I am a big fan of German beers, although some of the best I've ever had came from Austria and Belgium. I believe in my opinion, Europe has the best true beer in the world. The US has had sort of a renaissance in beer making recently, as many styles flavors and types of quality beers have been born, so we now have some serious competition. I have had great beer from almost every corner of the globe though. I do enjoy quality beers from South America, Russia, UK and other places that do not come to mind at the moment as well. I have yet to find a really good beer from Asia(except Russia) though sorry to say. I have had several types from India, China and Singapore and a couple other countries over there, but I have been unimpressed so far, as most just taste like a slightly better version of the mainsteam crap in the US. I would love someone to point me to a really good one from this region, as I am sure they exist.
I can almost always know the quality when I first smell it. A good quality beer of most types have a certain fragrance that is always present. You could blindfold me and just allow me to smell the beer, and I can distinguish between the good and the bad probably 9 out of 10 times.
Having said that, I have recently cut back quite a bit. I now enjoy the flavor more, instead of getting drunk off it. Sure, I will have a couple and feel it a bit every now and then, but its no longer a habit for me personally. For me its an experience where you enjoy with friends or family, and you have good conversations and good food to go with it. In moderation beer enhances experiences imo. Before, it was more about what it did to me than the experience that surrounds it. I'm not judging anyone though, to each their own. I just don't want any addictions at all. Been there, done that and so its not the life for me. I will always love a good quality beer though.