Today, the Brewers Association released its annual list of the top fifty craft brewing companies in the United States, based on beer sales volume and the craft brewer definition in 2013. Of the top fifty, thirty-eight were small and independent craft brewing companies, down one from 2012.
Among the top ten, the first four remain in the same places as in 2012—Boston Beer Co., Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., New Belgium Brewing Co., and Gambrinus, in that order. Lagunitas Brewing Co. and Deschutes Brewery switched fifth and sixth places for 2013. Bell’s Brewery remained in seventh place. Interestingly, Duvel Moortgat is now considered a U.S. brewery and has joined the top ten, in eighth place. Brooklyn Brewery moved from eleventh to ninth place, and Stone Brewing Co. remains in tenth place.
New to the top fifty in 2013 were
- Sixpoint Brewery of Brooklyn, New York (ranked forty-third)
- Gordon Biersch Brewing Co. of San Jose, California (ranked forty-ninth)
- 21st Amendment Brewery of San Francisco (ranked fiftieth)
Dropping out of the top fifty were Schlafly Beers of St. Louis, Big Sky Brewing Co. of Missoula, Montana, and Tröegs Brewing Co. of Hershey, Pennsylvania.
Ballast Point Brewing Co. witnessed the biggest positive ranking change—from forty-sixth to twenty-ninth. Ballast Point also joined the Top 50 Overall U.S. Brewing Companies. CraftWorks Restaurants & Breweries of Chattanooga, Tennessee, and Louisville, Colorado, suffered the biggest ranking drop—from thirty-second to thirty-ninth.