Having just tried the Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, I would add that to the list if I were doing it today. Not a hop bomb at all, but it does the trick and is a classic version of the style. I think Newkie brown could work, but its just too inconsistent to risk having a noob get a skunker and ruin them for life! Maybe on tap and not from the bottle?
Scott-TheBrewClub´s last blog ..Rogue Brewery Dead Guy Ale

I also agree with Don about adding in Killian’s Irish Red, and with Wendy about adding in Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. Personally I put Newcastle on that list, but having read your Newcastle review I’d think twice about recommending it now haha

I think Fat Tire is a gateway beer for a lot of people. And for me personally I would have anyone try an Alaskan Amber (or White Ale) because I’d bet they would enjoy it, and it’s plenty flavorful as a gateway beer.
Royce´s last blog ..Beer Wednesday: Pipeline Porter by Kona Brewing Co

As for Swiss beers, Hürlimann is small, known but not so wide spread. Yeah Cardinal is the mainstay especially in the South. The more North and especially North East you head the more you find Calanda, which has it’s middle of the road lagers, but also does some unique brews with special alpine waters and hops.

Where I am (The French speaking, wine drinking area) we have a great macro brewery called Boxer, which actually does some solid brewing, albeit just for the surrounding area. I will aslo highly recommend Les Brasseurs, a boutique micro-brew house and bar located in the larger towns around here.

Beyond that the Micro brews do exist and mainly in the German speaking part . I really like the Micro-Macro brews from Appenzell and Monstein. Both are from the Alpine areas and have some very cool traditions, methods and top shelf beers. As a matter of fact I should be doing a tour of the Monstein brewery in the next few weeks, so keep an eye out for that on my site.

If you're in CH, ping me and let's see if we can't organise some beer tests
Nate´s last blog ..Winter’s last blast – Calanda Bräu

On my various trips to Switzerland the most readily available brew was ‘Cardinal’ a middle of the road session lager. I regularly heard rumours of microbreweries, but sadly never found any.

BTW, (I’m sure the answer is yes), but are there any well-known Swiss beers?
Scott-TheBrewClub´s last blog ..Aprihop – Dogfish Head Brewery Spring IPA

And of course Czechvar is an introduction to the Czech lager world, as its not in the strictest sense a pils, hailing as it does from Budweis, about 80 miles south west of Pilsen.

I’ll get my coat!

From my experiences, there are some great recommendations in all of the responses:
@Bob the Brit – Spot on with the Urquell or some Czech Pils
@Scott – Sam Adams is a great beer, one I wished I had started with.
@Wendy – I love the Sierra Nevada Pale – very palettable, another I wished I had started with.

My only thought as I’m an Australian living in Switzerland after previously living in Germany, is that I believe good starting beers should be somewhat global, thus we can ensure that everyone can try them. (although I will add say that I started on the Aussie Macro of James Squire Pilsner, Available only downunder so let’s skip this one)

So with all of these great thoughts, I’d like to propose my 5 ‘entry beers’:

My top 5 starters:
Hoegaarden wit – Find it anywhere, easy to drink, not too complicated, decent flavour and a good intro to Belgian Beer.
Franziskaner Weiss – Great Weissen, plus it is has great distribution in Europe
Brooklyn Lager – Pleasure to drink and solid Lager. Found this in Australia and Europe as well as the US
Czechvar – Good introduction into the Pils world, pretty much available most places
Guinness – Don’t need to say any more here.

You’re right about the American Hefe’s – I had a few over the summer that shouldn’t scare off anyone from Flying Dog, Brooklyn and Boulder Beer. (I’d skip the lemon.) I’m not sure I’ve seen anything from Full Sail in my neighborhood – but I’ll keep them in mind now that you’ve mention them.
Scott-TheBrewClub´s last blog ..Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier

So I think to successfully convert someone from macro to micro one must make option “A” as smooth as possible. So that means no “big” beers, no high ABVs, no bitter IPA aftertastes, or anything with really overbearing flavors. If that is a success, then Option “B” (price) eventually takes care of itself and one starts to wander into the 22-ounce section of the beer cooler.

One of my first “good” beer experiences was thanks to my younger brother. He brought over a 4 pack of Boddington’s and I was immediately hooked. That’s because “Boddys” is a very smooth, creamy beer that has a straight forward taste. In other words, it wasn’t too far taste-profile-wise from a lighter-bodied lager. (And that cascading pour effect! Too cool!)

Another great style of beer for the beginner is American Hefeweizen. Both the Pyramid and Widmer Bros hefes are widely available and again, have a very friendly taste profile. To lemon or not is up to you. My wife — who thinks most lagers taste like “Budweiser” — loves these beers.

Sam Adams was also inadvertently mentioned here, and I agree that the basic Boston Lager is an excellent choice for a beer with a very good flavor profile that introduces the palate to some floral-style hops. This one, as well as many by Sam Adams, is still a favorite of mine. The black lager is also a very good, yet basic beer.

Two others that have become favorites of mine — and have also helped me convert a few macro drinkers — is the Session Series of Lagers by Full Sail. These are becoming more available, but it’s a harder find in some places. Full Sail brewed this Lager to appeal to the Corona crowd. The stubby bottles also make a great conversation starter. (I recently bought a 12 pack of Session on sale for $11.99.)

As much as I love them, I have found that stouts are a harder sell to the good beer newbie. The dark roast bite can be a bit startling to some. I have found that Murphy’s seems to be a bit more friendly for the newbie. It’s not quite as bitter, thus satisfying option “A” again.

These might not be the best beers out there, but as the saying goes, “you’ve gotta walk before you can run!”