Happy Birthday Canned Beer !

Canned Beer Turns 75.

Be sure to crack open a cold one on Jan. 24, the day canned beer celebrates its 75th birthday.

New Jersey's Gottfried Krueger Brewing Company churned out the world's first beer can in 1935, stocking select shelves in Richmond, Va., as a market test. The experiment took off and American drinkers haven't looked back since, nowadays choosing cans over bottles for the majority of the 22 gallons of beer they each drink per year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Only 22 gallons ? That can't be right...

Canned brewskies may have only hit shelves in 1935, but the drink's history goes back much further - at least 6,000 years, in fact, to ancient Iraq.

Which is why we're there ! More beer !

Though it is impossible to tell just how many important decisions in world history were lubricated by a pint or two, the potent potable has played a role in at least a few milestone events, from the plagues of medieval Europe to the founding of the United States.

"Give me liberty or give me death ! And another beer."

The nutritional properties of beer remained important through the medieval period, when plagues made water sources questionable. Having gone through a cooking and boiling process, beer was considered a trusted alternative, offering some cherished calories to boot.

Beer, so good and so good for you.

The pilgrims sailing from England to America aboard the Mayflower in 1620 originally intended to land at Virginia, but arrived badly off course in Cape Cod instead. Realizing their mistake, they debated continuing on to their original destination, but ruled against it due to a general lack of rations and especially beer, according to historical documents. The colony of Plymouth, where pilgrims shared beer produced from barley crops during the first Thanksgiving, was the result.

Dude, stop the ship. We need to make a beer run.

So happy birthday canned beer !

20 Things Worth Knowing About Beer from The Oatmeal.