Jay Brooks, of Brookston Beer Bulletin fame, has a column in the San Jose Mercury News about the history of steam beer.

But unless you’re the Anchor Brewing Company, don’t dare call this style “steam,” or the dreaded Trademark Police will come looking for you. Jay explains why:

As no one else in the world was brewing steam beer, Anchor shrewdly trademarked the name in 1981. By the time the craft beer scene caught up and breweries wanted to make their own versions of Steam Beer, a generic term had to be coined, and so “California Common” was born.

And now you know the proverbial “rest of the story.”

Tags: Anchor Brewing Company, California common beer, steam beer