By Charlie Papazian, President of the Brewers Association
On January 1, 2005, the Brewers Association was formed from the merger of the Association of Brewers (founded in 1978 and included the American Homebrewers Association, Great American Beer Festival, Institute for Brewing Studies, Brewers Publications, its website, Beertown.org, and other activities) and the Brewers Association of America (founded in 1942, carrying forth the legacy of America’s brewery heritage).
Its purpose is to promote and protect small and independent American brewers, their craft beers and the community of brewing enthusiasts.
| 1942 | The Small Brewers Committee, a precursor to the Brewers Association of America, first meets at Palmer House in Chicago to discuss raw materials supply and other common issues of small brewers. One early issue the committee fought for was supplies of tin for crowns to seal beer bottles. |
| 1976 | The Brewers Association of America secures a small brewers tax differential on the first 60,000 barrels for brewers under 2 million barrels per year. |
| 1978 | Charlie Papazian and Charlie Matzen form the American Homebrewers Association in Boulder, CO, with the publication of the first issue of Zymurgy magazine, announcing the new organization, publicizing the federal legalization of homebrewing and calling for entries in the first AHA National Homebrew Competition. |
| 1982 |
The American Homebrewers Association presents debuts the Great American Beer Festival debuts at the Harvest House in Boulder, CO. |
| 1983 |
The Association of Brewers is organized to include the American Homebrewers Association and the Institute for Brewing and Fermentation Studies to assist the emerging microbrewery movement in the U.S. |
| 2005 | The Association of Brewers and the Brewers’ Association of America merge to form the Brewers Association. |
| 2008 |
1,501 American craft brewers produce almost 8.5 million barrels of beer, as craft brewers continue steady growth and beer drinkers turn toward more flavorful craft brewed beers from small and independent breweries. |
| 2009 |
Craftbeer.com website emerges to reflect the accomplishments and community of the craft beer enthusiast. |
The unique beer history of the Brewers Association combines a large brew-cauldron of activities and heritage. The result is a legacy that has helped change the world of beer both in the United States and abroad.
Charlie Papazian is the author of The Complete Joy of Homebrewing, founder of the Great American Beer festival, the American Homebrewers Association and the Association of Brewers. He works, lives and still enjoys making homebrewed beer in Colorado.