Brewers Association Lists Top 50 US Breweries of 2012

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  1. Todd

    Todd Founder (13,254) Aug 23, 1996 Finland
    Staff Super Mod Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    Boulder, CO - April 10, 2013 - The Brewers Association—the not-for-profit trade group that tabulates production statistics for the U.S. brewing industry—today released its annual lists of the top 50 craft and overall brewing companies in the U.S., based on 2012 beer sales volume. Of the top 50 overall brewing companies, 39 are small and independent craft brewing companies¹.

    "In 2012, craft surpassed six percent of the total U.S. beer market, with volume and dollar sales reaching record levels," said Paul Gatza, director, Brewers Association. "Increasingly, beer lovers are turning to craft brewed beer from small and independent producers to satisfy their thirst for bold, innovative and flavor-forward beers."


    Top 50 U.S. Craft Brewing Companies
    (Based on 2012 beer sales volume)

    Rank - Brewing Company / City State
    1 - Boston Beer Co. Boston MA
    2 - Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. Chico CA
    3 - New Belgium Brewing Co. Fort Collins CO
    4 - The Gambrinus Co. San Antonio TX
    5 - Deschutes Brewery Bend OR
    6 - Lagunitas Brewing Co. Petaluma CA
    7 - Bell's Brewery, Inc. Galesburg MI
    8 - Matt Brewing Co. Utica NY
    9 - Harpoon Brewery Boston MA
    10 - Stone Brewing Co. Escondido CA
    11 - Brooklyn Brewery Brooklyn NY
    12 - Boulevard Brewing Co. Kansas City MO
    13 - Dogfish Head Craft Brewery Milton DE
    14 - Abita Brewing Co. Abita Springs LA
    15 - Shipyard Brewing Co. Portland ME
    16 - Alaskan Brewing Co. Juneau AK
    17 - New Glarus Brewing Co. New Glarus WI
    18 - Long Trail Brewing Co. Bridgewater Corners VT
    19 - Great Lakes Brewing Co. Cleveland OH
    20 - Firestone Walker Brewing Co. Paso Robles CA
    21 - Anchor Brewing Co. San Francisco CA
    22 - Rogue Ales Newport OR
    23 - Summit Brewing Co. St. Paul MN
    t. 24 - Full Sail Brewing Co. Hood River OR
    t. 24 - SweetWater Brewing Co. Atlanta GA
    26 - Victory Brewing Co. Downingtown PA
    27 - Oskar Blues Brewery Longmont CO
    28 - Cold Spring Brewing Co./Third Street Brewhouse Cold Spring MN
    29 - Flying Dog Brewery Frederick MD
    30 - Founders Brewing Co. Grand Rapids MI
    31 - Ninkasi Brewing Co. Eugene OR
    32 - CraftWorks Restaurants & Breweries, Inc. Chattanooga & Louisville TN/CO
    33 - Odell Brewing Co. Fort Collins CO
    34 - Bear Republic Brewing Co. Cloverdale CA
    35 - Stevens Point Brewery Stevens Point WI
    36 - Blue Point Brewing Co. Patchogue NY
    37 - Southern Tier Brewing Co. Lakewood NY
    38 - Lost Coast Brewery and Cafe Eureka CA
    39 - Karl Strauss Brewing Co. San Diego CA
    40 - BJ's Chicago Pizza & Brewery, Inc. Huntington Beach CA
    41 - Breckenridge Brewery Denver CO
    42 - North Coast Brewing Co. Fort Bragg CA
    43 - Left Hand Brewing Co. Longmont CO
    44 - St. Louis Brewery, Inc./Schlafly Beers St. Louis MO
    45 - Saint Arnold Brewing Co. Houston TX
    46 - Ballast Point Brewing Co. San Diego CA
    47 - Big Sky Brewing Co. Missoula MT
    48 - Allagash Brewing Co. Portland ME
    49 - Uinta Brewing Co. Salt Lake City UT
    50 - Tröegs Brewing Co. Hershey PA

