My go-to beer is Beaver Island Brewery 39 Red. It is a nice red IPA. Now available in cans, but not in the cities yet.

Just got a 6 pack of it yesterday at the beer store in Elk River. My wife and I both like it.

Lakefront's WestSide Stein Amber Lager, others must agree, they are putting it in cans, which I will not try, I see they have changed the label, those bass turds

my other fave is Clearwater Brewery's Fat Bitch Mountain Spring Fruit Fly Ale, it has carmel and citrus tones with a hint of wintergreen

I don't have one but In my early days of getting acquainted with craft beer I thought I needed the safety blanket.
It seems like a "go to beer" would imply six pack or other widely available packaging. I can't see it being synonymous with best or favorite beer because, frankly, the best version of any beer usually comes from the tap at the brewery where it was made.

Having a favorite beer to consume most of the time, especially from six-packs, would cramp my efforts to gain wide experience in this golden age of craft beer. Just last night, I had Olde Suffolk English Ale. The style was "old ale," a style I'd never tried before. I liked it a lot but despite that it will not be the next beer I buy. The next beer will likely be something I've never tried before. Someday, when I feel I have explored enough, I will return to all those favorites I discovered.

Schell's Pilsner.

quote Jeriatric: "I don't have one but In my early days of getting acquainted with craft beer I thought I needed the safety blanket.
It seems like a "go to beer" would imply six pack or other widely available packaging. I can't see it being synonymous with best or favorite beer because, frankly, the best version of any beer usually comes from the tap at the brewery where it was made.


Having a favorite beer to consume most of the time, especially from six-packs, would cramp my efforts to gain wide experience in this golden age of craft beer. Just last night, I had Olde Suffolk English Ale. The style was "old ale," a style I'd never tried before. I liked it a lot but despite that it will not be the next beer I buy. The next beer will likely be something I've never tried before. Someday, when I feel I have explored enough, I will return to all those favorites I discovered.
"

I'm not sure why you think go to would imply six pack, nor would it be best. Go To to me means the beer you return to, the old reliable after you tried a craft beer that you spit out on the floor. So much of the so called craft beer today is a gimmick, it is over priced and unsatisfying. Your Go To beer is the beer you return to again and again because you know it is satisfying. It's maker doesn't make any claim that it goes well with a particular dish, it goes with anything or by itself because it is good.

My assumption is that breweries put their beer in cans because their customers demand it and they are in business to make a profit. Sure they are in business to make the best beer, but without profit they won't be in business long.

@ Zarasp00k
"six pack or other widely available packaging" is what I said, something that you can easily buy at a nearby store.
To repeat, I don't have an "old reliable" for myself because exploring is too much fun. I also don't have an "old reliable" to serve guests because I have found that folks have different tastes. They might not like what I like. I found it best to have a small selection for them to choose from or to drink what they brought with them.

I don't understand your attitude towards cans. Blind taste tests have shown that consumers prefer craft beer poured from cans (into a glass) over craft beer from bottles (poured into a glass). It makes sense to me, cans are more light tight and air tight than bottles. Beer in cans takes longer to degrade, most important when it comes to beer high in hops.

Brewers did NOT package beer in cans with the idea that consumers should be drinking directly from the cans.

In the case of cheap, mass produced beer, testers found the preference to be reversed. Consumers preferred cheap beer poured from bottles (into a glass) over that from cans.

Whereas brewers have been transitioning to cans, they are now starting to offer aluminum, pull-top "crowlers" as a replacement for their quart-sized, glass growlers, to carry from the brewery. Aluminum "crowlers" are the second best option, after drinking the beer right at the brewery.
Drinking beer from the appropriate style glass, having been poured from a can, is a step up from drinking directly from a bottle. You know how it is harder to taste things when you have a cold? Excluding your nose from the tasting experience is a little like having a cold. That is what is happening when you drink from a bottle.

Can you picture the consumer of a fine wine drinking directly from the bottle? Neither can I.

There are fine beers too.

