The Boilermaker’s Montana Origins Explained

Montana is known as a state where people like to drink. We have a lot of bars, taverns, and pubs in the state. Bar classifications vary by state. Some bars aren’t considered bars if they serve food.

Montana’s Love for Bars and Breweries

According to Vine Pair and Yahoo Finance, in 2022 Montana had 522 bars, which ranks Montana as the state with the second most bars per capita in the country. North Dakota outranks Montana for bars per capita.

The Boilermaker’s Butte Beginnings

Leave it to a state that likes to drink as much as we do in Montana to be the originator of one of the most famous hardcore drinks ever created. For those who don’t know, the drink known as a “Boilermaker” is credited with being born in Butte, Montana in the 1890s.

Boilermakers around the world, aren’t the same. In the U.S., it normally consists of a beer mixed with a shot of whiskey. In other parts of the world, it’s two different types of beer.

According to Wikipedia, the drink was originally called a “Sean O’Farrell.” It was served to miners when they finished their shifts. These days, it’s tough to imagine how incredibly hard and dangerous it was to be a miner in the 1800s in Butte, Montana. Having just a beer back then wasn’t enough.

The next time you order a Boilermaker, know that Montana is credited with creating one strong drink, and please enjoy it responsibly.

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Gallery Credit: mwolfe