"Beer is the nectar of the gods"

Anonus

No clue why people love alcohol so much.

Tatterhood

because it's good

Princess Alice

I so wish I were drunk right now

Salix Babylonika

Someone post that insufferable xkcd strip that I still identify quite strongly with in spite of its smugness.

Crystal

This?

Anyway I think beer is awful but don't conflate it with all alcohol, that's a little silly (barring alcohol itself just not being your thing in which case more power to you).

Tatterhood

I really don't understand why people are (or claim to be) so mystified about different people enjoying different things, when the things are alcoholic

Crystal

Yeah that's goofy, and in my experience little more than a pretext for (generally) banal talk of preferences, or a pretense for smug. Eyeroll

Salix Babylonika

Tatterhood said:

I really don't understand why people are (or claim to be) so mystified about different people enjoying different things, when the things are alcoholic

it's not really that it's that in my experience people get like really weirdly hostile if you're at a place where drinking alcohol is expected and you'd just rather not.

Haven

I'll be honest, I've said almost the exact quote in the subject. But not about beer. It was this dessert wine I had once at the estate of Lord Acton, and it was INCREDIBLE. There are some good dessert wines around here, but I've never had anything like that again.

(On the other hand, if you're ever in Portland? St Honore's is the best thing that's happened to my taste buds in terms of food.)

Anonus

what is St. Honore's?

Calica

beer is OK

MadassAlex

Mead is fantastic; it's the strength of a port wine without being too strong in flavour. Then there's always vodka, the Slavic army knife of mixers (your orange juice is now more fun). But my favoured alternative to beer is cider. 

I guess beer is okay. 

Fossilmaiden

The correct answer is always cider.

Aliroz

I sometimes get to drink Orange Juice, and rarely get the special treat of Root Beer.

Obā-san

you know what's pretty rad

water

lee4hmz

root BEER

I drink a lot of soda. I've always though beer smelled nasty, and there's like one spirit I'm generally OK with, and then mainly as an ingredient in a pastry (dark rum).

Fossilmaiden

Root Beer, made from 100% Real Sys Admins.

Bee

Why yes, I --

oh

BeeR

never mind then

(dammit I still read it that way in that split second before my eyes fully focus)

Corvina

lee4hmz said:

root BEER

I drink a lot of soda. I've always though beer smelled nasty, and there's like one spirit I'm generally OK with, and then mainly as an ingredient in a pastry (dark rum).

I remember that comic

Calica

Fossilmaiden said:

The correct answer is always cider.

true

glennmagusharvey

Tatterhood said:

I really don't understand why people are (or claim to be) so mystified about different people enjoying different things, when the things are alcoholic

It has to do with people describing beer as an "acquired taste", rather than having to do with it having alcohol.

glennmagusharvey

Anonus said:

No clue why people love alcohol so much.

It's not the nectar of the gods because nectar has to be sweet.

Haven

Anonus said:

what is St. Honore's?

French bakery with amazing pastries. It's just, it's so good. Eating there really lifts my mood whenever I do, just because it's so filling and sweet and perfect it makes the entire world seem better.

Sredni Vashtar

The thing about beer for me is getting past the bitterness in the same way that grapefruit juice is, and that can be hard for me. The base flavor can be great, but it's always about getting past that bite.

For the record, my tastes tack toward the hard and snooty where alcohol is concerned. But it's not even about that. There is good beer out there, but it is hard to find and usual (but far from always) expensive.

Anonus

I live near a city known for being a hotbed of craft beer, and I have no interest in such

Tatterhood

glennmagusharvey said:

Tatterhood said:

I really don't understand why people are (or claim to be) so mystified about different people enjoying different things, when the things are alcoholic

It has to do with people describing beer as an "acquired taste", rather than having to do with it having alcohol.

ok but like lots of things are acquired tastes and most of them don't get the "actually everyone is just lying about liking this" treatment

maybe coffee does, sometimes

Sredni Vashtar

Tatterhood said:

glennmagusharvey said:

Tatterhood said:

I really don't understand why people are (or claim to be) so mystified about different people enjoying different things, when the things are alcoholic

It has to do with people describing beer as an "acquired taste", rather than having to do with it having alcohol.

ok but like lots of things are acquired tastes and most of them don't get the "actually everyone is just lying about liking this" treatment

maybe coffee does, sometimes

Exactly.