    Top 50 Overall U.S. Brewing Companies
    (Based on 2012 beer sales volume)

    Rank - Brewing Company / City State
    1 - Anheuser-Busch Inc. (a) St. Louis MO
    2 - MillerCoors (b) Chicago IL
    3 - Pabst Brewing Co. (c) Woodbridge IL
    4 - D. G. Yuengling and Son Inc. Pottsville PA
    5 - Boston Beer Co. (d) Boston MA
    6 - North American Breweries (e) Rochester NY
    7 - Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. Chico CA
    8 - New Belgium Brewing Co. Fort Collins CO
    9 - Craft Brew Alliance, Inc. (f) Portland OR
    10 - The Gambrinus Co. (g) San Antonio TX
    11 - Minhas Craft Brewery (h) Monroe WI
    12 - Deschutes Brewery Bend OR
    13 - Lagunitas Brewing Co. Petaluma CA
    14 - Bell's Brewery, Inc. Galesburg MI
    15 - Matt Brewing Co. (i) Utica NY
    16 - Harpoon Brewery Boston MA
    17 - Stone Brewing Co. Escondido CA
    18 - Brooklyn Brewery Brooklyn NY
    19 - Boulevard Brewing Co. Kansas City MO
    20 - Dogfish Head Craft Brewery Milton DE
    21 - Abita Brewing Co. Abita Springs LA
    22 - World Brews/Winery Exchange (j) Novato CA
    23 - Shipyard Brewing Co. (k) Portland ME
    24 - Alaskan Brewing Co. Juneau AK
    25 - August Schell Brewing Co. (l) New Ulm MN
    26 - New Glarus Brewing Co. New Glarus WI
    27 - Long Trail Brewing Co. (m) Bridgewater Corners VT
    28 - Great Lakes Brewing Co. Cleveland OH
    29 - Firestone Walker Brewing Co. Paso Robles CA
    30 - Anchor Brewing Co. San Francisco CA
    31 - Rogue Ales Newport OR
    32 - Summit Brewing Co. St. Paul MN
    t. 33 - Full Sail Brewing Co. Hood River OR
    t. 33 - SweetWater Brewing Co. Atlanta GA
    35 - Victory Brewing Co. Downingtown PA
    36 - Oskar Blues Brewery Longmont CO
    37 - Pittsburgh Brewing Co. (n) Pittsburgh PA
    38 - Mendocino Brewing Co. (o) Ukiah CA
    39 - Cold Spring Brewing Co./Third Street Brewhouse (p) Cold Spring MN
    40 - Flying Dog Brewery Fredrick MD
    41 - Founders Brewing Co. Grand Rapids MI
    42 - Ninkasi Brewing Co. Eugene OR
    43 - CraftWorks Breweries & Restaurants, Inc. (q) Chattanooga & Louisville TN/CO
    44 - Odell Brewing Co. Fort Collins CO
    45 - Bear Republic Brewing Co. Cloverdale CA
    46 - Stevens Point Brewery (r) Stevens Point WI
    47 - Blue Point Brewing Co. Patchogue NY
    48 - Southern Tier Brewing Co. Lakewood NY
    49 - Lost Coast Brewery and Cafe Eureka CA
    50 - Karl Strauss Brewing Co. San Diego CA

    http://www.brewersassociation.org/p...association-releases-top-50-breweries-of-2012

