(Part 2) Best products from r/beer

Water has a huge effect on how beer tastes/smells/feels/etc. However, a company like Diageo can absolutely purify and treat the water at one location to be just like another.

In addition, all Guinness draught in the the UK and the US is made at the St. James Gate brewery in Ireland, though some other Guinness products may be made elsewhere.

A couple years ago, I was at the St. James Gate brewery the day before I flew home to the US. I bought a can of draught at both the brewery and then another at my local grocery store, and the day after I got home myself and about 20 other big nerds double-blind tasted them. The consensus was that they were different, though only just. Had I not had them side by side, I don't think I could have distinguished them. There was a slight preference among us for the one from Ireland, but it was not universal, as the beers were extremely similar.

We also all felt that what differences we could detect could be easily explained by the slightly different ages and markedly different shipping conditions experienced by the two cans.

I pretty firmly believe the differences between how we experience Guinness in the US vs. in Ireland are almost entirely due to psychological factors. We're excited to try it in Ireland, and we're relaxed and on vacation, priming us to enjoy the experience far more than we would having it at our local faux-Irish bar here in the states.

Whenever I think back to when I first discovered something I now love, I find that it was a time I was happy, relaxed and open to new experiences. Usually out with friends or family and having a good time well before I tried whatever thing I now love. I think drinking Guinness in Ireland has the same effect. It's not that the beer is different in Ireland, it's that we are different in Ireland!

Freshness, presentation, clean lines, correct gas pressures/mixtures, etc. certainly all play some role, but a good bar should have those pretty well dialed in in either country, minimizing the effect.

Do you know if he's into homebrewing? If so, there are lots of good, easy options.

If you want to send him beer, recommendations are going to depend on your location. Packing/shipping isn't all that hard, but here are our Packaging Tips on /r/beertrade.

Otherwise, you could order bottles from an online site (Archer would be a good one). There are also some great books and magazines. A subscription to Draft or Beer Advocate would be good (I think Draft's a bit better). Here are a couple good books: Tasting Beer, The Brewmaster's Table. There are lots more books/magazines for homebrewing. This nice set of Spiegelau Tulip Glasses would always be appreciated. You also could buy him a gift certificate to a a good beer store in his area - you can find most beer stores contact info on BeerAdvocate's Places (just click through to his city). Finally, brewery souvenirs (glasses, shirts, keychains, etc.) are always good gifts for beergeeks from elsewhere.

Hope that helped. /r/homebrewing could probably give you a great rundown of homebrewing options, if need be.

I'd say an unbranded tulip and you're done. Or two. Or four. Depending on your plans and your rate/likelihood of having beer geek guests over. To the degree glasses make a difference, this shape is favored for various reasons like, surface area exposure to generate more aromatics, concentrating those aromatics with the taper, head retention for some reason, etc.

Set of 2 Spiegelau

Set of 4 Spiegelau better price

Not sure why they call it a stemmed "pilsner" glass since we're used to seeing a different, taller style of glass typically associated with pilsners, but a tulip by any other name would smell as sweet. They make them smaller, but I like this bigger version.

I have a couple of these and they're just my default for anything better than everyday beer, but realistically could be somebody's only beer glass just as easily. I've never bothered to test whether my senses are attuned enough to notice a difference vs., say, a shaker pint, but I figure it can't hurt. With these in my cabinet, I don't otherwise feel compelled to get a bunch of different shapes for different styles. Some people are glass junkies and have fun getting lots of different kinds, but if you want to one-and-done it, I think this is the one.

I think branded glasses are tawdry myself but lots of people prefer branded/painted/artsy and like to collect different ones. Luckily there are tons of branded glasses in this shape from lots of breweries if you like that better than plain.

