75 years ago prohibition was repealed by the 21st amendment of the U.S. Constitution

Crying in your beer took on a whole new meaning
during the Prohibition years in America.

December 5, 2008 will mark the 75th anniversary of enactment of the 21st amendment  which repealed the 18th amendment  and the federal repeal of prohibition.  It’s not necessarily a reason to celebrate, but rather more importantly a reason to reflect.
     In 1919 just before Prohibition there were 1,179 registered breweries in the United States about to be put out of business.  Shortly after that in 1923 per capita consumption legally went to zero, though we know that there was a lot of illegally made alcohol consumed during the 10-year national period of Prohibition.
The Prohibition  years between 1923 and 1933 were economically gloomy and were void of quality beer.  This is when homebrewed beer got its initial bad rap.  
     This period forever has changed the way alcoholic beverages are regulated in the United States.  Only a few hundred breweries survived by producing malt extract, yeast and non-alcoholic beverages.  
     The repeal and end of national Prohibition  was only ratified by the 21st Amendment to the constitution on the premise that each individual state in the United States would be able to legislate their own unique rules governing the definitions, production, distribution, sale and consumption of beer.  This is why the laws are different in every state.  to a certain extent all states prohibit the ownership of retail outlets by brewing companies.  
     When the early 1980s emerged and small brewers wanted to establish brewery/restaurants or “brewpubs” as they are commonly referred, most states had prohibitions against such arrangements.  The legalization, state by state was a slow process in which many individuals, homebrewers and the American Homebrewers Association   were involved.  Most, though not all, of the state laws have been modified in 50 different ways between 1980 and 1995.   It is surprising to many that some areas of the United States still prohibit the consumption of alcoholic beverages! 
     Interestingly it was prohibition that afforded women the opportunity to acceptably drink alcoholic beverages in the company of men.  Before prohibition, women of any good reputation would never frequent a bar, saloon or tavern where most beer consumption occurred.  Prohibition, illicit booze and beer and the clandestine speak easy changed all of that.   It was one of the social “in things” to do during that era.   Find a speakeasy, enjoy drink and socialize.  Women began enjoying beer.
After Prohibition, brewing companies began to market to women, designing beers that were lighter in flavor and character.  While the use of corn, rice and sugar adjuncts was used before, they were now being used to develop a style that would appeal to women.
     In the short few years between 1933 and the beginning of America’s involvement in World War II, breweries were beginning to distribute their products outside of their own local area. The era of beer distribution emerged in a big way.   Because of the 21st Amendment, laws governing their business are mostly mandated at the state level, adding another layer of complexity to the legal landscape of brewing, selling and enjoying beer.  
     After all of this history and foundation-laying groundwork, one thing strikes me as quite contrary to the intention of the 21st Amendment.   There is in affect a national law that governs the legal alcoholic beverage drinking age, which is 21 years old.   How did the U.S. government get around the constitution?  It appears to me that under the threat of not releasing federal money for roads, each state was required to mandate the legal drinking age to 21.   Without doing so, a state would not receive federal road and highway funds.   This is not an argument for whether 21 is a good or bad idea, but rather an interesting manipulation of the system to disallow states from governing their own legal drinking age.  There have been several interesting interpretations of the 21st amendment by the courts.   
    On December 5, seventy-five years will have passed since the end of a failed prohibition against the consumption (responsible or otherwise) of alcoholic beverage.   Some may celebrate.   I will reflect. 
     There is a lot of education that remains to be done.  There are millions of Americans and special interest groups that continue to demonize beer and other alcoholic beverages.   They ignore the fact that the vast majority of Americans enjoy beer responsibly.  They would wish upon us another era of prohibition.  Their tactics are ongoing and they often manifest themselves every day in mainstream attitudes, prohibitions and increased “sin” taxes.   For me it is a time to reflect and appreciate the flavor, diversity of beers I can buy and the freedom to homebrew my own.