forever.

beyond that: i'd like poppa to explain to me the difference btwn "top" and "bottom" brewing".

Yes, the Ballentine's IPA was a real survivor! Wow, what a nice beer. Fortunately there are some nice American IPAs in smaller breweries and you must have access to a few.

Didn't Ballentine also do "Little Kings" Cream Ale? That was a neat drink, too. Again, another style only seen rarely in renaissance brewpubs.

Of course I have an "attitude." I like the very best and am impatient with people who sit on their duffs and proclaim to know nothing and to care less about being informed. Think of what they miss!

Answer to "top" and "bottom" fermentations. Like so many terms this is a holdover from olden times that is not really pertinent.

In general, ale yeasts are said to be "top" yeasts and lager to be "bottom." But all beer yeasts form a top cake or cap early on and then sink as the rising ethanol levels kill them off.

The deal with ales is that they are drawn off the dead yeast cells and served while lagers are drawn off and, with some cells still in suspension, put to rest in cold storage to allow the beers to mature.

Of course, these lager yeasts gradually fall out of suspension and rest on the bottom of the vessel and, so, have been said to be just that - "bottom" yeasts while, in reality, millions of little buggers remain in suspension, doing their jobs.

Put another way, beers (ales) fermented at warmer temps have a notable yeast cap on top. Impressive and deadly if one gets in the way of the carbon dioxide resting in a layer on top of a large open vessel. Sure to stick in the mind and get a solid place in the brewing lexicon.

The Great American Beer Festival (GABF) awards medals to American beers each year. The judging is reliable.

Here is a site that lists the 2003 winners. Members may have some medal beers in their vicinities:

http://www.beertown.org/events/gabf/03winners.htm

I prefer wine to beer, but I had an apple-flavored beer in Poland called "Red" that I really liked. Hanven't found anything similar anywhere else.

American beer?? Sorry guys, but to this Canadian chick, American beer tastes like water. (. . . . or maybe Canadian water tastes like beer :-))) !!!)

Mustn't forget that marvy German "apfelkorn," delectable apple brandy.

C'mon Canadian Chick, Labatt's? Molson? Moosehead? You gotta be kiddin'.

Most Germans would not consider apfelkorn "delectable." In Germany, they sell more of it in gas stations than anywhere else--the Budweiser of brandies.

I wuv it.

Poppa - Molson's and Labatt's ain't real beer either.
You gotta try the beer from the microbreweries in Canada.
Almost every region has a large selection of these.

Another "European" favorite of mine = Guiness.

Yes! Your micros are, I hear, outstanding. To my shame I have not been North to sample them.

Of course Guinness is nectar and NO ONE knows how they do it. When you look up "balance" in the dictionary, a picture of draft Guinness is next to the entry.

The wonderful thing about that stout and many British "session" bitters is that they come in 1% (or more) lower in ethanol than do industrial lagers. One can have several pints, talk and laugh the evening away, and still arise next morning feeling fit.

And, of course, these so-called "weak" beers also provide tidal waves of satisfaction to the palate.

I apologize was being obnoxious (must be the NY'er in me) but my pet peeve is

It's Guinness with two n's. If it's your favorite you should be able to spell it (except Mina who got it right)

Sorry about my preaching, back to the beer debate

I love Guinness, no matter how it's spelled. The spelling and grammar lady should exit, stage left---------------> ((b))

Wow Irrover!
I did not know that being able to spell was a prerequisite for drinking in NYC. I really feel for you folks :S-

As a break from Warsteiner and Hatz, we're enjoying a beer drink very popular in the Loire Valley, particularly around Angers (the city that gives the world Cointreau), a Picon Biere. You mix 3 cl of Picon and 25 cl of beer (best with an inexpensive French beer like 1664).

It's very circumstantial of course - the same beer brand can go down much differently depending on the surroundings, company, blood alcohol level, etc.

For me, Guinness in Ireland (nowhere else - I know this is a cliche but it's one to which I subscribe.)

A pint of Adnam's best in a pub in Suffolk years ago - nectar.

Any pilsner-type brew served in a stone mug anywhere in Mitteleuropa.

But <i>the best</i> beer I ever had was a bottle of some anonymous live beer named something like Red Banner or Nevsky Prospekt or similar, consumed in Leningrad in the old soyuz days. You had to be careful not to imbibe the gloop at the bottom of the bottle, but, until then, Mayday, baby...