The best American beer: history and features

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

Many beer drinkers are familiar with drinks from Ireland, Belgium and Germany. There are also connoisseurs of domestic products in Russia. But what can be an American beer? Russian consumers are unlikely to have heard the names of brands of foamy drink from the USA. Nevertheless, in Hollywood films, the heroes destroy one jar after another, effectively pulling off the rings from them. And the cinema, as you know, even fantastic, is a reflection of real life.

In fact, beer is considered a staple in the average American's shopping basket. In terms of the consumption of this drink per capita, the United States ranks 15th in the world. Why is New World beer so interesting for gourmets? Let's figure it out. In this article, we invite you to take a gastronomic tour of the most famous US breweries. We will also introduce you to the history of the development of this drink in the States. It is naive to think that Europeans brought it to the New World.

History of brewing in America

The Indians brewed a foamy drink long before the landing of Columbus. But the ancient recipes of American beer mention that the natives used not barley, but corn, common in two Indias, as a raw material. They acidified the grain with birch sap. But the white aliens did not take advantage of the cultural achievements of the Indians in the field of brewing, but began to be guided by Dutch and Irish recipes.

According to the chronicles, the first farm where they made a foamy drink appeared in North America in 1587. For commercial sale, the drink began to be produced from 1632. Since the colony was owned by the British and Dutch, American brewers copied mostly Irish ale. But soon German emigrants brought the lager recipe. Suddenly, a new type of beer gained great popularity among the people. And the producers held it in high esteem, since hops, which served as a natural preservative, did not allow the drink to turn sour for a long time.

The emergence of indigenous American beer

Lager and ale have long coexisted together. But American enterprise took its toll. Numerous attempts to combine both types of drink have finally been crowned with success. So in the 19th century, "steam" beer appeared in San Francisco. It was a truly American product, a kind of know-how in the production process of making a drink. A hybrid of high-carbonated ale and lager, it had a rich bouquet with hints of m alt, caramel and roasted grains. But at the beginning of the 20th century, American brewing, as,however, producers of stronger alcoholic beverages were also in for a strong blow.

In 1919, the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution was adopted, popularly known as Prohibition. The brewing industry was particularly affected. After all, if people risked breaking the law, then they drank whiskey and rum, and not weak alcohol. After the repeal of the amendment to the Constitution, small businesses never recovered from their lethargic sleep. And the remaining factories were concentrated in the hands of huge concerns.

Budweiser

Major manufacturers have focused not on improving the recipe, but on advertising and marketing. In order to win as large a consumer audience as possible, they began to brew beer of an average taste. Playing on the struggle of Americans with excess weight and love for a he althy lifestyle, they reduced the number of calories and degrees in the product they produced. All this affected the taste characteristics of light beer. Therefore, in the late 70s of the XX century, the fame of tasteless and “nothing” was attached to drinks from the USA.

Budweiser saved the overall gloomy picture. This is the best American beer, which not only satisfies the domestic market, but is also exported abroad. He, unlike many other brands that did not survive Prohibition, has an ancient history. The plant was built in 1852 by a certain George Schneider, who a few years later sold it to Eberhard Anheuser. This brewer very successfully married his daughter to Adolphus Busch, a German from Bohemia. My son-in-law brought a Czech lager recipe from the Old World. And the American Budwieser from Anheuser-Busch is moreliked by consumers than the usual ale.

American Craft Beer

For a long time it was believed that, apart from Budweiser, there were no worthwhile brands of amber drink in the USA. However, at the end of the 20th century, the situation with brewing changed radically. More precisely, she became the same as before. Before Prohibition, every American town had its own brewery. Now, too, despite the fact that 60-70 percent of the domestic market is accounted for by such large companies as Anheuser-Busch, SABMiller, InBev and the like, small producers are making themselves louder.

At this time, there are more than three thousand such breweries in the country. Pubs serving their own produce are not uncommon these days either. American craft beer has its own specifics. The ingredients in it can be hops, m alt, sugar, various fruits. The main thing is that control over the recipe, as well as the production process, remains not with investors, but with the owners.

