The Alström Brothers Launch BrewGuide

In 1996, brothers Todd and Jason Alström launched the website that later became BeerAdvocate. Originally called BrewGuide, the early site published the brothers’ own beer reviews from East Boston at a time when fewer than one percent of the world’s population used the internet. Todd Alström uploaded the content from a Linux computer over a dial-up connection. The brothers subsequently added an online forum where beer drinkers could discuss beer and arrange trades. In 2000, they renamed the project BeerAdvocate and opened beer reviewing to the wider community. It developed into one of the oldest and largest online communities devoted to beer, combining user reviews with forums, editorial coverage, festivals, and other resources.