What do you recommend for good 'old fashioned' beer? I note a bunch of
their beers they mixed in other ingredients and not just used the
stark minimum of what should be used for classic.

Well, your idea of "old-fashioned" might be different than mine. I like a
heavier, more "German" beer -- but not too chewy. Thus, I think the
Sprecher Amber is the best, and have been known to drive extraordinary
distances for it.

An aside. Didja ever notice how EVERYONE drinks "Light Beer" nowadays?
Sales of the stuff has just skyrocketed, and you see people drinking it in
ever bar you go to.

Well, whenever we'd throw a party at poolside this past summer at the inn,
we ALWAYS made sure to have a bunch of "Light Beer" on ice, too -- for those
who might prefer it. We naturally assumed it would be the "beer" of choice
for the majority, as it is in bars.

Well, guess what? When given a choice between that swill, er, I mean "Light
Beer" and REAL beer -- the "Light Beer" goes untouched. Apparently the
marketing in bars is quite effective, but -- when given a side-by-side
choice, real beer wins every time.

At the end of the season we used a whole bunch of that stuff to boil
bratwurst -- and it isn't even very good for THAT.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

I'll look in the local stores for the brand and if I can find your
recommendations will try and report.

Big John


On Tue, 11 Nov 2003 22:52:28 GMT, "Jay Honeck"
wrote:

Is there a company that brews an 'original' German beer (like they
made in the 20's)?

Well, Big John, your quest for good beer ends he
http://www.sprecherbrewery.com/

Randy Sprecher -- a former Pabst brewmaster -- started his microbrewery
in
Milwaukee, back in 1985, before microbrewing was popular. I've been
drinking it for probably 15 years, and it is the most amazing beer. Read
their history here at http://www.sprecherbrewery.com/sprhist.html .

As with all REAL beers, it contains just four ingredients: Water, hops,
barley and yeast. (No rice, please!)

Actually, an excerpt from the German Beer Purity Law of 1516 dictates
the
following:

"Furthermore, we wish to emphasize that in future in all cities, markets
and
in the country, the only ingredients used for the brewing of beer must be
Barley, Hops and Water. Whosoever knowingly disregards or transgresses
upon
this ordinance, shall be punished by the Court authorities' confiscating
such barrels of beer, without fail."

Thus, Sprecher brews his beer that way. This not only makes it taste
better, but a side-benefit is that you can drink a fair bunch of it
without
getting that horrible "Miller headache" that comes from consuming "beer"
that contains 27 chemicals, all designed to make the beer last forever.

Until a few years ago, Sprecher didn't even pasteurize the stuff, which
meant it had a shelf-life similar to milk. This was the absolute best
beer,
but it didn't keep well, and it couldn't be transported -- so he now
pasteurizes it. I think it's lost a little bit of it's flavor -- but now
I
can get it here in Iowa! :-)

(I used to have to fly to Milwaukee to fetch some once in a while. Along
with some good cheese, some fresh lake perch, and a couple of real Danish
kringles.)