I visited a new bar in Chicago over the holidays called Quenchers. Great bar with 24 brews on tap, 125 domestic bottles, and over 160 imported bottles. Available brews are listed out by country and state on chalkboards all over the bar. I felt both deliriously happy at my options, as well as overwhelmed. So … how to choose? There are hundreds of ways to narrow the field, some are legitimate and serious, while others may just help you choose for choosing’s sake. Here are a few popular ways to narrow down your brew choice:
Trust A Bartender: Always a good idea to ask the bartender, but be prepared to answer some questions. If you can narrow the field down, the tender will be ready with a recommendation and 9 times out of 10, I’ve been happy with the barman/woman’s expert opinion. As soon as I mentioned IPA at Quenchers, the kind bartender suggested Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA, and I am thankful because, as Nate reviewed, this is a top rate IPA.
Trust An Advertiser: This option is FAR less likely to land you a tasty brew. However, I am always still happy I tried. Call me a sucker, but give me a multi-million dollar ad campaign, and I’ll try it. Case in point: Heineken Light (don’t cha wish your girlfriend was hot like me…. remember?) And at the very least, next time I see yet another Bud Light Wheat commercial I can share my own opinion instead of always wondering.
Try them all: This does not work in places like Quenchers with hundreds of choices unless you have a superhuman tolerance or a years worth of time. However, next time you’re at a microbrewery let me emphatically suggest a sampling platter. Samplers offer a few ounces of each beer the microbrewery is currently offering. If this is an option somewhere, you can bet I’m trying all the brewery has to offer!
Be Random: Sometimes it just doesn’t matter. Be vain and choose based on looks. Be immature and pick the funny name. Just try something. This isn’t a long term commitment, it’s just one beer at a bar, or maybe a 6-pack from the store.
Consult a Chart: Okay there’s no explanation here, I just think this flowchart is funny.
Consult a Friend: After my Dogfish IPA at Quenchers, I decided to try one more. At the recommendation of a few friends I moved on to the Delirium Tremens on tap. Again another brilliant choice, I am lucky to have friends who steer me right. However, I will note that if your friends cannot be relied upon to make decent recommendations, you can always check out our top rated beers. We’re friends too, right?
Time to chime in: what other criteria can be used when you are faced with too many beer choices?
Be brave, go international. And if you’re going international, go Belgium…in my opinion.
Wow, Megan, this was a great post. Informative and funny (flow chart especially). Per some of The Perfectly Happy Men, finding the ‘perfect’ of a particular type of brew you already know you enjoy, always leads you from one choice to the next. For instance, in searching for my ideal Belgium, I’ve gone down the ‘list’ sipping the famous to the infamous.
If I’m at a place that has a ridiculous amount of beer, I like to pick a country that I’ve never been to and drink their beer. Because of this strategy, I can say I’ve had Vietnamese AND Bulgarian beer. I also enjoy the “silly name” strategy.
Grab a beer style you’ve never tried before. There are so many to choose from, and even more variations within each style. Plus, craft breweries are literally making up styles these days.
Well written AND I literally laughed out loud at the flow chart.
Yeah that flow chart was the tops!
Megan..thanks for the comments and insight. I too loved the flow chart. Unfortunately, I’m not going to say which box I fell in.
Like the review and am impressed that Ale Asylum made it on the Flowchart. One other method I like that works at many brewpubs is to order a sampler. Some places have them in 3, 5 and 7 sample sizes where you pick several to sample, others have a set menu for their sampler. Rock Bottom, Yardhouse and Gordon Biersch are fun places to go for something like that.