/ck/ - Food & Cooking

[Anonymous No.16671672]

What's the best readily available German beer in the US? The ones where I could literally walk in on any Specs or Total Wine and it will be there? I've been looking around and all I see is pic related, Paulaner, Hofbrau, Ayinger, etc.

[Anonymous No.16671676]

american beer brewers make better german beer than germens.

[Anonymous No.16671696]

This is the best German beer I've ever had, and among the best beer period I''ve ever had, among 300+ different micros/macros.

If you haven't tried this, you must.

[Anonymous No.16671996]

>>16671672
Weihenstephaner is almost always great, especially their hefeweizen. But Reissdorf and Gaffel kolsches are awesome but a little harder to find fresh

[Anonymous No.16672016]

>>16671996
>Gaffel Kolsch
Mein neger

[Anonymous No.16672117]

>>16671996
>kölsch
Why not just stick with lite beer?

[Anonymous No.16672135]

>>16671676
The only way to have this opinion is to never have tasted German beer. German beer absolutely shits on anything coming out of the U.S. Right here OP. Or the Pilsner.

[Anonymous No.16673535]

>>16672135
>German beer absolutely shits on anything coming out of the U.S.
lmao

[Anonymous No.16673581]

>>16673535
I swear the people who say this have only tried Budweiser and Miller and other adjunct shit with a bunch of corn syrup or rice in the brew and compare that to their glorius reinsheitgebot.
Live Oak brewing out of Austin makes a better hefeweizen than any i tried in Germany. Their Berliner weisse is great too.

[Anonymous No.16673777]

>>16671696
Mein Neger

[Anonymous No.16673780]

>>16671672
This or salvator is good and ought to be common

[Anonymous No.16673809]

>>16671696
I came in here expecting a shit show but this is actually the answer.

[Anonymous No.16673865]

>>16671996
There's a bar I go to in Brooklyn that has Ayinger Pils and Reissdorf on tap
The Ayinger is very good and I'm looking forward to trying the Reissdorf

[Anonymous No.16673871]

>>16672135
I love German beer but you're stuck in the 80s

[Anonymous No.16674108]

Are all these German beers made in the US or are they imported?

[Anonymous No.16674113]

Which German pils are the best?

[Anonymous No.16674169]

>>16673780
I poured the fucking salvator i bought down the drain, shit was nasty.

[Anonymous No.16674179]

Where my dunkels at?

[Anonymous No.16674651]

>>16671672
just drink the bavaricum and stop complaining.

[Anonymous No.16674675]

I will take any German beer over America's shitty sours, IPAs, and gay fruity garbage. Like I want beer to taste like beer, not like I shoved potpourri in my fucking mouth

[Anonymous No.16674677]

>>16672135
Nah they're right. If it was fresh, you'd maybe have a point. Most imports are overpriced and worse than american alternatives now

[Anonymous No.16674706]

>>16671672
Warsteiner is good and pretty common.

[Anonymous No.16674725]

>>16674675
>i want beer to taste like beer
>no shitty sours or gay fruity garbage
>what is gose
>what is berliner weisse
>what is hefeweizen
not to mention you can easily get a quality lager or kolsch from an american brewery if you look past all the milbudoors lite and hopfucker ipas.

[Anonymous No.16674833]

>>16671672
mexicans do german style beer better than germans, maybe its just because the proximity allows better freshness i dont know, maybe if you went to getmany it would be better.

[Anonymous No.16675069]

>>16672135
americans make the best beers in the world
look it up
>as voted by american associations

[Anonymous No.16675415]

>>16671696
Got the last pack at the store two days ago, still got one of these bad boys left in the back of the fridge. Absolutely patrician taste.

[Anonymous No.16675470]

[Anonymous No.16675753]

>>16674725
None of those taste at all like the beers listed, though

[Anonymous No.16675757]

>>16675753
Berliner Weiss is a sour. Gose is tart. Hefeweizens are full of clove and banana flavor. And I guess to top it all off, Germany and pretty much every country that's ever made beer, puts some type of fruit in it and it's almost always incredibly popular

[Anonymous No.16675762]

>>16675757
Only Berliner Weisse is drunken with fruit syrups to mask its disgusting flavour. Otherwise only radler/alster (pils+sprite) is popular amoung those, who don't really like the taste of beer. If people want fruit tastes they rather drink (fruit) wines or cocktails.

[Anonymous No.16675766]

>>16671672 Warsteiner?

[Anonymous No.16675992]

>>16675470
Hoffbrau is dogshit

[Anonymous No.16676055]

>>16675766
Warsteiner, Radeberger and König Pilsener are the worst German premium pilseners. Avoid them. Warsteiner Herb is ok, but i doubt you can buy it abroad.

[Anonymous No.16677374]

>>16675992
fite me

[Anonymous No.16677433]

>>16675992
t. never tried Hofbrau

[Anonymous No.16677500]

I personally think White Ales are the best type of beer. I had this brand and it was really good. Crisp, clean, fruity, and delicious. I won't disagree that lagers are classic and a nice stout in the winter are fantastic, but I always pick white ale as a standard drink.

