American Beauties

During the last few decades the USA has experienced a beer revolution. Gary Monterosso reports

"You’ve come a long way, baby,” was the signature phrase for a popular advertisement a generation ago. It was meant to symbolise the peculiar relationship between smoking a certain brand of cigarette and the liberation of women. Perhaps that passage could be more relevant in describing the state of beer in the United States, especially during the last three decades.

The year 1976 is considered a landmark in American beer history. In October of that year when the first modern microbrewery, New Albion Brewing Co. of Sonoma, California, was opened.

Keep in mind that the working definition of a ‘microbrewery’ signifies a company producing up to 15,000 barrels (17,600 hectolitres) of beer annually. At the time, there were fewer than 50 breweries in the entire country. Contrast that with a hundred years prior when close to 3,000 breweries existed nationwide.

Although New Albion lasted only six years, the wheels were in motion for an increased interest in full-flavored beers, as opposed to the massmarketed, cookie-cutter beverages that had been the norm.

Also in the late 1970s, there were two other elements that provided direction for this burgeoning industry. Michael Jackson achieved acclaim for his 1977 book, The World Guide to Beer, legitimising the trade and alerting the masses to the fact that the American beer scene was about to change. In October 1978, President Jimmy Carter signed a decree that legalised homebrewing at the federal level. It was that piece of legislation .....

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By Gary Monterosso

Section : International Focus

Page number : 44