Quote:
Originally Posted by briancl
They aren't great, either.
One thing that amuses me is how easily offended some members are when people are 'elitist' or 'snobs' about a non-clothing item on this forum. If we enjoy finely tailored clothing, why shouldn't we also enjoy a well crafted beer, well engineered car, or well designed piece of furniture?
There is a fine line between appreciating quality items of any kind and being elitist about it. In respect to clothing, the former could apply to someone who likes dressing well and paying money for expensive clothing, but has no qualms about wearing cheap basics when the situation calls for it, such as throwing on a ratty t-shirt and gym shorts to work out. Elitism, at least in its pejorative context, entails condescending to others to don't share or recognize one's expensive tastes and summararily dismissing anything that doesn't match up with the finest as trash. I would also add being absurdly out of touch with common sense to my characterization of an elitist (e.g. someone complaining about Target not carrying Kiton or lamenting how Western civilization is dying because people don't wear suits and ties for daily errands).
That's actually why I prefer your average beer connoisseur to connoisseurs of other items. Most serious beer drinkers and brewers I've met appreciate quality beers, but don't get a sense of self-superiority over their tastes or consider themselves above drinking inferior beer if it fits a certain setting (e.g. my last semester of college, I would keep a fridge full of microbrews and the occasional Trappist beer, but have no qualms about going to keg parties with friends and downing the usual Beast or Busch). This is a stark contrast to, say, wine snobs, who seem to think their tastes bestow upon them a sophistication that makes them superior to anyone who doesn't share their tastes.
To answer the original theme of the thread, my favorite mass-market beers would be Shiner Bock (I'm in Texas, obviously), Blue Moon, and Heineken. If we want to take "cheap" further, I would say Lone Star, Bud Light, and Beast Light are all old standbys. Of course, once you get into the realm of super cheap beers, there's not really much difference one way or the other, and they all pretty much do the job of getting you drunk eventually.