It’s not quite as simple as that.
Cans cool quicker, but also warm quicker, so if lager is going to be consumed directly out of the can, a bottle will likely be preferred. Secondly, a can is only coated on the inside, so again, regardless of beer type consumed, your tongue will taste the aluminum can so if the beer is consumed directly from the container a bottle will likely be preferred.
This is why the taste tastes that have been conducted between can and bottle are faulty, most people consume their beer directly out of the container it came in. Brewers would like people to believe there is no difference because profits will be greater with canning because bottling is more expensive.

Thirdly, the nose does not perceive aromas only through the nostrils, the sensing cells also detect aromas though the canal to the mouth/throat, although less so. In addition, your nose detects the aroma as bottle or can is brought to the mouth, although it won’t concentrate the aroma like a glass. I suppose if you are a beer snob, you consume beer from a whine glass. Pouring from a container to a glass loses some of the carbonation in addition to warming it.

Brewers prefer cans to bottles because they are less expensive on all accounts. Consumers like cans because they consume less space and cool quicker which is important for picnics etc. because they are going in a cooler, not to mention the fact that some places like beaches do not allow glass. People who have brought their beer with them are not likely to pour it into a glass, they will most likely consume it directly from the container they bought it in. Cans also can be crushed to reduce space for recycling, consumers don’t break their bottles to make them more compact. Cans are less likely to break than bottles.

Bottom line is that cans are more convenient, both for consumer and brewer.

Yes, I prefer beer from the tap as well. But that too has its problems if proper cleaning is not followed, there is nothing worse than skunk beer. And then there is the issue of is the glass clean and at the proper temperature.

It will be interesting to see if some of the so called craft brewing industry is able to move consumers away from bottles to cans. Many consumers are likely to discover they CAN taste the difference between bottle and can because they drink directly from the container, and they don’t like the taste of the can.

Smokers likely can't taste anything except the alcohol, which is all they really want anyway.

Actually, it IS that simple. Metallic taste is only apparent in weak flavored beer from cans like B_d and _oo_s. More intensely flavored beers do not have metallic tastes that the average consumer can detect. Once again, you are not supposed to drink it directly from the can.
I used to buy Dale's Pale Ale when it was the only craft beer in cans. Dale's was an experiment to see how consumers would react. Consumers reacted favorably. Sales of cans is growing more rapidly than sales of bottles. That growth is consumer driven, not a "conspiracy" by brewers. Consumers are not reading or even seeing propaganda favoring cans. They are increasingly choosing cans because beer often tastes better than that from bottles because of light and air contamination. Bottles and cans cost the same, so people are not choosing a lower cost option. They are choosing a better tasting option.

Regarding your theory that beer loses its carbonation and warms when poured, you need to get word to brewers to stop pouring and start handing bottles to people who visit the breweries. While you are at it, tell them to quit being so greedy.

Your opinion and my opinion do not matter. Consumers are deciding what THEY want. Conspiracy theorists can whine all they want.

It's always fun arguing with a woman, especially a liberal one because they talk in circles often repeating what you have said as if it is their own.

In my original post I said it was consumer driven, but your claim it is based on taste is pure made up. It is cost and convenience, cans cost less. Like a typical liberal female you think because you say it is true, it is. Your post reeks of "I am better than you" . Oh my, that Jeriatric, such a worldly lady, she drinks expensive beer from a whine glass. I better do that to so others are impressed by me too.

It will be interesting to see what happens with Lakefront's canned experiment. Likely it will increase sales because giving consumers what they want, in this case both cans and bottles, is good business. Testing whether consumers like the taste of beer drank from a can or a bottle is pretty difficult, the test would only be accurate if they don't know if they are drinking from a bottle or a can which is damn hard to do, and if they don't drink it from a bottle and can it doesn't answer the question because that's the way the vast majority of people drink beer.

quote ZaraSp00k: "It's always fun arguing with a woman, especially a liberal one because they talk in circles often repeating what you have said as if it is their own.


In my original post I said it was consumer driven, but your claim it is based on taste is pure made up. It is cost and convenience, cans cost less. Like a typical liberal female you think because you say it is true, it is. Your post reeks of "I am better than you" . Oh my, that Jeriatric, such a worldly lady, she drinks expensive beer from a whine glass. I better do that to so others are impressed by me too.


