Poor Jimmy Carter gets a lot of flack for being one of the worst presidents in history. But yesterday was International Beer Day (damn, now I’ll have to find one of those Happy Belated International Beer Day cards at Hallmark to send out), and as this wonderful graph shows, Jimmy Carter was actually a spearhead in the craft brew renaissance.

If you’re a fan of craft beer and microbreweries as opposed to say Bud Light or Coors, you should say a little thank you to Jimmy Carter. Carter could very well be the hero of International Beer Day.

To make a long story short, prohibition led to the dismantling of many small breweries around the nation. When prohibition was lifted, government tightly regulated the market, and small scale producers were essentially shut out of the beer market altogether. Regulations imposed at the time greatly benefited the large beer makers. In 1979, Carter deregulated the beer industry, opening the market back up to craft brewers.

So we should probably all take a bit of time to reevaluate our feelings toward Mr. Carter and dedicate a pint toward him this weekend. Or at least spend a few minutes beefing up his Wikipedia page about his accomplishments in beer. That’s what the cool kids do these days.

Balloon Juice — International Beer Day