I would love this as well because I'm geeky like that. Books that I found interesting that you might as well:

-The Comic Book Story of Beer: A fun way to learn more about the history of beer as beverage. It goes into I'd say a medium amount of detail, enough that if you wanted to go deeper you'd have the right search terms. Plus it's a comic book...bonus! Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/Comic-Book-Story-Beer-Revolution/dp/1607746352

-National Geographic Atlas of Beer: Another medium level detail book about beer all over the world for a more global perspective plus it's National Geographic so the photography is gorgeous. Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/National-Geographic-Atlas-Beer-Globe-Trotting/dp/1426218338/

-Radical Brewing: Even if you don't homebrew I feel like this book is worth picking up, especially early on in your beer journey because it gives you an idea of what wide range of styles and ingredients can make up a "Beer" (with a capital B). Also, it's a good introduction to Randy Mosher who is a Beer Geek (with a capital B and a capital G). Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Radical-Brewing-Recipes-World-Altering-Meditations/dp/0937381837

If anyone has any other books along the same lines they enjoy, feel free to share them.

Cheers!

For info on styles, check out The Naked Pint. I read it when I first started getting into craft beer and I think it did a really good job of explaining all the various styles while also giving you a few well known examples of each. One of the best parts is that it tries to approach the styles in order from "most approachable" to "most challenging". So if you drink along with the book, you'll give yourself a pretty solid crash course.

If you want to go the route of trying to exclusively drink craft beers, that can be difficult. Check out the "Craft Check" app, which will scan a beer's barcode and tell you if it's legit craft beer or "crafty" beer (looks like craft, but actually brewed/owned by big beer).

Also, Sam Adams is cool. Boston Beer Co, which brews Sam Adams, is by definition a craft brewery. They just happen to be the largest craft brewery. In fact, the Brewers Association has intentionally raised the production limit for what constitutes "craft beer" specifically to keep Boston Beer listed as a craft brewery. Boston Beer is a major reason that craft beer is as successful as it is today, and despite their tremendous growth they remain an ally of the craft beer industry. Their size also allows them to throw their weight around more in terms of lobbying, which is good for the craft industry as a whole. Their owner, Jim Koch, has even helped fund new breweries (among other small businesses) through his "Brewing the American Dream" grants. So yeah, it's cool to like Sam. Their bigger beers (like Boston Lager) aren't anything special, but some of their seasonal brews and smaller batches are really damn good,

Yuengling is the oldest brewery in America, and also craft by definition, but a lot of people dislike them at the moment due to their owner's vocal support of Trump.

Yes, you may be developing a gluten intolerance (I know because I started to develop one around 31 years old and beer is normally the first sign). There are a bunch of products online that help you process gluten (link below to the one I use). Hard alcohol normally is distilled and does not contain gluten or is made from non-gluten sources, so that is also a sign that you may have a gluten intolerance since hard alcohol isn't as bad on your sickness.

On another note, all gluten-free beers (made from sorgum or rice) taste like poop IMO. There are a few products (clarity ferm by white labs for example) that are used as a clarifier to reduce protein haze for beer that actually break up the gluten protein and make beer "gluten-reduce" because the FDA won't let them call it gluten free (even though it is well below gluten free threshold). For example, I live in San Diego. Dogleg brewing (amazing place) , Duckfoot, Abnormal, and a number of other use clarity ferm and I can drink 3 of their beers no problem, but if I have even half a pint from a brewery that doesn't use it (gluten rich beer) then I'm sick for about 12-20 hours.

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Best of luck. Hope this helps.

Link for the one I use

https://www.amazon.com/Enzymatic-Therapy-Defense-Vegetarian-Capsules/dp/B0018MVUXU/ref=sr_1_7?keywords=gluten+enzyme&qid=1571158210&sr=8-7 .

First of all, the Reinheitsgebot of 1516 was only valid in Bavaria. So we're talking about the specifically Bavarian circumstances, and not generally German ones.

> Because hops was not always easy to get

Not in Bavaria. The Hallertau is thought to be the cradle of systematic hop cultivation, with the earliest recorded hop gardens dating back to the 9th century. There exist 11th century records from Wilhering abbey (which used to be in Bavaria, but due to Continental European geo-politics of the last 1000 years is now Austrian) that farmers had to deliver a certain amount of hops to the abbey every year. So hops in that region were extremely common.

In addition to that, the 1516 law in its original form was only valid until 1551. In that year, it was updated and the use of coriander and bay leaves was allowed.

> Also, since wheat was mainly used for baking, and the rulers didn't want any supply bottlenecks, they declared that only barley is to be used for brewing.

