Anchor Brewing Celebrates the 40th Anniversary of Liberty Ale® with Commemorative Cans In May

San Francisco, CA (May 12, 2015) – Today, Anchor Brewing Company announces the release of Liberty Ale® in cans; a commemorative offering celebrating the 40th anniversary of the historic beer that started a revolution.

“I remember brewing the first batch of Liberty Ale with Fritz Maytag 40 years ago. We were both young and eager beer lovers and knew we wanted to create a beer unlike anything else at that time,” said Anchor Brewing Brewmaster Mark Carpenter. “We had come across a new hop variety called Cascade that had a distinct piney bitterness that we used in the brew. Through Fritz’s interest in history and travel he’d learned of a process European brewers used called dry-hopping; adding dry hops to beer fermenting in the cellar to boost its hoppy aroma. So we dry-hopped the ale with whole-cone Cascade hops, as well. During an era when light lagers were prevalent, Liberty Ale was a very hoppy ale for most people. Their palates were shocked and delighted by such a unique beer.”

When Liberty Ale was first brewed, it truly broke the mold, starting a trend toward hoppy beers that still continues today with IPAs dominating the beer shelves and taps.

Liberty Ale (5.9% ABV) was released in 1975 to celebrate the bicentennial of Paul Revere’s historic ride. Brewed and bottled 40 years ago, Liberty Ale was the first American IPA brewed after prohibition. Furthermore, it was the first modern dry-hopped ale in the US and was the beer that popularized the now-iconic Cascade hop. Today, Anchor fans cracking open a can of Liberty Ale will taste the same great beer that started a brewing revolution in 1975.

Liberty Ale pushed the envelope during a time when mass-produced lagers saturated the marketplace. Former Anchor Owner Fritz Maytag shook up the industry when he purchased the struggling Anchor brewery in 1965, reviving Anchor Steam® Beer, and soon after began brewing other classic beers like Liberty Ale. Beers like these revolutionized American brewing, leading the way to the American Craft Beer Revolution. With quality and originality in mind, Fritz was brewing craft beer before the terms “craft” or “microbrewing” were even coined.

Brewed with only natural ingredients – pale malted barley, whole-cone Cascade hops and Anchor’s own top-fermenting ale yeast – Liberty Ale boasts a hoppy, balanced flavor with champagne-like bubbles and a distinct hop bouquet. 40 years later, Liberty Ale offers the same quality and flavor now in commemorative cans.

Liberty Ale is available starting May 2015 nationwide in 6-pack cans and bottles and on draught at select bars and restaurants as well as at the Anchor Brewing Taproom in San Francisco. Find a brew near you using the Anchor Beer Finder.

Learn more about this historic brew by watching the Liberty Ale Video.

– See more at: http://www.anchorbrewing.com/connect/news/155#sthash.bwquw9XB.dpuf