[Anonymous No.16677534]

>>16675757
>Germany and pretty much every country that's ever made beer, puts some type of fruit in it
Germans won't because of the Reinheitsgebot, right?

[Anonymous No.16677654]

>>16677534
You could do it, but couldn't name it straight beer. It's just not common and people rather mix beer with juice or soda.

[Anonymous No.16678011]

>>16674675
Yeah I hate IPAs, they're headache juice

[Anonymous No.16678017]

>>16675762
>Hefweizen isn't popular
>>16675992
Hofbrau Munich Helles is a 10/10 beer

[Anonymous No.16678104]

>>16678017
>Hefweizen isn't popular
Not fruity. Everybody is talking about the banana shit, but if you give it to people, who are not into beer they wouldn't say "yeah, that tastes totally like banana juice".

[Anonymous No.16678442]

>>16675470
booba

[Anonymous No.16678811]

>>16675470
i'm celebrating early mfers

[Anonymous No.16678819]

>>16678104
if you give someone an american "gay fruity garbage" beer no one would say "yeah, that tastes totally like [fruit] juice".
The point is it doesn't taste like a standard beer because it's fruity (and hefeweizen IS fruity).

[Anonymous No.16678858]

>>16672135
>German beer absolutely shits on anything coming out of the U.S.
That's just straight up wrong now, Portland and Chicago have taken the world with their craft beer scene. Maybe if we're talking traditional beer culture, sure, yeah Germany wins but the artisanal craft brew scene in both Portland and Chicago has matured so fast and they've brought some of the best beers ever made.

[Anonymous No.16678865]

>>16678858
to add more to that, I attribute the success of both cities' beer scene from the hop production of the Pacific Northwest and the grain production in America's breadbasket, the Midwest. Trust me when I say, you want to try the beer from those cities.

[Anonymous No.16678867]

>>16678858
Those beers are fuckn gross though

[Anonymous No.16678882]

>>16678858
IPAs and pastry stouts are overrated
Most American breweries specialize in meme styles like that, while in Germany, beer that are neither pisswater or memes is widely available.
There's a reason people don't drink IPAs for Octoberfest events

[Anonymous No.16678895]

>>16678867
The Chicago Pilsner is pretty based though, the technique was brought over by the migrants from Plzeň where one of our neighborhoods was named after

[Anonymous No.16678930]

>>16678882
I'll give you that IPAs and full bodied stouts are overrated and it has been the meme here for a while but the scene is moving forward from what I'm seeing at the local taprooms. As a Pale Ale guy myself, I still enjoy a good IPA but I understand how overwhelming the hops can be for the unacquainted.

[Anonymous No.16678985]

>>16678930
>unacquianted
I've been drinking IPAs since 2010. It's not that they taste bad to me but they're such a one and done as far as what I want to drink when I'm drinking.
I think the scene has become even MORE IPA centric.

[Anonymous No.16678995]

>>16678985
>I think the scene has become even MORE IPA centric.
I mean, you're kind of right on that, the latest thing is hazy IPAs and that's where I draw the line

[Anonymous No.16680327]

>>16674113
get a czech one instead. pilsner urquell is a bit of a meme but it's genuinely very good and a decent starting point

[Anonymous No.16680334]

>>16678930
>As a Pale Ale guy myself, I still enjoy a good IPA but I understand how overwhelming the hops can be for the unacquainted.

[Anonymous No.16680367]

>>16674113
Jever is probably the most unique German pils. Maybe not the best but still nothing is as bitter, dry and thin as this.
Avoid everything from global groups like Ab InBev, because they change the recipes for export so you will end up with less bitter beers. Many of the most popular pilseners are kinda mild for the type and barely qualify as pils. Stick with northern beers as they add lots of hops (only bitter hops but no aroma hops though), because that's what people there like or Bavarian, because their pils has to have at least 30 ibu per law. The latter ones are more similar to Czech ones.

[Anonymous No.16680395]

>>16671672
Schneider and Sohn hefeweizen and Aventinus is master race.

[Anonymous No.16681582]

>>16671672
I love Weihenstephaner, that's probably the one I'd have recommended. Otherwise, consider looking into Polish beers. Tyskie, from Silesia, is what the brickmasons here drink. In Chicago you'll find it all over.

Tangentially-related, Clausthaler seems to be making big strides in availability and they're probably the best NA beer brand I know. German, Comes in a variety of styles too.

[Anonymous No.16681714]

>>16678867
there's plenty of really indulgent small-batch experiments that I find in poor taste, but that just says more of the breadth and depth of the market here. I actually like simpler, maltier stuff, like Helles, Kolsch, Irish red, etc. With no deep love of motoroil-stouts and doppelbocks and such meme- favorites. So when I say there's plenty for me, I think there's plenty for everyone. And it's not a "craft" brand anymore but the signature 312 wheat ale is so accessible to even neophyte beerdrinkers, you'd almost think it was a shandy. Marz Brewing does a lotta goofy "Blueberry Muffin IPA" type shit but they also have something like "here's our better-version of a Miller High Life", can't object to that.

