Craft microbreweries differ from craft breweries. Craft breweries are limited to producing less than 6 million barrels of beer. Microbreweries, by definition, are limited to producing less than 15,000 barrels and must sell at least 75% of that outside of the brewery.1 On-site sales often take place in taprooms and restaurants. There are more microbreweries in the United States than regional craft breweries and brewpubs combined. According to Brewers Association Chief Economist Burt Watson, microbreweries will continue to grow by double-digits in the next few years because of unused brewing capacity, innovative product offerings, and consumers’ preference for local, community-oriented experiences. As Paul Gatza, director of the Brewers Association, states: “The beer drinker is changing. It’s not just drinking the beer anymore. It’s drinking the beer and posting a picture on Instagram…”
Today’s market size shows the number of craft microbreweries in 2012 and 2017, a growth of 233%. The number of microbreweries continued to grow in 2018, up 15%, to 4,522. In 2012, microbreweries comprised 46.2% of all breweries in the United States. By 2018, that jumped to 60.7%. In 2017, production totaled 5.7 million barrels. This represented 22.7% of all craft beer produced that year. Craft beer garnered 13.2% of the overall beer market in 2018, up from 12.6% the year before.
Friday, August 2, is International Beer Day. Please celebrate responsibly!
1 Definition source: American Brewers Association.Geographic reference: United States
Year: 2012 and 2017
Market size: 1,143 and 3,812 breweries, respectively
Sources: “USA Snapshots,” USA Today, March 15, 2019, page 1A; Mary Ellen Schoup, “Brewers Association: Microbreweries and Taprooms are ‘Clearly the Growth Engine of Craft’,” BeverageDaily.com, May 3, 2018 available online here; “Number of Breweries,” Brewers Association available online here; “Craft Beer Industry Market Segments,” Brewers Association available online here; Keith Gribbins, “Craft Beer Overall Realizes 4 Percent Total Growth in 2018, While 219 Breweries Close, According to the Brewers Association,” Craft Brewing Business, April 3, 2019 available online here.
Original source: Brewers Association
Image source: tookapic, “beer-glass-drink-beverage-alcohol-932320,” Pixabay, September 28, 2015 available online here.