My all-time favorite beer is Fat Tire amber ale. It has an amazing balance between rich, deep flavor and a lightness that doesn't make you full after one beer. It's my go-to beer in a bar if there's no new and unusual beer on tap that I've never tried and sounds interesting. I've been enjoying Fat Tire for probably 15 years now and am still not tired of it. It's getting more widely distributed as time goes on, but is still mostly available only in the western half of the US. To those of you on the east coast who can't get it locally, you don't know what you're missing.

Other favorites of mine include Anchor Steam, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, Red Hook ESB, Bass, Harp, and Newcastle. Oh, and another local beer called Odell's 90 Shilling. When I'm feeling a sense of pride about being born a Cheesehead, such as when the Packers are doing well, I'll pick up a six-pack of Leinenkugel's Red for a nostalgic buzz.

I've traveled a lot internationally and always sample the local beer, unless I'm with a group of conservative evangelicals who might be uncomfortable with that. Presidente is the Budweiser of the Dominican Republic, and at first I wasn't all that crazy about it because it has a slightly skunky taste ala Heineken. But it's grown on me over the years, and the sight of an ice cold Presidente with frost on the outside of the bottle on a hot and humid Dominican evening is a sight to behold. The locals call that frosty bottle "vestida de novia" - dressed in white like a beautiful bride.

Speaking of Heineken, one of my favorite beer moments was touring the Heineken brewery in Amsterdam on the day in 1983 that Freddy Heineken was released. Freddy, the beloved patriarch of the Heineken familiy, had been kidnapped by some greedy thugs who demanded $11 million for his release. The family ended up paying the ransom, and we happened to be touring the brewery the day he was released. The whole staff at the brewery was partying that day, showing how much they cared for the old man. What a fun day that was to be touring the brewery. By the way, his kidnappers were caught and brought to justice, just in case you're thinking about trying the strategy yourself. I know how you beer guys think.

Another of my fondest beer moments took place when Dana and I toured the Guiness brewery in Dublin in 1993. We took the tour right around noon, and hadn't had any lunch yet. Dana mentioned during the tour that she was starving, and couldn't wait for the tour to be over so we could grab some lunch. Hungry as she was, she knew that she couldn't deny me the pleasure of enjoying the complimentary fresh pint of Guiness at the end of the tour. I downed mine quickly, knowing how much she wanted to get out of there and get a bite to eat. By the time I finished my pint, she was only a third of the way into hers.

"Want me to finish that for you so we can get out of here and get some food?" I offered selflessly.

"I'll keep working on it," she replied.

She was taking her time, so I got up and walked around the brewery gift shop. I loved seeing the reproductions of the old Guiness posters. One of them that looked like it was from the thirties or forties said "Drink Guiness. It's a meal." When I got back to the table, Dana was taking the last sip of her pint - she'd downed the whole thing. What a woman!

As we were getting ready to leave, I said, "I know you're hungry. We'll find some food right away." 

"No hurry," she replied, shrugging. "I'm good for now." A meal, indeed.

Man, was I proud of her. Not many guys I know have a wife like that. That's my girl!

Other international beers I've enjoyed in quantities great enough to want to bring a t-shirt home are Gallo (Guatemala), Quilmes (Argentina), VB (Australia), and Tusker (Kenya). I've also enjoyed my fair share of Belikin beer in Belize, but Belize is such a small country (pop. 300,000) and the beer is such a small brand that I couldn't even find an official website for the beer.

As far as mass-market domestic beers, I'm loyal to Coors. Not just because the Coors brewery is located around the corner from me in Golden, Colorado, although I do have a fair amount of local pride about that. The bigger reason for my loyalty to the Coors brand is that one of my good friends is John Coors, great-grandson of brewery founder Adolph Coors. John has the coolest-sounding degree I've ever heard of - a doctorate in brewing science engineering from the Technical University of Munich. Sure, it's impressive to have a "Dr." in front of your name. But when you get the designation for learning how to brew beer - that's worthy of a whole different level of respect as far as I'm concerned. John and I share a similar philosophy on missions, and I've traveled to Africa three times with John on trips with the organization he founded to provide electricity to rural Africa, Circle of Light. John and his wife Sharna are both amazing people, and not just because they took care of our dog Lucy for an entire year when Dana and I lived in the Dominican Republic.

Being a former ad guy who loves beer, I also have an all-time favorite beer tagline. Wasatch Brewery in Utah came out with a porter before the Salt Lake City Olympics that they named Polygamy Porter. The tagline was this: Why have just one? 

Genius, pure genius.