I remember my first beer as clearly as some remember the birth of their first child, the day they graduated high school or when the Phillies won the world series. The beer itself, which has since become my go-to beer in sports and dive bars, was Yuengling Lager. At the time, my pallate had no appreciation for hops or flavor notes, and I really didn't know what to look for.

The brew that made me realize that beer could taste good however, was Hoegaarden. (pronounced WHO-GAR-DEN. Who’d have thought?) Before the takeover by Anheuser-Busch-InBev and years before the impeding doom of a 0% ABV Witbier. Yes, they plan to make a non-alcoholic Hoegaarden.

For my 21st birthday my friend (a certain proprietor of a website about happy hours) took me to Monk’s Café, one of the best beer bars in Philadelphia. (no seriously, they even won an award saying so.) My friend recommended Hoegaarden, as Monk’s beer menu to someone who didn’t know much about beer, might as well have been in a different language.

I remember how light and pleasant it was to drink. I remember thinking how it was slightly fruity and remarking on the cloudiness of the liquid itself. Even the mouthfeel was different. Most importantly, I learned that I enjoyed wheat beer.

From then on at beer bars I would scour the menu for a wheat I hadn’t tried. Once I began to feel more adventurous, I moved on to other styles of beer. Before I knew it, I knew my way around most beer menus. I would eventually find myself in conversations about beer that if my previous self were to listen to, would be as lost as he was when first walking through the doors at Monk’s.
 

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