Europe Drinks More American Craft Beer

You wouldn't expect to find a Bud Light in a bar in Paris, but new stats show you might just find one there, along with your favorite American craft beer. 

The demand for U.S.-brewed craft beers is growing, reports Public Radio International (PRI). In fact, the Brewer's Association reports that the demand has grown 52 percent in the last year alone. The two biggest importers of U.S. beers are the U.K. and Sweden. The reason for the growth, brewers and bartenders say, has to do with the unique flavors of craft beers, thanks to the use of spices, hops, and fruits, that beer drinkers abroad are starting to embrace. Said one Swedish bartender to PRI, "We've been basically drinking the same thing over here for a long, long time. And all of a sudden we've got this selection of really flavorful beers with character and something different."

And the big guys in American beer — Budweiser, Bud Light, Coors, and Miller — still dominate the beer scene there. But it's not all bad:  The ever-popular Sam Adams is taking over bars, and winning over European drinkers. Its Oktoberfest brew even won the Gold Medal at German's Oktoberfest for best beer — that's an honor not taken lightly.