"thin" weird beer at local brewpubs

[ninarhoz]

howdy all!

i live in chicago, and luckily there are lots of brewpubs and great places to drink local. but lately, i've been really disappointed and wondered if others have been experiencing the same. i've gone to 2 local brewpubs lately on a few occasions, and the beers have been very "thin" (watery), weirdly "hoppy" (not necessarily bitter but more like co2 salty/bitter/aftertaste-tasting), and headless (i mean, no head at all, guys). i've always had clean glasses, too. when i have inquired, the dudes always ask me if i know what i am drinking (uhm, yeah, i always do) and try to pass it off as a quality of their beer. but YUCK!!!! i started to wonder if it was my taste buds, but when i attended a recent tap take over by a better known small craft brewer (at a bar that i know reg. cleans the lines and knows how to pour a beer, i might add), the beers were GREAT, full bodies, and came with--gasp--a head!!!

so, i put the question to you guys: have you been experiencing bad beer lately at your local brewpubs? how do you handle it? (i talked to a manager 'cuz the brewer had just left for the day.) and what' with all the thin beer? (not everything needs to be viscous, but come on!!! this wasn't even like natty ice!) they keep trying to tell me these are IPAs. i don't care for those, generally (i do like imperial/british IPAs though) but all the ones i've had still have a good body! they might be "hopped," but still finished nicely (and by god, had a decent head!). what i've had lately would make an IPA lover hurl (literally, the stuff tasted like old club club soda that had been overcarbonated at some point).

thoughts??

[cubby_swans]

My local brewpubs make outstanding beers. If I find a beer I don't care for, I simply don't order it again. They will all let customers have a taste before ordering. I often have a taste of something before ordering a full glass.

The only brewpub I've made it to in the Chicago area is Two Brothers, and I think their beers are pretty damned good. Their Heavy Handed IPA is very good. My brother lives 5 minutes from them, so we usually go there when I visit. I like their food quite a bit too. It's been a few months since I've been there, but the beers were good then!