Posted By: Melissa Ward
Photo courtesy of Maggie Hoffman- our favorite Lady of Craft Beer at Serious Eats!
Today, Jan. 24, the beer can celebrates its 75th birthday. Back when the beer can came onto the scene, it was labeled as “just a fad.” Luckily it’s not.
Instead, the use of aluminum cans makes many of our favorite craft beers more eco-friendly and portable (have you ever tried putting a couple of beer bottles in your pack for a 6-mile hike? I didn’t think so).
Here are some quick beer can facts from the folks at Oskar Blues, a Colorado brewery that proudly cans its award-winning beers:
- Modern aluminum cans and lids are lined with a water-based coating, which keeps beer and metal from touching and exchanging flavor.
- Aluminum cans keep beer fresher by fully eliminating the damages of light and oxygen.
- Cans are the most easily and frequently recycled beverage package in the world. A recycled aluminum can generates 95 percent less pollution than one made from scratch, and requires 96 percent less energy.
- One recycled can saves the energy equivalent of 6 ounces of gas.
Specifically for OB, lightweight aluminum cans enable the brewery to reduce its fuel costs and carbon footprint for shipped beer by 35 percent.
Photo courtesy of Maggie Hoffman, our fav Lady of Craft Beer at Serious Eats!
So to celebrate the beer can’s birthday, grab a can of your favorite craft beer. Here are a few of mine:
Oskar Blue’s Ten Fidy
Sly Fox’s Phoenix Pale Ale
21st Amendment Fireside Chat
What’s your favorite canned craft beer?
Related Posts:
Fave beer in a can (and top 5 in any package): Maui CoCoNut Porter.
I love Avery’s White Rascal and now it comes in a can!
Thank you for finding a picture with Ska cans in it. Read a similar article today and they failed to mention Ska. Both the Modus and the ESB are two of my favorite beers of all time. And the new Euphoria in the blue can is pretty great too. Like the blog, keep up the good work ladies!