Beer Day in Iceland Date in the current year: March 1, 2024

Beer, as well as other spirits, were banned in Iceland in 1908, after the Icelanders voted in a referendum. The ban came into effect in 1915. But in 1921 the ban was partially lifted by Spain, when it refused to buy fish, main Iceland's export, unless the latter buys Spanish wines. The ban was lifted further after a national referendum in 1935, when spirits were legalized. However, strong beer was not included into the list in order to please the temperance lobby, which argued over beer. The reason was that beer was cheaper than other spirits, and it would led to more depravity.

Prohibition of beer lost its support in 1895, when the Minister of Justice and Ecclesiastical Affairs prohibited pubs from adding legal spirits to legal non-alcoholic beer to imitate a strong beer. The prohibition of strong beer was finally canceled in 1989.

The Icelanders started celebrate Beer Day on March 1, the day when strong beer could be legally bought in pubs and stores. Some beer-lovers may take part in a pub crawl on this day.