HOW DID WE GET HERE?

Steel beer cans (easier to ship) are first sold in 1935. Aluminum cans pop up in 1959.

The first written mention of the beverage. Sumerian priestesses carve into clay tablets a poem to Ninkasi, the goddess of brewing, as well as a recipe for ale. Centuries later, ancient Egyptians and Babylonians treat pyramid builders to home-brewed beer as payment, says Pete Brown, the author of Shakespeare’s Pub, a historical book about beer.

Brewing continues to be a religious experience, as the Catholic Church is the main producer and distributor. In fact, the oldest commercial brewery (which is still in operation, known as the Bavarian State Brewery Weihenstephan today) originated in a monastery in Bavaria.

Prior to 1500, beer is safer to drink than water, due to rampant disease and poor sewer systems. Even kids knock it back.

Now you can take that brewski to go. Legend has it that English clergyman Alexander Nowell accidentally invents a way to bottle beer.

BUZZKILL: BEER DOESN’T BECOME THE FOCAL POINT OF THE TRADITION UNTIL YEARS LATER.

Some patrons have been escaping dark taverns for the few outdoor Biergartens in existence here and there, but the opening of Munich’s Königlicher Hirschgarten, the world’s largest beer garden, boasting 8,000 seats, makes alfresco imbibing more accessible. (If you choose to visit today, sample the crowd-pleasing Augustiner.) By the 1800s, these establishments are commonplace.

Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria marries Princess Therese of Saxony-Hildburghausen and toasts with all of Munich. Every year after that, citizens mark the event—Prost!—with a 16-day Oktoberfest.

“Guinness is good for you,” the slogan that spawned posters in countless pubs (and dorm rooms), is born. Although it is one of the most notable taglines, the claim was never proven and is no longer allowed to be used in most places, says Gavin D. Smith, the author of Beer: A Global History.

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April 7 marks the beginning of the end for Prohibition. Immediately after the clock strikes midnight, the Coors brewery starts producing new barrels of beer, says Smith.

Low-calorie beers surface—along with genius TV ads. After doing market research in bars, Miller finds inspiration for the “Tastes great, less filling” campaign, ranked one of the best ads of the century by Advertising Age. Meanwhile, heartier “microbrews” from independent producers become increasingly popular in the United Kingdom. In the following years, these craft breweries slowly catch on in the United States.

There’s nothing micro about the craft-brewery boom, which is abuzz with experimental flavors. (Try New Belgium’s coriander-infused Trippel or Bison’s Organic Honey Basil.) Brewing is now as much of a science as an art. Paul Smith’s College, in upstate New York, introduced a minor in craft-beer studies and operations and is among a handful of schools now offering programs in fermentation science.

Written by N. Jamiyla Chisholm

THE NUMBER OF CRAFT BREWERIES IN THE UNITED STATES IN 2014, ACCORDING TO THE BREWERS ASSOCIATION. IN 1980 THERE WERE ONLY EIGHT.