Oregon and Washington included in the list of Top 50 breweries in the country, by the Brewers Association.
Lost in the pile of COVID-19-related articles and Press Releases was this year’s (2020) list of top 50 producing craft breweries in the country - including 40 who maintain their independent craft status.
“Although 2020 will be a markedly different year than 2019 for the craft brewing market, these companies are well positioned to help the craft category weather the current market uncertainty and rebound with the flavor, variety, and innovation that beer lovers have come to expect from small brewers,” said Bart Watson, chief economist, Brewers Association.
Focussing on the Pacific Northwest, the region should be proud to host breweries in the top 10 (with number 6 Gambrinus, owner of the recently shuttered Bridport Brewing Company) and top 25 (with number 11 Deschutes Brewery). Besides being home to two top breweries in the top 25, Oregon hosts 5 in the top 50 including Newport’s Rogue Ales & Distillery, Eugene’s Ninkasi Brewing Company, and Full Sail Brewing Company from Hood River. Unfortunately, despite having over 400 breweries in the state, Washington’s sole-entrant in the Top 50 is Seattle’s Georgetown Brewing.
Obviously the larger question is, what does it take to make the cut for Top 50 craft producing breweries? The answer is a lot simpler than you think.
Listed below, here are the breweries in order of annual capacity starting with America’s oldest-operating brewery, Yuengling Brewing Company.
image courtesy Brewers Association
For those of you who are asking why your favorite, large-production brewery didn’t make the cut (e.g. 10 Barrel Brewing, Elysian Brewing Company, Redhook Brewing Company, Pyramid Brewing, etc.) it is in part because of the Brewers Association definition of a craft or independent brewery.
Figure based on companies that met the craft brewer definition for all or part of 2019. An american craft brewer is a small and independent brewer. Small: annual production of 6 million barrels of beer or less (approximately 3 percent of u.S. Annual sales). Beer production is attributed to the rules of alternating proprietorships. Independent: less than 25 percent of the craft brewery is owned or controlled (or equivalent economic interest) by an alcoholic beverage industry member that is not itself a craft brewer. Brewer: has a ttb brewer's notice and makes beer.
About the Brewers Association
The Brewers Association (BA) is the not-for-profit trade association dedicated to small and independent American brewers, their beers and the community of brewing enthusiasts. The BA represents 5,400-plus U.S. breweries. The BA’s independent craft brewer seal is a widely adopted symbol that differentiates beers by small and independent craft brewers. The BA organizes events including the World Beer Cup®, Great American Beer Festival®, Craft Brewers Conference® & BrewExpo America®, SAVOR™: An American Craft Beer & Food Experience,Homebrew Con™, National Homebrew Competition, and American Craft Beer Week®. The BA publishes The New Brewer® magazine, andBrewers Publications® is the leading publisher of brewing literature in the U.S. Beer lovers are invited to learn more about the dynamic world of craft beer at CraftBeer.com® and about homebrewing via the BA’s American Homebrewers Association® and the free Brew Guru® mobile app. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
The Brewers Association is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital/familial status. The BA complies with provisions of Executive Order 11246 and the rules, regulations, and relevant orders of the Secretary of Labor.
