American Home Brewing As We Know It Today
American home brewing adapts to the changes in the political and economic climates of the country. Back in the 90s, America had been the top producer of beer. However, with the global recession that is happening now, many companies are closing. Although of course, some argue that as the economy worsens, beer sells more – many get depressed and thus forget their economic woes through the messy route of drinking. Some people, instead of wasting precious money by raking the bars every night, adapt to the situation – and that is by turning towards home made beer.
As was mentioned, American home brewing has been very flexible through time. Back in the old America, home brewing was already a part of colonial lives. Even famous personalities such as George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were home brew aficionados.
During the prohibition, no one was allowed to brew their own drinks at home. A penalty of one thousand dollars was imposed on those who were caught – and back then one thousand dollars went a long way. Either that or they were sentenced one year imprisonment. Everybody had to content with a watered down lifeless beer – well not really beer but something which was a very poor substitute for it. Nothing substantially alcoholic was allowed and few took efforts in making their drinks less alcoholic but tasty. Thirsty daring beer lovers stealthily bought ingredients and beer brewing equipment. Some very enterprising shop owners found ways of selling them without associating them with beer making or anything about beer at all. Beer ingredients, after all, are as normal as other ingredients – grains, yeast, etcetera, and the equipment – buckets, vats, what really is there to question when they are put up for sale? The situation varied from state to state. In some states, only those selling home brews were caught while in some, brewing for personal consumption also meant facing legal charges. And since ingredients and materials had to be sold and bought discreetly, there really was nothing much to experiment on. Those years could probably be considered the dark ages for home brewing.
Before beer was allowed to be brewed at home, a change in law allowed people to make their own wine at home, but now people had to obtain a permit to brew beer at home… strange but true. Even though there were strict regulations, this breath of fresh air was welcomed by the home beer brewing community. One off this first home beer brewers was Charlie Papazian, and he took it to himself to start teaching others how to brew their own beer at home… it was tough going as for those that didn’t have a permit it was illegal, but Charlie kept the dream alive.
Over time, all the ridiculous rules about brewing beer at home were fully relaxed with Jimmy Carter signing an amendment in 1978 to allow home brewers the opportunity to brew up to 200 gallons of beer a year without any permits or other silly nuances. This then sparked interest far and wide for the American Home Brewer and really led the emergence of a beer nation like no other.
American Home Brewing is happening and booming today, so of-course it’s time to sit down, relax, and have a home brew. For those still not up to scratch with home brewing beer, follow the link to discover more!
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