We The People: The origins of Iowa’s beer industry

IOWA CITY, Iowa (KCRG) - Iowa’s beer industry is thriving — and experts says it all started with Iowa City’s beer caves over 100 years ago.

Underneath the neighborhood on the city’s Market Street, there’s a series of tunnels holding the city’s history.

“It was the wild west back then,” Doug Alberhasky, the owner of John’s Grocery , said.

Alberhasky said the store has been part of his family for generations.

“We sell beer but we actually sell a story,” Alberhasky said.

Part of that story connects with Iowa City’s long history of beer brewing.

“We have such a history here of being the oldest continuous established business in Iowa City,” Alberhasky said. “They built the main portion of the store in 1884, the year of the beer riots.”

He said the store was standing when three large b