19 replies to this topic

[Mexas Joe]

I have noticed that my beer palate has changed over the years. When I first got into brewing over 5 years ago, my goto brews were Hefe's and Belgiums. Now for some reason I really don't care for either the sweetness or the banana/clove aspect of the styles. I find myself reaching for IPA's and other hoppy beers. It's like my taste has done a complete 180. SWMBO still likes the Hefe's, but I will take a sip of hers and say "nope." A good Belgium Wit was my absolute favorite, and now I cant go there. What kind of snob/monster have I turned into? Has anyone else noticed a big change in their taste?

[BrewerGeorge]

Mine tends to change seasonally. I want browns, Scottish and porters in the winter; Berlinners, weizens and wits in the summer. Basic APA's tend to last through the whole year, though. I've never made more than one or two IPA's a year; occasionally I'll get a craving for something hoppy and it's its usually easier to just buy a 6er.I have definitely noticed that my general tolerance for hops has increased over time. Giving up beer for a few weeks (I've done it a few times when dieting) resets the calibration so that even a relatively mild 35 IBU pale ale seems really hoppy.

[Deerslyr]

My palate is cyclical, and it has developed.I used to not enjoy IPA's and tended more towards malty, but now it has swung the other way. Hefe's are in a category all their own and I OD'd on them back in 2007. Recently I've been having a Widmer when I go to Chili's and just brewed a Hefe on Monday.

[MtnBrewer]

My palate has definitely changed. There was once a time when I didn't like barley wines, for example. Then one day I tried one at GABF and it was like flipping a switch. Now I love 'em. I used to drink a lot of weizens but I don't really have a taste for them anymore. I like Belgians more and more, especially my home brewed ones. Except wits...never liked them, still don't. I find myself making fewer and fewer lagers too for some reason. Recently I started disliking "C" hops less than I used to so maybe that's the first step towards actually liking them.

[D86D]

I've changed as far as looking for a more hoppy beer. It could be a phase because it just started this year. Back when i started berwing i despised Cascade for some reason and now i can't figure out why because i love it. I just got a fridge for lagers so I'm going to start back up with those too.

[SchwanzBrewer]

I used to think BMC's were great tasting beers. About 5 months ago I started into home brewing and I tried as many different beers as I could get my hands on (mainly for the bottles) and now my favorite beer is definitely SNPA. I still like Yuengling, but I enjoy hops much much more than I used to. I remember trying a SNPA about 5 or 6 years ago and thinking bleh! This is way too strong for me! Now, I drink it and think AAAAaaaaaahhhhh...perfect.

[ncbeerbrewer]

I think the change in palate that I have seen in myself is that I am getting better recognizing different flavors and aspects of beers as I drink them. I have always loved hops and bitter beers. IPA's always have been my favorites. I don't think I am much of a seasonal drinker by any means. I often brew a beer with a style in mind regardless as to if I have drank that sorta beer before or not. I have been trying to enjoy different beer styles for the flavors and profiles that each present.

[stellarbrew]

My palate has changed for sure. I used to think I didn't like funky beers, but giving them another shot recently proved that I do like them. Also, I used to recoil from some of the phenolics the yeast puts out in Belgian beers because I made an association with some nasty off flavors I got in one of my early batches of pale ale where I pitched the yeast while the wort was too warm. Lately I have been drinking more and more Belgians, and I have learned to enjoy that peppery, slightly grassy, bubblegummy flavor imparted by the yeast.

[ScottS]

I used to hate beer because I couldn't stand hops bitterness.The other day a tasted a beer and said to myself "hmmmmm, definitely needs more hops for balance". Took me a minute to realize the significance of the statement.I still love my sweet cyser and my bone dry cider, but my beer palette has definitely changed a ton.

[BuxomBrewster]

Scott and I both noticed that our palate has changed, but for me it's a biochemical change as well as just more depth. I have a potassium deficiency, which lends itself to sugar cravings. I can't stand bitter when I crave sugar, but when I get the potassium levels right, then the hops taste oh so good.And we used to only use German hops, but I'm now finding I really like some of the others too.

[shmgeggie]

I used to go for the more hoppy in your face styles but I have expanded my tastes to any and all beer styles now that I've learned to appreciated all the other flavor components of beer.

[ThroatwobblerMangrove]

Mostly just expanded - I'm slowly learning to like some of the more funky stuff. I don't think I'll ever like brown ales that much though - not sure why...

