Specialty beer importer Merchant du Vin was founded in 1978, a time when Americans could not buy the world’s classic beer styles – in fact, unless they had travelled to Europe most Americans had never even heard of pale ale, hefeweizen, or Trappist ale. MdV founder Charles Finkel realized that the flavors found in the great beers of England, Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands were a universal pleasure that should be available to all adults.