US Craft Beer Styles

New Albion Brewing Company started the fashion for a foamy drink prepared according to an original recipe at a small enterprise. Behind it, craft breweries began to appear like mushrooms after rain. Now, wherever you are in the US, be sure that within a radius of 50 kilometers there will definitely be a local manufacturer. The range of American craft beer is very wide.

Most entrepreneurs took the German lager recipe as a model. But they cookalso American double, IPA, creamy and amber, and even pumpkin ale. Special mention should be made of steam beer. It is referred to here as "California Common" or Steam Beer. The name "steam" comes from the fact that when hot wort is poured into a wide vat for cooling, a white cloud hangs over the brewery. This top-fermented lager is 4.5-5.5% ABV and has a m alty and fruity bouquet.

American Ales

US residents gained independence from Britain, but remained faithful to the English way of brewing. Although we must give them their due: in America they make special types of ale. Let's look at the most popular varieties.

American beer Kentucky Common ("Kentucky ordinary") - the oldest type of authentic ale, it began to be brewed in the middle of the century before last. It tastes sweet and full-bodied. The Kentucky Common hit the shelves immediately after brewing.

Americans prefer light domestic varieties, but among the ales there is also Amber, which is distinguished by a copper-red color. Fans of dry beer with bright hop bitterness can be advised to Blonde Ale. Cream ale with a hoppy-m alt balance is actually a 5% abv pale lager.

Original varieties

Americans not only duplicate English or German ways of brewing beer. They also have varieties that you can only taste here in the US and nowhere else. An example of this is American Wild Ale. AtThis "wild" American beer is made using Brettanomyces yeast. The resulting drink with its fruity taste reminds connoisseurs of Lambic from Belgium.

Another original variety is pumpkin ale. It is brewed without adding hops, but with ground vegetable pulp. A very strange taste with a powerful m alt note, not for everyone - such reviews are left by those who have tried pumpkin ale. In general, in craft beer, producers follow their own recipes, focusing not on the general consumer, but on loyal regular customers. Therefore, the taste and bouquet of ales and lagers can be anything.

Original American versions of traditional European varieties

US brewers are constantly adding some innovation to the recipe. A striking example is the American lager variety. American producers have altered the type of Czech brewing almost beyond recognition. Together with traditional ingredients, they add rice or, more often, corn. American lager is less alcoholic and lighter in color. Or here's another example - American Pale Ale, which is a local analogue of the British beer of the same name. American Pale Ale differs from English in its pronounced m alt profile, so strong that sometimes hops are not audible at all. Only local ingredients are used to make this drink.

But the nuances of production are at the mercy of the brewers. As a result, American Pale Ales can range in color from very light to deep amber. The foam cap is low, butlasts a long time. Ale can tingle on the tongue, it feels round in the mouth. The bouquet can be very different, depending on the manufacturer. It can guess the tones of both resin, needles, herbs, and caramel, rye bread, sweet berries, biscuit and tropical fruits. Pale Ale varies from 4.5 to 6.2 degrees.

American beer drinking culture

A distinctive feature is that US residents do not regard the foamy drink as alcohol. It is not savored in pubs. In America, there are no unwritten traditions for serving beer. They are simply washed down with food or refreshed during the summer heat. It is not customary to buy bottled beer in US stores. It is purchased in barrels or packages. Every American family believes that it is necessary to have beer "in reserve". Therefore, in terms of sales of this drink, the United States ranks second in the world (after China), and in terms of production - first.

At the same time, a significant correction needs to be made. Unlike German, Irish, Czech or Belgian beers, almost everything American goes to the local market. Another feature of the beverage consumption culture in the United States is the large proportion of "light" beverages. These are usually low calorie products. Americans also love such beer, the use of which does not interfere with driving. The degree of such a drink does not exceed the strength of kvass. Therefore, the most popular American beer brands are Coors Light, Bud Light and O’ Doul’s.

What is being exported

Lasttime, a foamy drink from the USA is back in fashion. In fairness, it must be said that the Budweiser brand has never lost its position. But other brands have become more successful in sales around the world. American beer is still little known in Russia. But in stores you can buy not only Budweiser, but also other products of the Anheuser-Busch concern. Miller, Adolph Coors and drinks from The Boston Beer Company are also available.