flagship beer

This is the beer that is most identified with any particular micro, craft or regional brewer. Usually it is the first beer, or one of the first beers the brewery made when they began their business. Although a flagship beer can be any style of beer, it is often one popular with a majority of beer drinkers. Occasionally, a brewery will have more than one flagship beer. Deschutes Brewery in Bend, Oregon, has two: Mirror Pond Pale Ale and Black Butte Porter. Other examples of a flagship beer include Sierra Nevada's Pale Ale, New Belgium's Fat Tire Amber Ale and Dogfish Head's 60 Minute IPA. According to the Brewers Association any flagship beer must be an all malt beer.

When we visited Sierra Nevada's brewpub in Chico, California, the first beer we ordered was their flagship Pale Ale.

One of my favorite beers is Anchor Steam Beer, the flagship beer of Anchor Brewery.