It will be interesting to see what happens with Lakefront's canned experiment. Likely it will increase sales because giving consumers what they want, in this case both cans and bottles, is good business. Testing whether consumers like the taste of beer drank from a can or a bottle is pretty difficult, the test would only be accurate if they don't know if they are drinking from a bottle or a can which is damn hard to do, and if they don't drink it from a bottle and can it doesn't answer the question because that's the way the vast majority of people drink beer.
"

You are very rude and annoying! Go to the politics blog if you want to cause problems. Your picking a fight over cans vs. bottles! Why do you think nobody posted on your last post on the beer blog? It's incredibly annoying! Be nice or go away!

My go to beer lately is Lagunitas 12th of never. In Cans!

Founders All Day IPA. It is a great session beer.

Surly's Todd the Axe Man. Poured from a can into a pint glass. Stays cold for the time it takes me to drink it. When whatever's in the Weber is done, time for another with dinner.

quote PaddlinMadeline: "


You are very rude and annoying! Go to the politics blog if you want to cause problems. Your picking a fight over cans vs. bottles! Why do you think nobody posted on your last post on the beer blog? It's incredibly annoying! Be nice or go away!"

you didn't say what your go to beer was
maybe like Jeri, there are just too many beers to make up your mind?

too bad you got your feathers ruffled, I deal in facts, If you don't like a discussion about cans vs. bottles maybe you are the one that should go to the political blog, I'm sure there are many more of your type there. Given Sierra Nevada's problems with bottles, it is understandable they would be interested in cans vs. bottles, and so too might people here.

I noticed there were 12 packs of River West at the Pick n Save priced 50 cents less than bottles, it got me curious, I could not find an example of where cans were priced the same or more than bottles. Some people might prefer the taste of beer from a can, but the fact that it is cheaper and more convenient might also have something to do with it. Might hell, it does.

quote ZaraSp00k: "It's always fun arguing with a woman, especially a liberal one because they talk in circles often repeating what you have said as if it is their own...
Oh my, that Jeriatric, such a worldly lady, she drinks expensive beer from a whine glass. I better do that to so others are impressed by me too.
"

Sara...You do realize that Jerry is a man right? I might add that he is a respectable man that won't join pointless arguments.

quote schweady: "Surly's Todd the Axe Man. Poured from a can into a pint glass. Stays cold for the time it takes me to drink it. When whatever's in the Weber is done, time for another with dinner.
"

+1

Rush River's Unforgiven Amber. Almost perfect.

And the Rush River Double Bubble. So nice with honey.

Most beers from Founders will follow me home. I’m also a fan of Central Waters. My go to changes with the seasons I like IPAs when it’s hot and Bourbon barrel stouts and porters when it’s cold.

Unfortunately my go to is only available for a few months a year. The Castle Danger White Pine IPA is my favorite, when that isn't available I usually pick up the Ode IPA. I'm far from a beer snob though as I have no problem drinking Bud or Coors, it really just depends on my mood and the situation.

timatkn: "

quote schweady: "Surly's Todd the Axe Man. Poured from a can into a pint glass. Stays cold for the time it takes me to drink it. When whatever's in the Weber is done, time for another with dinner."

+1 "

I swear they changed this...no longer my go to.

T

mr.barley: "Schell's Pilsner."

Schell's Firebrick is on my very short list. A friend introduced it to me a while back.

Surly Furious.

Fifty-five years ago, my go-to beer was Buckhorn. The beer was terrible but the price of 85 cents per six pack made it my number one choice.
Once I had graduated from college, I moved up to Coors, reputedly the best beer in the world. Back then, Coors was not sold in the East. I have not finished a Coors in decades now although I did leave a Coors Light unfinished in the airport upon one of my returns from the UK a few years ago.
Thirty years ago, I would order an ipa whenever I visited a brewery. I am not sure why. Maybe because everyone else seem to order ipas.
In my fridge today, I have a couple of different kettle sours, a couple kolsch style ales (one German, one American), a four pack of ipas and some wheat beers.
Whenever I go to a pub or brewery, I never order the same things I have in the fridge. Even so, I will never approach even 1% of what's available. Also, the next time I fill the fridge, the beers will be somewhat different.

For the moment, I lean German. The real lesson I have learned in 74 years of life is that for most of us "variety is the spice of life."