What is your favorite beer or micobrewery in Hungary?

I divide beer into two categories: regular and special. For regular I'm seeking the "generic", "nothing special" beer taste that's also cheap, my favourites in this category are Heineken, Gosser, sometimes Pilsner Urquell or Stella Artois too, though these two are more expensive and Pilsner also very different in taste.

In the special category I'm looking for a very different taste, price is not an object but value is. Here my favorites are Leffe Brune, Grimbergen Double Ambree, HB Hofbräu München and Edelweiss Hefetrub. The last one has the best value IMO at ~350HUF per a 500ml bottle.

I draw the line at 500HUF per bottle when buying it from a store, above that the extra money rarely brings better taste in my experience. There are lots of microbreweries in .hu, I've tried their stuff, was not impressed. (Their beers were good, but not for that price.)

I like Dreher Bak, just the simple Hungarian dark brew.
When we were in SK I tried a beer, a dark beer that my local Polish/Rusin cousins recommended it was Saris if I remember the spelling correctly.
It was actually smoother and more "yummy" the my fave Dreher Bak.
My best old buddy in the US is a Budweiser manic, I bought her a 20 pack in Vegas last visit there and she made a big dent in the carton after already enjoying a few Bud's in the casino bar.
On a hot day a lighter brew is ok but it must be ice cold.
Bad thing was in Vegas after not seeing my friend for over 30 years and both of us now being  of "legal" drinking age and then some, the barman gave us our order of Budweiser and walked away, the beer was frozen almost solid, figures just our luck finally get to enjoy a beer legally together and it comes out like a slushy drink.
In the US I did enjoy the miro brew, Fat Tire.
I am more of a wine drinker, usually only have beer in the summer months or with a spicy meal.

I recently had an odd experience of attending a BBQ and somehow the smokey taste had got into the beer.  It was really quite nice. Surprisingly so. I have not found any smokey beers here but I can see online that It's fairly common in Germany. 

Tips on a smokey beer (not too heavy) in HU welcome.

I think that is the term I should of used for Saris SK dark beer, smokey and rich, really liked it. Never seen it for sale here in HU though.

I would also enjoy finding a smokey flavored HU beer if there are any.
I find Dreher Bak about the most rich so far in Hungary that I have tried.
Don't really buy micro brews here, my husband rarely drinks much so I just buy beers one or two at a time once in awhile.

atomheart wrote:

There are lots of microbreweries in .hu, I've tried their stuff, was not impressed. (Their beers were good, but not for that price.)

What was the price that the microbreweries where selling their beer?

klsallee wrote:

atomheart wrote:

There are lots of microbreweries in .hu, I've tried their stuff, was not impressed. (Their beers were good, but not for that price.)

What was the price that the microbreweries where selling their beer?

The ones I tried were 700-800huf a small (~330ml) bottle.

atomheart wrote:

klsallee wrote:

atomheart wrote:

There are lots of microbreweries in .hu, I've tried their stuff, was not impressed. (Their beers were good, but not for that price.)

What was the price that the microbreweries where selling their beer?

The ones I tried were 700-800huf a small (~330ml) bottle.

interesting. In the US $2.50 (about 700 HUF) for a bottle or $4.00 (1,100 HUF) for a pour at a bar are not atypical for a micro-brew beer (but of course that varies by geography).

Given a 40% local deprecation rate base on the Big Mac Index, ideally a micro-brew bottle should be between 270 HUF and 450 HUF.

But, unfortunately, the Big Mac Index is for a product that can benefit from the economy of scale. That is, it ignores the reality of high taxes (not forgetting the 27% VAT), bureaucracy, and operating costs that small and mico-businesses in Hungary are subjected to. Which will raise the price of their products quite a lot.

There are lots of cheaper hungarian craft beers (see this webshop, for instance: http://sorwebaruhaz.hu/kezmuves_sor). I bough the ones I tried at a beer festival, maybe they charged the 'restaurant price' instead of the 'store price'.

atomheart wrote:

http://sorwebaruhaz.hu/kezmuves_sor

Excellent.

I and all beer lovers here appreciate this link. 

Sounds like a restaurant price, it can scare off buyers at these outdoor events when vendors charge so much.
This is Hungary after all, I know in Vegas sometimes they will charge $10. at some casinos for a bottle of water.
Pool side service drinks charge an arm and leg too.
In Vegas it is better to just throw in $5. in a slot machine and order any drink you wish from the bar for a small tip to the wait staff, in the long run it is cheaper then going up to the barman.
I am cheap these days in HU, I will take a bottle of beer in a bag with me for those outdoor events and not spend on a over priced vendor.
Only time we buy is when we hear live music and one has to pay for drinks as a cover charge.
Here in HU one of the major past times seems to be drinking so one would hope they would keep the prices in a range where people could afford to buy more then one drink a day.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

....not spend on a over priced vendor.
Only time we buy is when we hear live music and one has to pay for drinks as a cover charge.

Such a thing in Hungary I find (sadly) rather typical.

See for example: http://treehugger.hu/node/12900

Snip-it:

Jon and I went down the row of wine kiosks and chose our poison; only to be disappointed to learn that we needed to purchase glasses for 800 HUF a piece. This important information would have been good to be aware in the advertising literature. Instead, we were 3600 huf out of pocket before we even tasted a drop. Not even a free wine tasting ticket was included in the price. Shame on you!

A few years back we went to a "bubbly fest" in HU, sponsored by BB.
It was 12 years back, we were on holiday in HU so the price to buy a glass and go around getting it filled wasn't a big deal.
They had live music too, Charlie was playing, he cracks me up really, was big in the 1960's and some of our old friends are buddies with him.
I think these events are really only designed these days for tourists or ex -pats with a great job.
We try to live like a local Hungarian and save our money for real events like air travel or for tipping doctors( had to throw that jib in)
I know a few years back the Ocktoberfest in the park was really fun. Huge tents set up in the parking lot, live music and dancing and vendors too. One could go in , dance and not buy drinks if they didn't fell like it. Now you have to buy tickets to enter and buy overpriced drinks, I have not even heard the same Ompa style music playing either. It has turned it a sellers event and nothing for the working classes.

If anyone finds a beer that is similar to English real ale, please let me know. I can't say I've ever had a beer that I really liked in mainland Europe. I have tried the Dreher dark beer and it's OK but nothing like the mild ale you would get in an English pub. Most of the normal lager type beers I find quite difficult to drink as they are so gassy.

My favorite beer is kőbányai and soproni, but I also drink german beers occassionally.