    * Top 50 U.S. Overall Brewing Companies notes: (a) includes Bass, Beck’s, Bud Light, Budweiser, Busch, Goose Island, Landshark, Michelob, Rolling Rock, Shock Top and Wild Blue brands. Does not include partially owned Coastal, Craft Brew Alliance, Fordham, Kona, Old Dominion, Omission, Red Hook and Widmer brands; (b) includes A.C. Golden, Batch 19, Blue Moon, Colorado Native, Coors, Keystone, Killian’s, Leinenkugel’s, Miller and Tenth & Blake brands; (c) includes Pabst, Schlitz and 28 other brand families; (d) includes Alchemy & Science and Sam Adams brands; (e) includes Dundee, Genesee, Labatt Lime, Magic Hat and Pyramid brands; (f) includes Kona, Omission, Red Hook and Widmer Brothers brands; (g) includes BridgePort, Shiner and Trumer brands; (h) includes Mountain Crest and 10 other brand families; (i) includes Flying Bison, Saranac and Utica Club brands; (j) private label brands, primarily for grocery store chains; (k) includes Casco Bay, Sea Dog and Shipyard brands; (l) includes Grain Belt and Schell’s brands; (m) includes Long Trail, Otter Creek, The Shed and Wolaver’s brands; (n) includes Iron City and 17 other brand families; (o) includes Butte Creek, Kingfisher, Mendocino and Olde Saratoga brands; (p) includes Cold Spring and John Henry brands; (q) includes A1A, Big River, Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurants, Rock Bottom Restaurants, Ragtime and Seven Bridges brewpubs; (r) includes James Page, Point and Whole Hog brands.

    The Association's full 2012 industry analysis, which shows regional trends and sales by individual breweries, will be published in the May/June issue of The New Brewer, available May 17, 2013.

    For additional statistics, see the craft brewing statistics, and 2012 craft brewer sales numbers.

    ¹The definition of a craft brewer as stated by the Brewers Association: An American craft brewer is small, independent, and traditional. Small: Annual production of beer less than 6 million barrels. Beer production is attributed to a brewer according to the rules of alternating proprietorships. Flavored malt beverages are not considered beer for purposes of this definition. Independent: Less than 25% of the craft brewery is owned or controlled (or equivalent economic interest) by an alcoholic beverage industry member who is not themselves a craft brewer. Traditional: A brewer who has either an all malt flagship (the beer which represents the greatest volume among that brewer's brands) or has at least 50% of its volume in either all malt beers or in beers which use adjuncts to enhance rather than lighten flavor.

    ###
     
  2. KWMiles

    KWMiles Initiate (0) Oct 23, 2012 Minnesota

    August Schell not listed under craft. These lists were obviously created by bastards.
     
  3. Domingo

    Domingo Grand Pooh-Bah (4,206) Apr 23, 2005 Colorado
    Pooh-Bah Society

    I had no idea Abita was so large.
     
  4. dar482

    dar482 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,039) Mar 9, 2007 New York
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Surprised to see New Belgium that big and Stone and Dogfish that small. Never even had a New Belgium.
     
  5. hopfenunmaltz

    hopfenunmaltz Pooh-Bah (2,611) Jun 8, 2005 Michigan
    Pooh-Bah Society

    New Belgium has been in that position for a number of years. Stone and DFH have moved up, a little, over the years. Lagunitas passed Bells.
     
  6. rlcoffey

    rlcoffey Initiate (0) Apr 20, 2004 Kentucky

    And as always, New Glarus with 1 state of distribution is amazing.
     
  7. rlcoffey

    rlcoffey Initiate (0) Apr 20, 2004 Kentucky

    No, the big deal is Gambrinus and Anchor being ON the craft list.
     
  8. jesskidden

    jesskidden Grand Pooh-Bah (3,071) Aug 10, 2005 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    :rolling_eyes: Well, not sure about their parentage, but they are employees of the Brewers Association and no doubt have to follow B.A. definitions when making up the lists if they want to keep their jobs. I doubt the Marti's and the rest of the employees at Schell expected anything different given the recent history, re: the now disappeared "Black List" pdf.

    "Membership has its privileges..." (Oh, wait, that's American Express, not the Brewers Assoc.)

    First time that Cold Spring made the "craft" list.

    Can anyone name the 17 (!) other brands marketed by Pittsburgh? :grimacing: There's American, Old German and.... c'mon, all those 1960-70's brands are long gone, aren't they? No one's been drinking Robin Hood Cream Ale lately, have they?
     
