The American Brew: The Rich and Surprising History of Beer

Beer has been an American institution from earliest colonial times, and filmmaker Roger Sherman does a solid job of covering its history in this documentary, which was commissioned by Anheuser-Busch but is no mere commercial. Using an assortment of archival materials—film footage, photos, collectibles, artwork, facsimiles of publications—supplemented with statistics and excerpts from interviews with brewers, collectors, industry representatives, and consumers, The American Brew covers the subject seriously if not entirely soberly (moments of humor are fairly plentiful). The film moves chronologically from the 17th century to the present, emphasizing how the technology has improved even as production processes—explained in easily understandable terms—have remained essentially the same, while also describing the enormous varieties in beer taste made possible by adding different ingredients. The trajectory of the film has an interesting symmetry: the story begins with home brewing in the earliest period and—after proceeding through the introduction of German lager, the industrialization of production by major brands, and the temporary hiatus mandated by Prohibition—concludes with the 20th-century emphasis on microbreweries and, ultimately, the renaissance of home brewing. DVD extras include additional interviews, a look at the hidden cellar inside a Prohibition-era club in New York City, and a featurette called “Cheese Wars,” about a competition pitting beers against wines to determine which beverage is the better complement to cheese. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)