Region & History

Why was there no beer in Iceland until 1989? Because the Icelanders themselves wanted it that way. In a 1908 referendum, they voted for a ban on all alcoholic beverages, which took effect on January 1, 1915. It applied equally to wine, spirits, and beer.

The strictness didn't last long. In 1921, the ban on wine was partially lifted after Spain threatened to stop buying Icelandic fish unless Iceland accepted Spanish wine. Fish was the country's most important export. In 1935, another referendum voted to legalize spirits.

Only beer remained banned. Only a drink with a maximum of 2.25 percent alcohol was permitted. Lawmakers believed beer was cheaper and easier to drink in large quantities, and thus encouraged everyday drinking and rowdiness. Strong beer could only be found in Reykjavík in the luggage of travelers.

Publicans found a workaround and mixed non-alcoholic beer with spirits. This concoction was called Bjórlíki, meaning "beer-like." In 1985, the Minister of Justice banned this mixture. After that, legalization moved quickly through parliament, and the upper house voted 13 to 8 in favor.

On March 1, 1989, the beer ban ended after 74 years. The day has since been known as Bjórdagur, Beer Day, and is celebrated in bars across the country. The breweries now found in Reykjavík, Akureyri, and the countryside are almost all younger than this day, and Iceland now counts more than 30 of them among its roughly 400,000 inhabitants.