[BarelyBrews]

Yes i would say so, i used to drink a lot of cheaper beers now i realize how cheap and harmful i was to myself. I tend to gravitate toward hoppy beers, right now i have no IPA on board and its bothering me. I am ready for a keg to empty so maybe in a week or so, but i still like my porters and browns. Even a fine pale ale, i do like lagers( commercial, No not bmc) and still need to do some lagers. I have a spare fridge so i have no reason not too , just to scared to go there as of yet.

[djinkc]

I'll have to go with the acquired more acquired tastes theme. I really haven't grown out the hoppy ales that I liked at first. Some of the sour beers and Belgians are growing on me. Always liked the high gravity stuff (barleywines etc..) but that can make for a short sloppy night.....Probably the least expected to me was a renewed appreciation of low gravity beers and UK ales.

Edited by dj in kc, 27 May 2009 - 04:52 PM.

[Yeasty Boy]

I remember enjoying a Guinness draught about, oh, 15 years ago. My tastes have changed dramatically since then. For one, I know what beer (as in "beers of the world") can taste like, both good and bad, and can pick up a lot more about a beer that I would've been blind to even eight years ago when I first got into bigger West-Coast styles.Then for a long time I was adamantly non-seasonal, but I just can't help riding the wave of lighter-colored, lighter-bodied, hoppier ales of the summer and heavy, rich, roasty beers of the winter. (If you pass me a nice American Stout at a summer BBQ I can certainly enjoy it; likewise a balanced IPA around a winter fire.)As for who's beers I drink, I'm not sure that sort of pallet has changed significantly. Beers I've known and loved for years are still high on my list (Hop Rod Rye, Dead Guy, Westmalle Trippel, Adnam's Broadside, Skullsplitter...) and I'm jsut as up for a beer I haven't tried as I was a decade ago.

[Stout_fan]

Well, 15 years ago it was stouts or nothing.Drinking an IPA was unthinkable.Now, putting 5 pounds of hops in a brew is something I look forward to every year at harvest.On tap now are an O'fest (just blew), a funked up fruity blonde (3.5%), a cider and of course a RIS (9.5%).

[AAASTINKIE]

When I came here 2 years ago (well the other board) I wanted to know how to make beer like Coors Light, someone said I would come to like better beers and to hang in there, they were right, I never imagined I would drink a Stout, but I love them now, just kegged an IPA yesterday, brewed some ginger beer yesterday also and 2 Pilsners, as for Coors Light, I don't know how people drink that bathwater now...lolOn Tap, Pilsner, American Light, Irish Stout, Red Wines, Supertuscan, Barolo, Pinot Noir (my wife is a red wine drinker)

[AspenLeif]

Sure, I used to enjoy hops...now I can't get enough of them. A malty beer was *thick* and now I crave stouts and scottish ales...beers with real mouthfeel in the winters.

I think the change in palate that I have seen in myself is that I am getting better recognizing different flavors and aspects of beers as I drink them.

I even find myself doing this with swill beer. I always used to drink Labatts until the cows come home while in college. It was as cheap as budlight...but I never realized why until I started brewing. It has more hops than budlight....I mean, you can acutally taste them when you look for them. MB

[weave]

My tastes have definitely changes. When I started drinking micros I gravitated towards Scottish ales and porters. Hoppier porters like Edmind Fitzgerald got me to appreciate IPA's more. That led to a long love affair with hops. It was hard to find an IPA that I didn't like. During this phase I tried a few Belgians and decided they weren't for me.We started doing some beer vacations and I began trying beers I couldn't get at home. And my tasted expanded. After a visit to Ommegang I started to enjoy Belgian styled beers. And the list keeps growing. Last weekend I had a Flanders style (don't remember which) and finally found a soured beer I could enjoy. Never thought I'd say that. I am sure it will lead to more of them.Funny thing about the change is, I am not the hophead I used to be. The in-your-face hop bombs don't do as much for me anymore. I still like DIPA'a and IIPA's but I think it is because the higher final gravity gives it more balance to me. I do not enjoy nearly as many straight up IPA's as I used to. Not enough malt character to balance it for me in most of them.

[boo boo]

Changed for the better I think. My tastes have expanded. I still love cheap mega lagered beer as well asmicro brewed and of course my own. I just love beer, but now I know what the word beer really means.