[bluesman]

I think the discipline that Reinheitsgebot has instilled is a beautiful thing. Not to mention the fact, that I also really love a well brewed Dopplebock or a fresh Pilsner. On the other hand, the pioneers of American Brewing from the past and present day are heros of mine as well. Thinking/brewing outside of the box is the heart and soul of homebrewing. 

so in general, beer is good?

Depends on who you ask...but if it's brewed/crafted from the heart with sound brewing practices, then yes beer is good.

[wckedpete]

Laws or no laws, I think Belgian beer is way better than what the Germans make. In my opinion. Except those assholes make Dunkel. I love me some Dunkel.

[The Professor]

+1.  A great dopplebock is amazing, but the creativity and freedom Belgian and American brewers have has led to some stunning results.

...and some pretty dreadful ones, too.

That said, I do agree that rules are made to be broken.
And anyway, while some clowns are brewing beer with goat balls or shellfish, fotrunately there are still brewers around who don't feel a pressing need to partake in the growing fad of pushing the envelope with weird stuff (or, for that matter, overdoing it with regular stuff).

[nateo]

Craft beer in Germany is still in its infancy. There are some guys doing some really cool stuff there, but you'd never find those beers in America. One of my Skype friends in Rostock told me about: http://www.stoertebeker.com
With the new hop varieties coming out of Germany, mixed with the amount of brewing expertise there, I think German craft beer has the potential to take off.

[HoosierBrew]

+1.  A great dopplebock is amazing, but the creativity and freedom Belgian and American brewers have has led to some stunning results.

...and some pretty dreadful ones, too.

That said, I do agree that rules are made to be broken.
And anyway, while some clowns are brewing beer with goat balls or shellfish, fotrunately there are still brewers around who don't feel a pressing need to partake in the growing fad of pushing the envelope with weird stuff (or, for that matter, overdoing it with regular stuff).

No arguments.  I don't defend s@#$$y beer from anywhere. But being able to dry hop or use Belgian sugar syrups allows for beers the Germans don't make.  But I'll NEVER bad mouth a Pils, Dunkel, Dort, Helles, Dunkelweisse, Bock, Dopplebock, and damn sure not a BoPils. Love 'em.

[nateo]

No arguments.  I don't defend s@#$$y beer from anywhere. But being able to dry hop or use Belgian sugar syrups allows for beers the Germans don't make. 

Germans can make those beers. Some do, though most don't. Kinda like in America. They're just not the beers you see in the grocery store. Imagine what Brazilians must think of "American" beer since 99% of what they get is Bud/Miller/Coors. 

[HoosierBrew]

No arguments.  I don't defend s@#$$y beer from anywhere. But being able to dry hop or use Belgian sugar syrups allows for beers the Germans don't make. 

Germans can make those beers. Some do, though most don't. Kinda like in America. They're just not the beers you see in the grocery store. Imagine what Brazilians must think of "American" beer since 99% of what they get is Bud/Miller/Coors. 

Agreed. It'll be interesting to see what happens to their beer culture. I've been reading for years that younger Germans aren't drinking the traditional lagers as much.  I've read that they have been going for Bud (believe it or not) and other lighter fare like Radler concoctions.  Hope they don't lose their beer culture altogether.

[nateo]

Agreed. It'll be interesting to see what happens to their beer culture. I've been reading for years that younger Germans aren't drinking the traditional lagers as much.  I've read that they have been going for Bud (believe it or not) and other lighter fare like Radler concoctions.  Hope they don't lose their beer culture altogether.

There are a lot of people into craft beer there too. I mean, booze sodas and light lagers are incredibly popular drinks in America, especially with young people, and we still have a pretty good beer culture.

[1vertical]

Imagine what Brazilians must think of "American" beer since 99% of what they get is Bud/Miller/Coors.

Xingu is Very good Beer IMO

[klickitat jim]

I disagree that barley- hops- water- yeast is craziness. Or that it means I have a clinically diagnosible phobia of adjunct. I'm just old fashioned. But if someone else is wired differently and wants to put a rainbow of fruits and nuts in their brew, I'm ok with that. What you do in the privacy of your own boil kettle is non of my business.

By the way, there was one time I put flaked corn in a lager. But I was drunk at the time and didn't enjoy it.

[tschmidlin]

I disagree that barley- hops- water- yeast is craziness. Or that it means I have a clinically diagnosible phobia of adjunct. I'm just old fashioned. But if someone else is wired differently and wants to put a rainbow of fruits and nuts in their brew, I'm ok with that. What you do in the privacy of your own boil kettle is non of my business.

By the way, there was one time I put flaked corn in a lager. But I was drunk at the time and didn't enjoy it.

If you were REALLY old fashioned, you'd be all about adding whatever and leaving out the hops

[klickitat jim]

That's true. So I'm just old fashioned enough to think beer is not a fruit cocktail

[nateo]

That's true. So I'm just old fashioned enough to think beer is not a fruit cocktail

That's not old-fashioned, as Tom said, you're too modern.

Just look at all these old-fashioned fruit beers the Reinheitsgebot destroyed: http://patto1ro.home.xs4all.nl/gerstyle.htm

The RHG wiped out the northern German ale-brewing tradition, with only a few exceptions.

[klickitat jim]

They could be sold minus the beer title though, correct?

[nateo]

They could be sold minus the beer title though, correct?

I'm not really sure. It might be a taxation issue, where if it's beer it's a lot cheaper, and booze might have a much higher tax rate. So it might be legal, but not feasible to do so commercially. It could also be just that lager steamrolled all the ales in northern Germany, so consumers don't want them anymore. One of my friends got back from Belgium recently and said that "normal" people drink macro lagers, and bums love to drink Duvel because it's basically malt liquor over there.