Happy American Beer Day!

Colin Joliat Staff Writer

As I pointed out on National Vodka Day, everything under the sun seems to have its own special holiday, so why not American beer? I’m sure you’ve been waiting all year for this, but thankfully Oct. 27th has finally arrived, and with it, American Beer Day. You can officially start drinking now.

American Beer 219x214 Happy American Beer Day!Per usual, there isn’t much information out there about this magical holiday. There aren’t any set guidelines for how to celebrate such an important event, but I imagine the key point would be that you drink American beer. This can be trickier than you might think though, so be careful.

Budweiser is brewed right here in the good old US of A, but it’s still owned by Belgians so that’s out. Do you consider that Honda you drive to be American because it was made in Indiana? No, I didn’t think so. Miller and Coors are owned by Molson Coors Brewing Company, which is equal parts American and Canadian. While you could make the claim that this counts, it’s American Beer Day so why risk it? There are plenty of great beers out there, and this could be the perfect opportunity for you to try them.

Yuengling may look and sound foreign, but it’s the largest American brewery and is found in Pottsville, PA. It’s also America’s oldest brewery so what better place to which to turn on this holiest of days? Then you have Samuel Adams, the largest craft brewery in the US. I know it’s hard to believe that something so widespread is considered a craft beer, but the limit is 6 millions barrels per year. Good old Sammy actually had a big part in raising that limit from the original 2 million specified. If you can’t find a beer that you like in the Sam Adams lineup, you might as well just shut it down and move to Mexico and start sipping on Tecate Lights.

Craft beer is the easiest way to go to ensure that you are getting the full American experience. Most of them started as guys making beer in buckets in their garage but grew into what you know them as today. Sierra Nevada, New Belgium (don’t be fooled by the name), Magic Hat, Bells, Great Lakes, and Harpoon are a few good options, but there are over 1000 more. To stay hyper-local, check out what breweries are you in your state.

Before I send you off to celebrate, I thought I’d remind you all of my favorite fictional beer, Sam Jackson.

 

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