Generally true, but there are no records about the intentions of the 1516 Reinheitsgebot. A common saying used to be "wheat for the cake, oats for the horses, barley for the beer", so a separation in usage was definitely there.

> Exceptions were made for the use of wheat, just because it was profitable.

There weren't really any exceptions, there was an exclusive permission for a single noble house, the House of Degenberg. When that house went extinct, that permission went back to the Duke of Bavaria, who made wheat brewing an exclusive right of the state-owned and state-run Weisse Hofbräuhäuser. All the Bavarian white beer brewed outside these state-owned breweries, in particular a low-gravity version for poor people, was brewed with air-dried barley malt only.

Starting in the 19th century, people were allowed to buy this permission, and become leaseholders of the Weisse Hofbräuhäuser. In the second half of the 19th century, this exclusivity was abolished, and people were allowed to start their own private white beer breweries in which they could brew with wheat.

So how did this historic Bavarian law become a law in all of Germany? It didn't, really. With German unification, Bavaria demanded that their beer regulations, which was called a "substitution prohibition" (meaning that its ingredients of malt, hops, water and yeast couldn't be substituted with anything else), had to become federal law in all of Germany. The rest of Germany agreed, with some time to switch, to it only fully went into into effect in 1906. The term "Reinheitsgebot" itself was only coined in 1918 by Members of the Bavarian Parliament, more as a marketing term for the purity of Bavarian beer. After World War 1, German beer legislation was again reformed, and mostly got into its modern state: barley malt, hops, yeast and water are the only allowed ingredients in bottom-fermented beer, while malt (of any grain), hops, yeast, water, and optionally sugar and artificial sweeteners are allowed for top-fermented beers. Bavaria had its own strict regulations separate from the rest of Germany, which prohibited sugar and artificial sweeteners even for top-fermented beers.

So what's the issue here? The modern beer legislation is claimed to be directly connected to the historic 1516 Reinheitsgebot, while in fact, there is no direct connection: the prescribed ingredients are vastly different, as the historic law only speaks of barley, while modern legislation specifically mentions barley malt resp. any malted grains (for top-fermented beers).

> Today we are able to analyse everything we do very thoroughly, so I'd like to see the Reinheitsgebot as a certificate of quality, rather than a binding federal law.

The German Brewers Association and the Bavarian Brewers Association are set in their narratives. They don't care about arguments. Fortunately, some Bavarian craft brewers have found legal ways around it, e.g. by declaring their product not to be beer from an ingredient point of view (e.g. "alcoholic malt beverage flavoured with X"), while still being beer from a beer duty point of view.

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If you liked my comment and have more interest in the history of German beer: I wrote a book that discusses German beer styles outside the purity law, including historically sourced recipes for homebrewers.

Great suggestions already. I would also highly recommend Pete Brown's first three books:

Man Walks into a Pub: A Sociable History of Beer

Three Sheets to the Wind: One Man's Quest for the Meaning of Beer

[Hops and Glory: One Man's Search for the Beer That Built the British Empire] (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Hops-Glory-search-British-Empire/dp/0330511866/ref=tmm_pap_title_0)

Here's a link to more info from his Blog

Edit: formatting

I really like The Naked Pint. It's an easy read and it covers a good number of topics. I've loaned my copy out to a few people who have enjoyed it.

This is the downside of bombers and 750s for high-gravity beers. At least if you don't have some friends to share with.

There are definitely beers that I enjoyed the first half more than the second half because I became fatigued of the sweetness or alcohol content. I don't think that is a fault of the beer though, and I wish people would be more mindful of this fact in their beer reviews (kind of a tangent....).

You can buy some of these rabbit wine stoppers and throw the beer in the fridge for the next day or give some to your wife or friends or young kids.

Anyway, if you keep drinking long enough you will soon develop the skills/alcoholism to dome monsters like Black Tuesday all by yourself on a work night. I took a Deth's Tar last Friday and warded off the hangover by 3am.

