Like most people my age, the beer that I used to drink would be better categorized as beer flavored water. When I started drinking, the advent of craft/micro-brewed beer had not yet occurred. From what I can recall, at that time in Texas, the only available beers not imported, or made by one of the big 3 (Miller, Coors, and AB) breweries, were Shiner (Spoetzl Brewery) and Samuel Adams (Boston Beer Co). So being young, ill informed, and most of all broke, most of my imbibing consisted of drinking cheap swill.
I'm not sure if any of those imported beers were ever considered to be craft or micro-brewed. My guess is no, since the term "craft" probably didn't exist back then, and their production levels were obviously high enough to be importing to the US on a regular basis. So the probability is that my first craft beer was either a Samuel Adams Boston Lager, or a Shiner Bock. Even back then those, now largely recognized, breweries didn't have much selection. I remember seeing the occasional Samuel Adams seasonal, but as for Shiner, the only regular beers I remember were the Bock and the Blonde.
Fast forward 4 years. In 2005 me and my mates relocated to Denton in an effort to break into the music scene there. Denton had beers on the shelves that I had never heard of, much less tasted. However, being in a no name band (actually the name of the band was Hello Samuel if you must know), and working in a warehouse are not very lucrative positions. So still, most of my imbibing consisted of the cheap stuff.
In October 2006 I got my own apartment. It was in that apartment, that I have my first substantial memory of drinking a craft beer. I say substantial, because it was the first time I purchased a beer with the intention to try something new. A beer to take me out of my comfort zone. A brewery I had never heard of. A beer style I had never heard of. That beer was the Anchor Brewing Porter. I had absolutely no idea what to expect. I didn't know if it would be light or dark, great or crap. Conclusion, it wasn't good. It was great! It was black as night with a thick tan head. The flavors were the boldest I had ever tasted, yet it was invitingly sweet. I thought, if that beer was that good, why had I never heard of it? How many other great beers were out there? Thus began my journey.
Eight years have passed since that night and I have now tasted 475 different beers. Disclaimer: this number is an estimate. To the best of my memory, I have tried to remember all the beers that I've tasted before I actually started keeping track. That includes ALL beers, even piss water produced by the big 3 breweries. I chose not to neglect them, because they are a part of my beer history.
I should've started this blog years ago, but I start it now in order to document my countdown to 500.
In the next few entries, expect only to see the next 25 beers that I taste. I will eventually catch you up on the first 475, including photos and a list for your viewing pleasure.
Up next, #476.
Thanks for reading, see ya next beer.
Adam.
