[quantim]

and the fact that so many damn good beers are available.

My favorite is 'raspberry wheat' from Big Buck Brewery, Gaylord, MI.

I know a berry tainted beer is gay sounding and unfashionable, but as a retired sommelier with decades of experience, sometimes there is just no accounting for taste. ;-)

But if you saw some of the toughies drinking it, you probably wouldn't mouth off, they'd grab a snowmobile with one arm and beat you with it...

[pissant]

I've had a berry flavored beer from a brewery in Bozemen, MT (though I can't remember the name..maybe Black Dog??) and it was tasty. But I'm a hop head. The NW has several outstanding IPAs as well as ESBs. Of course, when it comes to pilsners, the germans and the Chechs do it best.

[spinestein]

The beer I brew most often (about twice a year) is my Raspberry Imperial Stout. With a head and roasted flavor like a Guinness and around 7 percent alcohol, it ain't no sissy beer.

And the best part is, I grow my own raspberries and cascade hops. They're just starting to poke up out of the ground now. Aaaaah, spring!