Brewing Under the Ban: How Prohibition Shaped American Beer

Before light beer became king and hops took center stage, America had a thriving lager tradition—crisp, flavorful, and rooted in old-world brewing techniques. In this episode of The Beer Craft, Beer, and Brewing Podcast, Ben and Andrew are drinking through history as we dive into the golden age of pre-Prohibition brewing. From six-row barley and Cluster hops to secret speakeasies and DIY homebrews made with malt extract “not meant for beer,” we unpack how the so-called “Noble Experiment” changed American beer forever.

We explore how breweries adapted (hello, ice cream and near beer), how adjunct brewing became the norm, and how homebrewers kept beer alive in basements across the country. Plus, we walk you through an authentic pre-Prohibition lager recipe you can brew at home to bring this lost style back to life.

Beer30

 

 

Recipes:

https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/view/1550158/ep-22-pre-prohibition-lager

https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/view/1550160/1912-pre-war-lager

https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/view/1550162/weger-brothers-american-bock-1909

 

Music Attribution

 "Twisted" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

 

RetroFuture Dirty  https://drive.google.com/file/d/13BsgP109cPHL1BbrCSEgzhKJcBoCQYdk/view?usp=drive_link

 "RetroFuture Dirty" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 

"Fox Tale Waltz Part 1 Instrumental" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

 

"Sweeter Vermouth" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

 

.css-j9qmi7{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex-direction:row;-ms-flex-direction:row;flex-direction:row;font-weight:700;margin-bottom:1rem;margin-top:2.8rem;width:100%;-webkit-box-pack:start;-ms-flex-pack:start;-webkit-justify-content:start;justify-content:start;padding-left:5rem;}@media only screen and (max-width: 599px){.css-j9qmi7{padding-left:0;-webkit-box-pack:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;justify-content:center;}}.css-j9qmi7 svg{fill:#27292D;}.css-j9qmi7 .eagfbvw0{-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;color:#27292D;}