The Brewers Association (BA) released their annual list of the top 50 brewing companies in the United States. Based on the company’s beer sales volume, 40 out of the 50 companies listed are independent and small craft companies specializing in craft brewing, with small defined as an annual production of 6 million barrels of beer or less.
BA functions as a not-for-profit trade association, representing the more than 4,000 breweries across the United States. Beyond their research, BA publishes The New Brewer, and organizes events like the World Beer Cup, Homebrew Con, American Craft Beer Week, and the National Homebrew Competition.
Bart Watson, a chief economist at the Brewers Association, spoke about the list in a press release, saying that, “In an increasingly competitive and mature marketplace, these brewing companies continue to lead and pave the path for small and independent craft brewers.”
A full industry analysis for 2017 will be available in the May/June issue of The New Brewer, including sales by individual breweries and regional trends. A more comprehensive State of the Industry report will be released during BA’s 2018 Craft Brewers Conference on April 30th to May 3rd.