There is definitely a level of snobbery surrounding certain things and a bad glass certainly doesn't ruin a beer but if the option is there then a nicer glass is always going to be more enjoyable. I'm the first to rally against snobbery and the amount of misinformation being passed around the internet surrounding beer - but I genuinely believe make a very noticeable difference

If I could recommend glasses (people might think I'm a shill for these guys because I always crap on about them here), I would recommend the Spiegelau Stemmed Pilsner. http://www.amazon.com/Spiegelau-Classics-Stemmed-Pilsner-Glasses/dp/B001CFR3XE

They feel so thin but are quite sturdy and just amazing to drink from.

If he doesn't have one already, a pocket-size beer tasting journal might be good. Hell, even if he has one, if he likes taking notes about his beers he might appreciate this.

If he's into homebrewing, maybe a homebrewing recipe journal? While we're on the subject of books, would a cocktail recipe book be useful to him, if he's also into liquor and mixology?

Glassware is probably a safe bet, too. If you know there's a type of glass he's missing or a type that he favors, get him one of those.

If you have a local bartending school, look into that and see if you could afford to pay for lessons, if that's something he'd be interested in.

I would recommend beer books:

• Vintage Beer Taster's Guide
  
• Tasting Beer
  
• The Brewmaster's Table
  
• Pretty much anything by Ronald Patterson or Michael Jackson
  
• Tim Webb's Good Beer Guide Belgium (7th ed)
  
  I know there are several good homebrewing focused ones as well if you think he'll be into that, but I don't remember those off hand and would have to dig some more.

I have done this with Stone bombers before except I used a cutting tool. It worked really well once you get the hang of it though I did lose a couple bottles in the learning curve. The bomber fits a regular sized beer perfectly. I would note that sandpapering to a nice curve takes a while so don't be surprised with that aspect. Also they seem dishwasher safe though I worry the printing may come off eventually so after awhile I switched to hand washing.

Great suggestion, but why not go all out and get the craft beer set The IPA glass is outstanding!

I'd probably but something like one of these links

http://www.amazon.com/Metrokane-Rabbit-Beverage-Stoppers-Assorted/dp/B005N0WCE4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1418844236&sr=8-1&keywords=wine+stopper

http://www.amazon.com/Set-Zyliss-Bottle-Stoppers-Assorted/dp/B001PNBZEQ/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1418844236&sr=8-12&keywords=wine+stopper

But what TheMoneyOfArt is completely right. These products are pretty much meant for wine, beer should really be drank in one sitting. I've only ever used bottle stoppers for wine.

If you're willing to spend the money, I would also recommend reading The Naked Pint

It's written in a simple, entertaining style and does a good job of introducing novices to terminology as well as a gradation of tastes and styles. It's also got sections on homebrewing for the more serious beer fiends

If he uses it because he likes the beer from it, I strongly suggest getting him a Spiegelau Beer Glass (also available individually). They get amazing reviews from every beer connoisseur who tries them.

I just finished reading Brewed Awakening and thought it was good. It's a bit weird to get used to visually (it's supposed to resemble a journal or scrapbook) but has a lot of great information about specific styles and then gives you examples to look for in that style.

The most glaring error in your video is that hops add alcoholic strength to a beer. But, I suggest you read a book like Hops And Glory and/or check out beer historian Martyn Cornell's blog Zythophile for some good old IPA myth-busting like this.

I linked to it at the top of the guide :) This is the one I used (from the photos): http://www.amazon.com/Diamond-Tech-Crafts-Bottle-Cutter/dp/B004ZRV3AU/

They also have it at Michael's for around $20, but if you wait for one of their 50% off coupon days (which they do like every month) you can get it for 10 bucks, which is cheaper than Amazon.

Yes, it actually will. Brewing relies heavily on the salt and mineral content of the water. Salt and mineral content changes significantly if they change a water source like that. Water content is also the reason why breweries are located in certain areas in certain states/countries around the world.

The other ingredients that you mentioned really don't have a huge impact, even with seasonal variations. Yeast is the only other factor that can seriously change flavor, and the yeast used in these beers is highly controlled and not subjected to conditions that will cause mutations.

For someone with the username 'Eddie_The_Brewer' you seem to not know a lot about brewing science.

