American
In the early twentieth century, Prohibition drove many breweries in the U.S. into bankruptcy because they could not rely on selling "sacramental wine" as wineries of that era did. After several decades of consolidation of breweries, most American commercial beer was produced by a few very large corporations, resulting in a very uniform, mild-tasting lager of which Budweiser is a well-known example. Consequently, some beer drinkers craving variety turned to home brewing and eventually a few started doing so on a slightly larger scale. For inspiration, they turned to Britain, Germany, and Belgium, where a centuries-old tradition of artisan beer and cask ale production had never died out. Popularity of these products quickly spread, and hundreds of microbreweries sprung up. Soon, some became more than microbrews, necessitating the definition of the broader category of craft beer - high quality beer. The largest American craft brewery is the Boston Beer Company, makers of Samuel Adams. Prtland, Oregon is well known for its microbrew proliferation. There are now around 1500 craft breweries in the US.
