Unibroue

Beer just might be one of the biggest acquired tastes out there. And I'm not talking about the Keystone Light you undoubtedly drank in large quantities before you were legally allowed to. Not that anyone does that.

It's also incredibly easy to be snobby about, simply because there are so many different kinds, you're bound to find a favorite that few people have tried yet. I can't say that I have tried all that many yet, but I know enough to say that I love beer.

Last summer (before my 21st birthday, and therefore before my foray into beer [because I'm a good girl]), I was at a concert in Millennium Park - Chicago's oasis for free music and open alcoholic beverages in public - I tried some La Fin du Monde that one of Jacob's friends had brought. I remember distinctly that it tasted faintly like banana to me, and since I hate bananas, I hated that beer. Now, as I sit here drinking the very same thing, I first and foremost taste...well, beer. I don't taste anything remotely banana-y. If that's not a great example of an acquired taste, I don't what is. That's not to say that La Fin du Monde just tastes like beer. It is complexly fruity and spicy.

Unibroue, the brewery responsible for La Fin du Monde, is a Canadian brewery that makes some of the most effervescent brews I've tasted. Ephemere, an apple scented Belgian white ale, remains my favorite. It tastes like summer in your mouth. But even the dark beer, Trois Pistoles, has a sparkle to it unique among those heavier dark beers. I've also had Don di Dieu which is sweeter than La Fin du Monde, with a subtle apricot flavor.

Beer is just so refreshing, it's hard not to like in my opinion. Gotta try 'em all!