Edit: And if you really don't believe me, there's a freaking book dedicated to water science: http://www.amazon.com/Water-A-Comprehensive-Guide-Brewers/dp/0937381993/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1371673133&sr=8-1&keywords=water+brewing

The Spiegelau set is usually a pretty good place to start, especially if you're looking for a decent range of glasses. You could add another glass or two onto it (snifter, flute, stange, nonic, etc.) if you think he brews styles that might call for one of those.

I bought one of these in white and I really couldn't ask for anything better. It's unbelievable how well it keeps things cold (or warm).

Lifeline 7500 Silver Stainless Steel Growler - 64 oz. Capacity

http://www.amazon.com/Lifeline-7500-Silver-Stainless-Growler/dp/B00AZMICOY/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1398889743&sr=8-7&keywords=growler

My girlfriend recently purchased this awesome set and it is quite awesome!

I've had success with champagne bottle stoppers. I've had better success recapping entirely, but that's not always practical for non-brewers.

These are the beer glasses I use - basically exclusively I think they work really well for all types. They are similar to your Choice C, but I think they are made of nicer (thinner) glass.

One additional suggestion is to pick up the 99 beers journal set. Its realtively easy to use, and helps you develop since you have a log of what you are tasting. http://www.amazon.com/99-Bottles-Beer-Journal-Set/dp/1452106215

Just bought several of these as groomsman gifts. I also got one for myself. Used it for the first time the other day and I like it. Gets the job done well! I want to try to take it camping soon and see how it really holds up!

+1 for this opener. It holds a seal pretty well. For 750's I have these:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B001PNBZEQ/ref=mp_s_a_1_18?qid=1413647079&sr=1-18&pi=AC_SX110_SY165_QL70

I would buy a set of these, they're a great glass for any beer style.

I have one of these, it works great. I just score the glass, and pour boiling water over it for a couple seconds, followed by a dip under cold water. Dozens of clean cuts and no issues yet.

I just finished Brewed Awakening and enjoyed it very much.

If you're looking for a growler these, Lifeline 7500 Silver Stainless Steel Growler - 64 oz. Capacity https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AZMICOY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_QazwxbJSM77A1, are my personal favorite. Double walled and vacuum seal keeps your beer cold and light out.

https://www.amazon.com/Good-Beer-Guide-Belgium-Webb/dp/1852493119

This would be well worth picking up.

Hands down Spiegelau tasting kit. That's a good price for it too.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BTPUQZO?ie=UTF8&at=&force-full-site=1&ref_=aw_bottom_links

The Naked Pint is a good read on craft beer. It goes into detail about the how and whys of most types of beer and lists examples of beers to try for each style.

Would something like this be worth it?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00BTPUQZO/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?qid=1409869368&sr=8-3&pi=SX200_QL40

https://www.amazon.com/Spiegelau-Classics-Stemmed-Pilsner-Glasses/dp/B001CFR3XE

I got these for cheaper than this, and tpyically use them or another tulip. They arent 14-16 oz i dont think, but i dont pour out a while one a time. Libbey makes some ones that are similar and cheaper still, though the glass is a bit thicker. a normal pint glass wouldnt be bad though

Money is no object: Spiegelau My favorite glass ever, I keep a stockpile of them

Budget: Duvel There's a reason it's so popular

Amazon has the Spiegelau craft beer tasting set. I have 2 sets. this is what I have

Spieglau sells a mixed pack of 4 glasses that includes a Hefe, a Pils, a Snifter and an "Ale" glass. I think that's the breakdown. Here's a link to it on Amazon.

Here's one for $30. If you watch it, they will get as low as $23 and work fantastically well.

http://www.amazon.com/Lifeline-7500-Silver-Stainless-Growler/dp/B00AZMICOY/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1380695524&sr=8-2&keywords=lifeline+stainless+steel+growler

The Naked Pint

If you're drinking an IPA drink it from the Spiegelau IPA Glass. Almost anything else can be drank from a Stemmed Pilsner.

Only exception imo are heavy abv bourbon barrel(or other heavy barrel aged) beers. For those I go with a Teku

If you have to buy one to use for everything, get a stemmed tulip style glass. http://amzn.com/B003QRJCY4

Here is a cheaper option I've used and after some trial and error I get a flat cut on 80%+ as your friend does. From there its just some minor sanding with emory paper.