I bought some of the rub they sell at Salt Lick. Its sold for brisket, but I use it on chicken and its pretty good. don't use too much. there is a ton of pepper in it, and it can get too hot for the kiddos if you are not careful with it. But the flavor is great.
I used to make my own rub but the Salt Lick stuff is very good. I consider myself a smoking fanatic and would highly suggest looking up the BBQ FAQ on the internet. Used to be hosted by Eaglequest. When you find it, lock yourself in your man-cave for a few days reading it. When people say "Yeah, I went out after work and BBQ'd some (xxx) meat for dinner." They are a colossal fail in my book.
Haven't tried Shiner, usually drink it before it could make it into a brine. My brine is usually the standard sugar, salt, lemon juice, peppercorns and herbs.