Americans have always been hearty drinkers. W.J. Rorabaugh—author of "The Alcoholic Republic: An American Tradition" and a history professor at the University of Washington—suggests that travel and immigration have influenced our beer-drinking habits since the 1840s, when Germans arrived with lager in tow."When beer returned in 1933 after Prohibition, Americans no longer had a taste for the heavy, flavorful beers available before 1917," Rorabaugh says. "For many years, brewers turned out very light colored beer that had little flavor. Only in the 1960s, when Americans began to visit Europe in large numbers, did they rediscover flavorful beers."
Seeking out breweries and pubs
When traveling to new cities, consider that the best beer is often found at the source of production. There are thousands of opportunities to visit breweries. I was just in Brussels and recommend the Brasserie Cantillon, which brews lambic beer—using an old-world production method of spontaneously fermenting beer from airborne yeast—and runs tours in English, French, and Dutch. Near Antwerp, the Moortgat family brewery, which produces Duvel, also has a fantastic tour. If it's a pub you wish to visit, ask locals where they drink. They often can recommend pubs and bars that are less tourist-centered and more down to earth—you'll find the experience vastly different than heavily commercialized offerings.
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