The Birth of Modern Craft Brewing in the United States

Beer is a tale as old as time itself—evidence shows it’s been a part of the human experience since ancient times when wheat and barley were cultivated and grown as intentional crops. The craft brewing revolution in the United States is much more modern.

There are actually two phases of craft brewing in the United States. The first began with the creation of D.G. Yuengling & Son Brewery in Pennsylvania in 1829. Many small brewers produced beer, but from 1900 to 1980, the beer industry saw the market concentrate and homogenize. Technological advances, brewing costs, the advent of large-scale advertising and global mergers all made it extremely hard for small brewers to survive. But the demand for new and exciting brews couldn’t be crushed, with many veterans of World War II returning from battle with a taste for European styles.

The modern craft brewing revolution began in the Bay Area of California at a local pub in 1965. Recent Stanford grad Fritz Maytag (yes, those Maytags) was soul-searching and looking for a business outside his family’s vast appliance empire where he could make his mark. He was chatting with the bartender, who told him to enjoy the beer he was drinking because the brewer, Anchor, was rumored to be going out of business. Maytag visited the brewery the next day and bought a controlling interest in the business. He revived the ailing brewery by creating flavorful beer, reintroducing lost styles and creating new ones. Anchor Brewery became the first craft brewery since Prohibition and sparked an interest in thoughtful and authentic beers.

The 1960s also started a homebrewing revolution. Illegal from 1920 to 1979, the 21st Amendment left alcohol regulation to individual states. This led to many homebrewers launching small brewing businesses. Most notable is Jack McAuliffe. He fell in love with Scottish beers while stationed in the U.S. Navy. His New Albion Brewery only lasted six years but inspired a generation of microbrewers.

To be considered an American craft brewery, it must be small, producing 6 million barrels of beer or less annually. It must also be independent, meaning that less than 25 percent of the craft brewery is owned or controlled by a beverage alcohol industry member who is not a craft brewer. It’s hard going up against the titans of beer, so craft brewers are usually traditional and innovative at the same time, resurrecting historic brews and adding a unique twist. Ancient City Brewing’s Castillo Coconut Porter is the perfect example of this approach. Porter is a style of dark beer, closely related to a stout, that originated in 1700s England. Once a popular style, it was nearly lost during and just after Prohibition. Craft brewers revived the deep, dark style, experimenting with flavors – our Castillo Coconut Porter harnesses rich dark chocolate, coffee and a tropical twist of coconut. It also uses a classic American brewing ingredient, molasses, a favorite of America’s first president, George Washington.

Support your local brewers and enjoy flavors that just can’t be found on the mass market!