Actually something real significant around here that you haven't seen catch the spotlight yet: The number-one most-purchased beer in Chicago is Modelo. Makes sense if you look at the 2020 census, but a lot of the "up and coming" areas are in transitional hispanic neighborhoods where you're seeing Tecates and Pacificos. I'd be curious if, in the next couple years, that German/Czech-influenced, easydrinking Mexican-Lager wasn't a style that we see explored more by more brands. Interestingly, many of the hispanic populationbases in Chicago were formerly Bohemian neighborhoods themselves, Pilsen and the once-"Bohemian California" you'll still see Czech carved into the stone of churches that have been, for generations now, Spanish-language congregations. On Cermak.

[Anonymous No.16682198]

>>16681714
Modelo is really popular among hipsters (they don't drink PBR anymore), it's not just Mexicans.
And yes, some craft breweries are makinf Mexican style lagers now.

[Anonymous No.16682204]

>>16680367
I had Ayinger Pils from Bavaria and it was bready and fluffy but not very bitter
It was nice, more pleasant to drink than something like Krombacher which is more vegetal tasting

[Anonymous No.16682210]

>>16682198
Oh and I don't think hipsters liking Modelo/Tecate is because of direct Mexican influence, they're just too contrarian to drink Corona

[Anonymous No.16682316]

>>16682198
I'm one of those Modelo-drinking hipsters. At least I definitely was around 2017-18 or so. Tecate is the PBR-alike, Schlitz and Hamm's and Old Style depending on where you're at. I like Corona, especially Familiar, but this isn't Florida or wherever they drink that. Where are you at; what do you drink?

[Anonymous No.16682627]

>>16682316
I'm in New York and I drink Budweiser, Coors Banquet, and Modelo for my regular beers. I also all sorts of craft beers/imports but I'm not into IPAs or mene stouts.
Corona is very popular among normies here but not hipsters.

[Anonymous No.16683417]

>>16677433
I've literally been to their beergarden in Berlin

[Anonymous No.16683755]

Erdinger for most readily available.

Kloster Andechs if you happen to find it. Best in the world.

[Anonymous No.16683961]

>>16675757
>>16677534

They don't put fruit in it. The fruit flavors aren't actually from real fruit, they are from the hops or fermentation.

But any good imported german beer is going to be pretty expensive, and you can get german style american beer that is similar quality for cheaper. Although its worth paying more now and then just to try them.

>>16682198
>>16682316

Would you even call corona / modela "mexican style," they are essentially just mass produced lagers. could you even tell much difference between them a bud light?

[Anonymous No.16684214]

>>16682627
What do New York hipsters drink?

[Anonymous No.16684898]

>>16683961
Aren't the fruit flavors from the yeast they use?

[Anonymous No.16684901]

>>16684214
Budweiser, Modelo, Tecate, Miller High Life, Gennessee (cheap regional beer from upstate NY)
The first one might surprise you but if you go to a hipster bar that had cheap Buds (like $2-$3), you'll see Buds everywhere

[Anonymous No.16684904]

>>16683961
The mass produced Mexican lagers still taste different from AALs to me. They have a stronger "beer" flavor while Budweiser is very neutral tasting.

[Anonymous No.16684910]

>>16684898
The subtle banana note in weissbier comes more from the yeast, yes. Traditionally you won't have those strong aroma hop fruit flavours that make your beer taste like Fanta mango though. Of course craft beers in Germany use those but it never hit the mass market. As said that's just not to Germans favour. They rather mix the beer with juice, soda or liqueurs if they're in the mood for something fruity.

[Anonymous No.16684914]

How is Oettinger? Apparently it's the most popular beer in Germany but I didn't see it anywhere even when I was actually in Germany

[Anonymous No.16684919]

>>16680367
Do you have a source that InBev changes their recepies for export?

[Anonymous No.16684923]

>>16684914
It's one of the most sold, because it's cheap so alcoholics buy it. That's it. Most types from Oettinger don't taste good, some are ok and a few surpsisingly good.
Oettinger doesn't distribute its beer in restaurants or bars though so you only see it in supermarkets. They still sell kegs. Mostly bought by fraternities (because it's cheap and delivered to their houses), where it has a meme/legendary status.

[Anonymous No.16684954]

>>16684919
https://youtu.be/o_f1_LKyRL0?t=849 You can hear it in this short docu about Becks. It translates to: "They also taste beers for export, because every country has its own taste preference. Americans prefer it more mild and thin, the Japanese rather like it dry and bitter similar to Germans."
I'm not sure if they also change recipes for the already mild Bavarian beers.

[Anonymous No.16684986]

>>16684923
I didn't even see it at supermarkets in Berlin.

[Anonymous No.16686571]

>>16671672
Unironically pic related. It's really a German beer that got rebranded as a cerveza. Look it up. And it's quite tasty.

[Anonymous No.16686688]

>>16678858
Best Helles in Portland also Zoiglhaus has some good dark beers

[Anonymous No.16686689]

>>16674113
Their ecstacy can rival the netherlands these days.