Transcript
Well, if you walk into a craft beer bar, one of the first things that you’re gonna wanna do is to locate the beer list and on that beer list you’re gonna look for a section that says style and, hopefully at this point, you’re a little bit familiar with styles of beer that you like, but not to worry if you’re not. One of the good things about a craft beer bar is that as long as the bar is not too crowded, the bartender can usually help you out with this. So for instance, if you walk in and you really have no idea at all what sort of beer you like, the bartender is probably gonna ask you to give you an example of beers that you’ve enjoyed. If you say Guinness, they’re gonna take you in a certain direction. If you say Stella Artois, they’re gonna take you in a totally different direction and a million places in between. They might ask you to taste a beer and ask your reception to it. For instance, if you taste a beer and you find it bitter and off-putting, they’re gonna head you towards a maltier style of beer.
But again, you know, the best thing to do is to figure out which beers you’ve enjoyed and what style those beers are and then find those styles on the menu and order something that is of the same style and that way you’re pretty much guaranteed to enjoy the beer that you have. Conversely, a great thing to do is to look at a style that you’ve never tried before, but have always been interested in. Maybe you’ve heard a lot of buzz about sour beers and you can’t even imagine what that would be like. If you’re feeling adventurous and it seems the price is good for you, go ahead and try that. It might surprise you and at the very least you’re gonna have something that you’ve never tried before and it can be a really good learning experience.
Also, when you’re chatting up that bartender, often times they will be willing to give you a small taste of it. So again at a craft beer bar, chat up the bartender, find the styles, work from there. If you’re going into a store to buy beer, it can be a little bit more difficult because often times they won’t have the staff on hand to sort of guide you towards the correct beer, but you can also do the same thing when you’re looking at what styles of beers are available and also the strength of beer. The ABV or the alcohol by volume. You don’t want to stumble into a 10% heavy beer if really what you like lighter pilsners. So in a nutshell, that’s how to buy beer.
