What to do when the beer selection sucks?

[Bobsy]

Hey folks.

I just wanted to gauge opinion on a scenario I've come across a few times. Imagine you're out with a group of friends at the bar and you are all planning on grabbing some food and a couple beer. You obviously love beer, but looking at the menu there isn't anything you particularly like, and its comprised of mostly molson, labatt and keith's. Do you:

1) order the best of the bunch because everyone else is drinking after all, you feel like a beer and you don't want to be a damper on things as the guy without the drink?
2) order a wine or mixed drink you know you like even though you would've preferred a beer?
3) just order a soda or water and save your valuable beer money for the good stuff?

I ask this question because I'm sure we have all been in bars where the beer selection is awful, and we have all been faced with the same dilemma. I usually order a mixed drink because I feel that it is a little bit of a faux-pas to sit there with a juice while everyone else is getting a moderate buzz, but in my heart of hearts I'd rather save the cash and buy myself a beer at Volo on the way home. I don't have a whole ton of cash so I'd prefer to spend it on stuff I like, but at the same time I don't want to look like a dick.

What do you guys think? In 2 hours I'll be faced with this scenario again. The last time it happened I order Labatt Summer Cream Ale. Shudder.

[tupalev]

Tough spot Bobsy, we have all been there. Although I find these days that there is always at least something passable or better to drink (maybe Creemore, Rickard's White, Steam Whistle, or even Mill St Organic Organic/Stock these days - or Guinness I suppose as well). And I am a ratings whore on ratebeer who has missed some obvious macro's, so I always have that painful yet oh so fun hobby to fall back on.

I used to just order the best of the bunch, especially if it was just a group of guys and I did not want to stand out. And I do not care for mixed drinks, but I will order from time to time some Jamesons or Bushmills on some ice if I can. Rarely will such places offer anything in the way of wine to offer...but if they did, and I wasn't hanging out with a bunch of jocks or something, sure I'd go ahead and order that as well.

I've really really been trying to avoid buying crap beer just for the sake of buying beer in this situation - I wish you the best of luck!

[grub]

i usually go with option #2 or #3, depending on my mood. i refuse to lower myself to any of the BMC crap and often anything from the mediocre crowd. life is too short to drink bad beer. drink what you enjoy, whatever that is.

[GregClow]

Maybe I'm lucky, but I can't remember the last time I was out with a group of people for drinks at a bar that didn't have at least one moderately decent fall-back option such as Guinness, Creemore or Steam Whistle. Hell, I can even live with Rickards White, which seems to be all over the damn place this summer.

Were I to come up against a situation where my only options were nothing but completely mainstream crap, I might order one mixed drink, but then I'd stick with iced tea or ginger ale for the rest of the night.

[The_Jester]

In and around Peterborough, you can almost always find Church-Key or Creemore.

If I'm out with buddies, and there is nothing decent, I'll order a rye & ginger (summer) or rum & coke (winter).

But where the situation comes up the most is when I'm out with the family at a family restaurant. When this happens, I go with option #3.

[Bytowner]

I have no problem downing a Rickard's (white or otherwise) and can stomach a Blue. Having fun with my friends is more important than my beer geekhood and the lousy house wine at those kinds of places gives me unbearable heart burn. Rye and ginger is never a bad choice either assuming I have the funds. I would never turn down a pint from a pitcher.

[lister]

Usually #1 or #2 though I usually try a fourth option of gently pushing the group to a better bar. Thankfully practically all of my friends, who are beer drinkers, do drink the better stuff.

For deciding between #1 and #2, it really depends on my mood and what I want at the time, beer vs wine vs cocktail. Of the macros I can get by with Rickards Red, Stella or Guinness. Most places will at least have Steamwhistle, a Mill St offering, Creemore or an Amsterdam (hopefully not the Blonde) on tap.

[Jon Walker]

Depends on the circumstances and, as others have said, what the least distasteful beer available is.

If the place has a TERRIBLE beer list and it's the only destination for the evening I will usually have a glass of wine (assuming that's decent) or a mixed drink (usually a VT). If I know we're moving on to somewhere that will have better beer I'll usually drink water or juice since I really don't tolerate mixing liquor, wine and beer all that well.

However, I've been out drinking with some fellow ex-pat, football hooligan Brits and they're mostly lager louts. Order a wine with that lot and I'd never live it down...so I usually surrender and have a lager top (lager and lime cordial which, despite sounding less than rugged is actually an acceptable compromise for a lot of those lads).

P.S. I used to carry around a bottle of hop extract for such situations but since the stuff has gotten harder to find (and the instances where I would need it have declined) I've abandoned it.

[boney]

I usually opt for #2. If the beer stinks, there's always giny-gin-gin. However, I find the real dillema at sporting events, rather than at bars. Sometimes the situation just necessitates beer, you can't get wine or spirits at all or the those that you can get are equivilant to the crap beer you are trying to avoid anyway. For example, I had to drink a Bud at the Jay's game last night. It burned but it was still better than water.

[haelduksf]

I usually have a mental list of "cocktails that sound amusing that I should try one day". Last time this situation cropped up, I had gin and tonics; next time it'll be a Tom Collins and/or Liquid Cocaine.

[Cass]

I usually have a mental list of "cocktails that sound amusing that I should try one day". Last time this situation cropped up, I had gin and tonics; next time it'll be a Tom Collins and/or Liquid Cocaine.

Now that I watch Mad Men all the time perhaps I'll go for an Old Fashioned in this situation.

[Magni]

I don't mind ordering ricards, keiths (red), guiness, etc. but will not down a blue or a canadian, in which case I usually hit up a bloody mary or gin & tonic.
The exception is when pitchers are involved and I don't want to be the twit not splitting.

Additionally I am about to head over to a mates house where I am sure there will only be Canadian and later out to my most hated of bars and I am sure I'll be drinking vile stuff all night. The things you do when you need to take one for the team. Seeing people is more important sometimes.

[Colin @ Canada]

Two options for me. Bloody ceasar, glass of wine.

[shintriad]

I'll drink water out of protest.

...then I'll buckle within a few minutes and see if they have any interesting whiskeys, scotches or bourbons. If it's the kind of place that charges you ten bucks for a shot of "premium" liquor, either a rye and ginger or a vodka soda.

[Malcolm]

I too was at the Jays game - great game, awful beer. I did manage to find cans of Sleeman at one of the lounges, which helped a bit. After the game we went to a little bar on Spadina with an awful beer selection - should've gone with some hard liquor but I made the mistake of ordering a Blue. Never again.