by JOE ZIMMERMANN
CAPITAL NEWS SERVICE
Beer is about as old as society itself, but the methods of producing the alcoholic beverage continue to change.
Recent decades have seen a surge in the number of small breweries — known as microbreweries or craft breweries — that brew in smaller batches and are usually independently owned.
In Maryland, the first microbreweries began to pop up in the early 1990's, with an initial boom around 1996.
The number gradually increased until another spike in 2011, when six opened in the state, a pace that hasn't slowed since. There are now 64 breweries in the state, according to CNS research.
Source: Brewery listings, confirmed and supplemented by CNS research.