"year in beer" news and stories

With the country knee-deep in its nastiest recession in 70 years, Americans needed stiff drinks more than ever. But instead of drowning their economic sorrows with dirt-cheap Coors Light or Bud, droves of drinkers snagged six-packs, 22-ounce bombers and champagne-corked bottles of craft beer.

According to industry group the Brewers Association, during the first half of 2009, craft brewing grew 5 percent by volume and 9 percent by dollars, numbers made more astounding when you consider that overall beer sales nose-dived 1.3 percent.

Why are microbreweries bucking the economic trend? It's a matter of taste. Increasingly, brew drinkers "are attracted to flavor and variety, new and different products and beers made by small, local and independent companies," says Brewers Association director Paul Gatza.