It's such a condescending and vaguely mean-spirited attitude with zero understanding of the fact that other people might enjoy things for different reasons from you.

Salix Babylonika

I have already explained my "problem" (it's not really a problem except in the rare instance when I go to a party, where I usually have to explain to about 30 distinct people that no, I won't be drinking, yes I'm sure) with the whole thing.

fwiw I fucking hate coffee too.

Odradek

Beer is a hard drink to get used to, because, unlike wine or cider, it doesn't taste like anything but beer.

glennmagusharvey

Tatterhood said:

glennmagusharvey said:

Tatterhood said:

I really don't understand why people are (or claim to be) so mystified about different people enjoying different things, when the things are alcoholic

It has to do with people describing beer as an "acquired taste", rather than having to do with it having alcohol.

ok but like lots of things are acquired tastes and most of them don't get the "actually everyone is just lying about liking this" treatment

maybe coffee does, sometimes

well, there's marmite

for what it's worth, I don't like coffee or beer, I like tea but I don't drink it much, used to dislike cilantro but am okay with it now, tend toward disliking spicy food and sour foods (but recognize that they can add interesting flavors to a dish), can tolerate bitter melon, can tolerate but dislike caramel and dark chocolate, enjoy canned tuna and canned sardines and am okay being in the presence of people consuming them, enjoy the taste of lamb, and have no opinion on any of the following: lutefisk, marmite, durian, natto, surströmming, etc.

Sredni Vashtar

Odradek said:

Beer is a hard drink to get used to, because, unlike wine or cider, it doesn't taste like anything but beer.

Bread.

It is the beverage equivalent of bread, particularly brown bread.

glennmagusharvey

Bread usually doesn't taste bitter though.

Obā-san

mountain dew

glennmagusharvey

Today is Tomorrow said:

mountain dew

mountain dew is piss that tastes good

beer is piss that tastes bad

Klinotaxis

disgusting fact about me: sometimes i just eat bread by itself

beer is nonetheless bad

Anonus

Klinotaxis said:

disgusting fact about me: sometimes i just eat bread by itself

how's that disgusting?

Fossilmaiden

He's made of bread. He's a cannibal.

Bee

Yeah see bread tastes like flour, which is bland but not particularly gross.  You can eat raw wheat and tastes pretty okay.

When's the last time you ate hops?  Or took a swig of ethanol?  Because whoever thought it was a good idea to combine two caustically bitter ingredients should probably be bludgeoned with his entire distillery.  There's a reason fucking nobody uses hops for anything but beer.

Calica

i forget, IPAs are the ones that have just way too much fucking hops, right?

Sredni Vashtar

Hop is used for certain kinds of tea as well.

It's worth noting that most herbs from which teas are made can be very, very bitter when left to sit for too long, let alone ferment. So I see where you're coming from. But I have very sensitive tastebuds when it comes to bitterness, and you probably do, too. And I've never found alcohol itself an issue: I like some very strong, caustic liquors.

Tatterhood

Calica said:

i forget, IPAs are the ones that have just way too much fucking hops, right?

It's more like the ones that have way too much hops are generally IPAs. There are IPAs that aren't horribly hoppy (though mileage varies on how much hops is too much).

Obā-san

itt cowards are mad about beverages

Odradek

Today is Tomorrow said:

itt cowards are mad about beverages

Obā-san

and this is coming from someone who has never and will never drink alcoholic beverages

Klinotaxis

what are you trying to say, exactly

Sredni Vashtar

...yeah, pretty much.

There is a lot of salt in this thread. Maybe it can be used to sweeten the bitterness of these beverages.

Tatterhood

I mean salty things do go well with beer usually

Fossilmaiden

Tatterhood said:

I mean salty things do go well with beer usually

I thought salt was the condiment of choice for Mountain Dew.

Anonus

oh no, how dare we dislike the taste of alcohol

Tatterhood

Anonus said:

oh no, how dare we dislike the taste of alcohol

literally nobody has said that in here, and several people have said the opposite of that

Aliroz

Um, I kinda said the opposite of that?