Beer really gets people talking, especially when you ask them, "What's your favorite brand?"

We asked readers that and got an outpouring of more than 130 responses, which supports our theory that this is a subject about which people are passionate.

It also speaks to the wonderful diversity of beer -- and beer drinkers.

Somewhat predictably, since many of our readers live far away and miss us, we got lots of votes for 'Burgh and Pennsylvania brews, from Iron City to Yuengling.

"Our whole family has relocated to Richmond, Va.," writes Lynne Turner, "and anytime one of us heads back to the Burgh (we still have five Steelers season tickets), we return with a trunk full of [Penn Pilsner] for the rest of the bunch!"

Also tending to vote that way are local loyalists such as Mount Washington's Ben Wilson. His rallying cry for I.C. Light is "For Pittsburgh, by Pittsburgh," though he also claims it cures his hangover headaches.

Others' loyalties lie elsewhere. "I'm not really a beer drinker but I like Stella Artois," writes Mount Washington's Marsha K. Maietta. "First, I like it because of the name. Second I like it because it is a Belgian beer and my mother who was Belgian used to tell me how much her countrymen liked their beer. And third I like it because it tastes good. Thanks for asking."

But people can surprise you. Mt. Lebanon's Jerry McNamara used to work for the old Duquesne brewery and an Iron City master distributor -- a salt-of-the-earth "beer guy." Then a few years ago his brother-in-law turned him on to Scotland's McEwan's Scotch Ale. "When I take a taste of it, it's like the best beer I ever drank. And I take another taste, and it's the best beer I ever drank."

Scott's Jeanne Hareza, who's 75, drank one beer for 30 years and recently happily rediscovered it: "Nothing really hits the spot like Schmidt's."

We also heard from some daring souls such as Shadyside's Louise Gray, who didn't even like beer until she started experimenting with exotic stuff as places such as the Sharp Edge. Her favorite: Pink Killer, a Belgian brew flavored with grapefruit. "The name is weird," she admits, but the unusual, flowery flavor is "just out of this world. If you want a really interesting taste experience and you're open to those kinds of things, it is a keeper."

We're drawn to people who had good stories about their favorite beers. People like Delmont's Jason Bush, who had a chance meeting with his, Smithwick's, at Pittsburgh International Airport on his way with his new wife to Ireland, where he cemented that young love. "I knew being married would pay dividends immediately," he writes. "Had we chosen another honeymoon destination, I may not have had the best beer in my life."

Alas, sometimes beer love is unrequited. Shadyside's Lori Framiglio fell hard for Thames Welsh ESB: "What more could a girl ask for in a beer? It was tasty (and I'm not really an ESB fan), inexpensive and from Wales, which made me feel oh-so continental and fancy." Then, it never showed at D's in Regent Square. She tried calling, even its U.S. distributor, only to find out she'd have to go to it, at least as far as Ohio. "Please let me know if anyone is interested in sponsoring my trip -- the one to Wales."

What is it about beer and travel?

Greenfield's Josh McCullough went to Jamaica in 2002 and found only one brand, but he "probably downed about 200 Red Stripes over the course of the week, something I can no longer do." He still drinks it: "The taste is the same as I can remember and having a Red Stripe in my hand and tasting it definitely takes me back to the tiny island where I have memories (white beaches, blue waters, girls, etc.) that will last my entire lifetime."

Rob Borella, director of corporate communications and sports marketing for Giant Eagle, says his tale is simple: "I was in Quebec several years ago, and noticed this great label -- Satan rowing into hell. 'Now that has to be a great beer!' I thought. It is." It is the 8-percent-alcohol La Maudite, which translates as The Damned, and alludes to the legend of the chasse-galerie (flying canoe) -- a boatload of lumberjacks who struck a deal with the devil to fly home for Christmas.

This writer's romantic favorite is tied to a canoe trip taken a few years ago on Michigan's Two Hearted River, which was the title of a wonderfully spare Hemingway story. The beer -- unpasteurized, bottle-conditioned Bell's Two Hearted Ale -- is just the opposite, florid with hops, but lovely as its touted label.

Some pick their preferences for reasons additional to the beer, whether it's packaging (Rolling Rock is "all about that cheesy green bottle, gotta love it!" says Will Andromalos of Jersey City, N.J.) or the Earth-friendly practices of the brewer (why Mt. Lebanon's Connie Arison loves everything from Cleveland's Great Lakes).

O'Hara's Lisa Pawelski writes: "Twenty-three years in Pittsburgh, and I'd never been to the Pleasure Bar in Bloomfield.

"A romantic Monday lunch with the church musician husband [Ken Danchik] ... I asked for their sweetest, darkest beer. East End Brewery's Blackstrap Stout: WOW. It, and the Pleasure Bar Italian lunch buffet: a terrific combination.

"Made a visit of gratitude to St. Joe's, grabbed some handmade ravioli at Groceria Italiana ... a perfect day."

Even if you don't love their picks, you have to love the people who proudly stand behind them. Bridgeville's Nancy Gualazzi says, "Our favorite beer is Old Milwaukee Light! We take much abuse from friends and family about drinking 'Old Millwater' but still enjoy it." She adds, "Occasionally we will have a Guinness draft in memory of an English friend who passed away rather quickly from ALS."

Port Vue's Faith Kuhns sneers at beer snobs. She enjoys different name-brand brews, but then "there was a time where we didn't have a lot of money to spend on beer, so I inquired about some cheaper beer. ... American as we are, I chose American Light. We really like the taste as well as the price."

Don't serve her any imports.

Lots of people had trouble picking just one brand, but even they have pets. Coraopolis' Brad Kohler says that "as for the beer I return to faithfully (after some tempestuous flings with new, siren-like microbrews bewitching me with suds-soaked songs of betrayal) is ... (cue German national anthem) Erdinger. It's a wonderful dark beer with the soul of a lighter beer ..."

Well-traveled William W. Drosendahl of Ross has a dear beer in every port, but pines for Alaskan Amber Ale -- so much so that on a recent stop in Spokane, he took a photo of a fellow traveler with a case of it as his carry-on.

Drosendahl muses, "Are these choices because a beer reminded me of great meals with good friends in times past? Perhaps that is part of it, a mixture of nostalgia and pleasant memories revived at the smell and taste. But mostly it's about the taste of the product itself."