Excellent topic Scott...here's my personal favorite

i usually don't go for too many microbrews, although there is one that was delicious... it was called blithering idiot barley wine ale...



with 11.1% abv (alchohol by volume) it don't get much better than this  

not available everywhere though, that's the problem... if they ain't got this (and they usually don't) i'll drink a nice pint of guinness. or whatever you're buying...  

I support local when I can and we have two excellent breweries in town (used to be three ).  The primary one I support is Fort Garry Brewing Company.  Three primary brews: Dark, Pale and Light.  Even the light beer is quite tasty.  All 5% alcohol by volume.  

Following that I tend to like Big Rock, an Alberta brewing company Dale is sure to chime in on.  Granville Island out of Vancouver is also nice, and historically for me one of the first micros I ever had.  

Whenever I travel, I like to drink the local swill.  Scott, I'm sure, can tell you horror stories about Leinenkugel.  

I have a penchant for Australian and New Zealand beer(s) as well.  Lion Red/Brown from Kiwi land.  Australia is a bit stickier, depending upon the taste I'm after.  Way too many XXXX, so it's out.  Powers bitter ale when in Queensland.  South End when in South Australia (the export product we used to get tasted like ****, but the local brew was ok).  VB from Victoria (duh).  Probably Swan or Coopers for the rest of the states.  All we can get locally is Steinlager, which is probably like you folks drinking Molson Canadian or some such beast.  

Guiness, Bass, Stella Artois.  

It looks like I may get to attend a conference in Prague in August.  As a bonus the welcome reception is in the Pilsner Urquell brewery.  Something like 400 years of brewing history.  

Why yes, I like beer

My every day beer.

I also enjoy Sam Adams' seasonal beer.  Right now, its Winter Lager but the Summer Ale is the best IMO.

Lots of good micro-brews in Boston.  I always try something new if I'm in one.  Boston Beer Works has had some pretty good beers in the past.

And you can never go wrong with a Guiness or Black or Tan.

I prefer to drink either Miller Lite or Michelob Ultra, but if I'm not counting the calories just about any non-dark beer would suit me just fine.

This is a tasty little brew I had in a bar in "The Strip District" in Pittsburgh one night.  It's 8.5%, and from Scotland (Don't let the Viking fool you into thinking it's a Scandanavian brew).  

I liked it a lot, but it ran in at like $6 a bottle I think...  Bit pricey for me to get drunk on.

Skullsplitter was mild enough to chug easily, but had a distinct taste of fizzy whiskey.  It was unique...  I liked it a lot personally, and the neat graphic just made it all the more manly to drink I thought.

My friend tried Golden Monkey at the same time, which is a PA brew and tasted similar to Skullsplitter actually.  Very strong whiskey-ish taste.  I dug it too...  It was 9.5% I think.

Since my partying days aren't what they used to be, I tend to enjoy trying the microbrews now instead of just drinking to get drunk on whatever's cheapest at the time, so I'm finding some nice stuff in Pittsburgh.

Here's Pittsburgh's most famous brewery I'd say (next to the Rolling Rock brewery I suppose), and this place is a must stop if you guys are in the city ever.  

http://www.churchbrew.com/

This is the Church Brew Works in the St. John's Church in Lawrenceville.  It's like 10 minutes from downtown Pittsburgh if there's no traffic.  Just right up Liberty Avenue...  You can go in the church and just sit and drink for hours, eat a great meal, whatever...  Lots of fun.  It gets real busy and is a fun atmosphere (Pittsburgh has a funny habit of converting churches into nightlife, don't ask me why).

The regular microbrews they carry are:

Celestial Gold
Pious Monk Dunkel
Pipe Organ Pale Ale
Bell Tower Brown Ale

And they have specialties that vary with the seasons and things.  There's a coffee beer that's really got a strong espresso taste to it and pretty decent if you're into coffee as well, and my personal favorite is a blackberry ale that REALLY has a strong berry flavor to it and is just a great beer.  I couldn't imagine what getting sick drunk on it would be like though.  I'd assume it's like getting sick on wine which is a big mistake if you've never had that experience (trust me).

The food's great at this place too.  Wood fired pizzas, sandwiches, dinners...  It's just great.  I had a pulled pork BBQ there that was amazing.  

If anyone's around town, you gotta hit this place up.  It's worth it, trust me.

I typically go for a Guinness, but the doctor told me to cut down a bit of calorie-heavy things, so I'm on a Bud Light kick

*leaves thread embarassed*

You might be surpised to learn that Guiness has less calories or carbs or something than most average beers.  Maybe I should go back and re-read that WSJ article so I can learn myself what I mean.

I second that Sapporo!