I drink quite a bit of beer. Beer alone doesn't cause the problem for me, since I only get it about once a year. I do drink a lot of water too though. I have water with me at all times.
I think it's the rich food on top of the beer that puts it over the edge for me. A few years back, a local restaurant had a Dungeness crab special; a whole Dungeness crab with parsley potatoes for $12. I was eating it 6~7 times a week, lunch and dinner, and thinking about it the rest of the time, for three weeks. Then I got the worst case of gout ever. It hurt terribly and affected my left big toe as well. I still wanted the crab though.
So you might want to ease up on the richer meats. (I know they are tastier.)
If it becomes a regular thing, the medication route might be best.