Drinking alcoholic beverages is, for the most part, an accepted benefit of being an adult. Statistically, the majority of adults consume alcohol at least occasionally, and its production and distribution creates hundreds of thousands of jobs in United States. In addition, the government taxes the revenues from alcohol production and sales. There are over a hundred thousand people currently employed in the alcohol industry. That does not take into account restaurants and bars that sell alcohol or the cost of licensing to sell alcohol. The medical community's claim that some alcohol, such as red wine, is beneficial in the reduction of heart disease has helped boost these sales.
From the earliest recorded history, alcohol has been a part of society. In the early Americas, taverns and inns acted as important gathering places. They served a variety of functions including trading posts, the local post office, auction houses, militia office and liquor retailer. As social gathering spots, people were more often encouraged to drink and smoke to excess. Sales of alcohol were not regulated or specially taxed. Alcohol was distributed like any other good and made easy and convenient.
The 18th Amendment had outlawed alcohol in 1919 and led to Prohibition in 1920. Private ownership and consumption of alcohol was not made illegal under federal law; however, in many places local laws were more strict, with some states banning possession altogether. This led to the growth of criminal organizations, including the modern American Mafia and various other criminal groups along with some politicians and within law enforcement, in order to maintain the flow of alcohol. Despite these illegal operations, overall consumption of alcohol halved during the 1920s and remained below pre-Prohibition levels until the 1940s.
During prohibition, alcohol distributers were forces to be creative in the distribution of there wares.