  9. hhkal17

    hhkal17 Pooh-Bah (2,601) Jul 10, 2005 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    The Top Gainers from 2011-2012 (based solely on the list ranking numbers NOT the actual sales volume numbers as I don't have those):

    Founders +12 (from #42 to #30)
    Left Hand +6 (from #49 to #43)
    Karl Strauss +5 (from #44 to #39)
    Lagunitas +3 (from #9 to #6)
    Abita +3 (from #17 to #14)
    Firestone Walker +3 (from #23 to #20)
    Rogue +3 (from #25 to #22)

    The Debuts:

    Cold Spring Brewing Co./Third Street Brewhouse (debuts at #28 on the craft list. They were on the overall list last year but not the craft one. Don't know why the switch for this year)
    Southern Tier (debuts at #37)
    Ballast Point (debuts at #46)
    Allagash (debuts at #48)
    Uinta (debuts at #49)
    Tröegs (debuts at #50)
     
  10. Providence

    Providence Pooh-Bah (2,628) Feb 24, 2010 Rhode Island
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    Wow, didn't realize Long Trail was that big. Good for them!
     
  11. stevegoz

    stevegoz Savant (1,110) May 5, 2008 Illinois
    Trader

    I had no idea New Glarus was brewing up more beer than Founders!
     
    nickapalooza86 likes this.
  12. Reneejane

    Reneejane Initiate (0) Jan 15, 2004 Illinois

    Fascinating, esp. New Glarus! Also, when did Miller-coors and Pabst move to Illinois, am I living under a rock?
     
  13. Bowdoinbeerboy

    Bowdoinbeerboy Initiate (0) Sep 28, 2006 Maine

    Agreed. Being from a long way from WI it is unlikely that I will get to sample any of their wares soon, but I am intrigued. Any Wisconsinites here? Is the WI beer market totally saturated by New Glarus?
     
  14. jesskidden

    jesskidden Grand Pooh-Bah (3,071) Aug 10, 2005 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    Actually, Pabst moved to Los Angeles in 2011. They moved to Illinois from San Antonio, TX a few years after they closed their last brewery, the Pearl facility, in 2006.

    MillerCoors opened their joint headquarters in Chicago in 2009.

    The cities listed (incorrectly in the case of Pabst :wink:) are the corporate headquarters of the brewing companies, not necessarily where the company's flagship or main brewery is located.
     
    Reneejane likes this.
  15. rlcoffey

    rlcoffey Initiate (0) Apr 20, 2004 Kentucky

    This always comes up. Why does everyone assume Founders is so large?

    They arent tiny any more, but they were very recently.
     
  16. jesskidden

    jesskidden Grand Pooh-Bah (3,071) Aug 10, 2005 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    There's a tendency on the BA forums (and, to be fair, the rest of the internet) to base a brewery size on verbiage not barrelage :grinning:.
     
    kemoarps, Stormfield, JulianB and 3 others like this.
  17. rlcoffey

    rlcoffey Initiate (0) Apr 20, 2004 Kentucky

    There is more to it than that, or Yuengling would be on the list too (IIRC, they are members). And Goose Island wouldnt have gotten booted when the CBA first bought a chunk of them.

    I know Falls City isnt one, as they sold off that name.
     
  18. rlcoffey

    rlcoffey Initiate (0) Apr 20, 2004 Kentucky

    And, of course, if you dont ever go to WI, you really have no feel for the size of New Glarus.

    And, of course, Spotted Cow doesnt get as many threads as KBS.
     
  19. Coletrain

    Coletrain Initiate (0) May 1, 2012 Wisconsin

    Madisonian here. Yep, it's everywhere, at every bar and store. You can't swing a dead cat without hitting a bottle of Spotted Cow. I'm a fan of Moon Man, it's a really awesome pale ale with a crazy hop schedule (nz hops i think). They make some interesting fruit beers too, but their top selling stuff is the typical sessionable stuff.
     
    Wolfhead likes this.
  20. rlcoffey

    rlcoffey Initiate (0) Apr 20, 2004 Kentucky

    I know why it will never happen, but it would really be enlightening to a lot of people (including me!) to see a breweries barrelage broken down by brand.

    Someone like Founders would be fun to see.
     
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