Editor's note: Brian Wallace was weaned on some crummy brews (I.C. Light, anyone?) but now appreciates the beauty of Brussels Lace clinging to a pint glass. Partial to ales, he'll try anything with "Imperial" in its name and marvels at the quality and quantity of American microbrews.

Expensive beers come in bottles. Cheap brews come in cans.

That simple rule of thumb used to be true, for the most part.

When I was growing up, pricey brews like Heineken, Molson and Michelob — craft beer as we know it didn't yet exist — came in majestic glass brown or green bottles, while lesser beers were relegated to aluminum pop-top containers.

But now you can get Sierra Nevada, Brooklyn, Harpoon, Magic Hat and several other quality craft brews clad in metal. Some other craft brands, such as 21st Amendment, come only in cans.

Regional breweries have gotten into the act, with Lancaster Brewing Co. and Slyfox Brewery in Phoenixville offering 10 varieties in cans. Other local brewers are considering the switch as well.

What caused the turnaround?

Craft beer aficionados trace the modern metal movement to the introduction in 2002 of Dale's Pale Ale, the excellent flagship beer of Oskar Blues Brewery of Longmont, Colo.

According to legend (well, the company's website), Oskar Blues founder Dale Katechis thought it would be a kick to pack its "big, luscious pale ale" in a lowly can.

The portability of cans was a perfect fit for the outdoorsy consumers in Colorado and other areas of the West. Cans also protect beer from its mortal enemies — light and oxygen — better than do bottles, cost less to produce, consume less space and weigh less, reducing transportation costs.

That's why, more than a decade ago, European brewers began sending us such staples as Boddington's Pub Ale and Guinness Stout in cans for the long journey over the pond.

Still, marketing American craft beer in cans initially was a hard sell. But Dale's sales eventually took off, especially after the New York Times named it the best pale ale in the U.S. in 2005.

Today, the brewery produces more than 59,000 barrels of canned-only craft beer, a nearly 100-fold increase over first-year production.

According to craftcans.com, 232 craft brewers in 46 states are now canning 723 different products. In 2009, there were just 52 breweries canning craft beer, according to the Brewers Association.

Lancaster Brewing Co. began selling its Kolsch seasonal summer beer in aluminum cans in 2009, brewmaster Bill Moore says.

"It was met with a huge positive response," he says. "My one wholesaler in Philly sold 3,500 cases of it. A lot of bars and taverns that do outside seating like it because there's no risk of broken glass on sidewalks and decks."

The brewery also began selling its Rumspringa spring bock beer in cans in 2010 and is considering adding a third canned product in 2013, Moore says.

Some folks can't get past the stigma that only cheap beers come in cans and that the container gives beer a metallic taste, Moore says.

"But this is not your father's beer can. It's lined aluminum with low oxygen pickup. It's a better package to serve and sell beer in."

Moore's advice to those who still have doubts: "Pour it in a glass."

I've tried canned and bottled versions of a couple of beers, including Sierra Nevada Torpedo Ale, and couldn't taste any difference.

"There's zero metallic taste whatsoever," says Kevin Brown, owner of the Fridge, a purveyor of craft beers and flatbread pizzas on North Mulberry Street.

The Fridge has been steadily increasing its stock of canned beers, which now number about 15 brands, Brown says.

"It's definitely here to stay," he says of the canned craft beer phenomenon. "In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if, in the next five to 10 years, we see few, if any, bottles at all."

Kirchner's, a wholesale and retail beverage distributor on Charlestown Road, also has seen an increase in canned craft beer sales.

Matt Kirchner, executive vice president, couldn't break out his sales by bottles and cans but says sales of 21st Amendment — the all-can brand — were up a whopping 50 percent this past year.

Overall craft sales were up by 20 percent, Kirchner says, and he attributes much of the increase to canned beer sales.

One of the best features of a beer such as Dale's is that you can tuck an entire six-pack into that dark corner of your fridge near the pickles, where bottled beers would never fit.

And when you crack that can open, you're going to be drinking a really good beer.

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"What Ales Ya," a local column paying tribute to craft beer appears the first Wednesday of the month in the Lifestyle/Food section. Staff members take turns sharing their thoughts on beer created by small, independent breweries, and ale-related news. Readers are welcome to offer their input via the reporters' emails, or through Lancasteronline's Facebook wall, YouShare or Twitter (@LancLifestyle). Always drink responsibly.