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Top 50 Brewery Lists

Brewers Association Releases Top 50 Breweries List

Boulder, Colorado - April 7, 2008
The Brewers Association, which tabulates industry growth data, announced its annual list of the top fifty brewing companies.  Released are both a Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies* list and a list of the Top 50 Overall Brewing Companies. Statistics are based on sales in 2007.

“The majority of breweries in the U.S. are independent craft brewers who continue to push the envelope in flavor and diversity and who continue to set the pace for the beer category,” states Paul Gatza, Director of the Brewers Association. “In 2007, 1,406 of the 1,449 breweries were small, independent and traditional brewers.”

Twenty-one states are represented in the top 50 brewing companies list, according to the Brewers Association. California hosts eight top breweries. Colorado and Oregon each host five, and Pennsylvania hosts four top producers. The remainder of the top 50 operate from Minnesota (3), New York (3), Wisconsin (3), Illinois (2), Massachusetts (2), Missouri (2), Vermont (2), and Washington (2). Alaska, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Ohio, and Texas each host one.

The following are complete listings of the Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies and the Top 50 Overall Brewing companies.

Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies by Beer Sales Volume (Based on 2007 sales)
1 Boston Beer Co., Boston, MA
2 Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Chico, CA
3 New Belgium Brewing Co. Inc., Fort Collins, CO
4 Spoetzl Brewery, Shiner, TX
5 Pyramid Breweries Inc., Seattle, WA
6 Matt Brewing Co., Utica, NY
7 Deschutes Brewery, Inc., Bend, OR
8 Boulevard Brewing Co., Kansas City, MO
9 Full Sail Brewing Co., Hood River, OR
10 Harpoon Brewery, Boston, MA
11 Alaskan Brewing and Bottling Co., Juneau, AK
12 Magic Hat Brewing Co. & Performing Arts Center, South Burlington, VT
13 Anchor Brewing Co., San Francisco, CA
14 Bell's Brewery, Inc., Galesburg, MI
15 Shipyard Brewing Co., Portland, ME
16 Summit Brewing Co., St. Paul, MN
17 Abita Brewing Co., Abita Springs, LA
18 Gordon Biersch Brewing Co., San Jose, CA
19 Brooklyn Brewery, Brooklyn, NY
20 Stone Brewing Co., Escondido, CA
21 Rogue Ales / Oregon Brewing, Newport, OR
22 Long Trail Brewing Co., Bridgewater Corners, VT
23 New Glarus Brewing Co., New Glarus, WI
24 Kona Brewing Co., Kailua-Kona, HI
25 Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, Milton, DE
26 Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA
27 Great Lakes Brewing Co./Ohio, Cleveland, OH
28 The Lagunitas Brewing Co., Petaluma, CA
29 Flying Dog Brewery, Denver, CO
30 Sweetwater Brewing Co., Atlanta, GA
31 Bridgeport Brewing Co., Portland, OR
32 Rock Bottom Brewery Restaurants, Louisville, CO
33 Odell Brewing Co., Fort Collins, CO
34 BJ's Restaurant & Brewery, Huntington Beach, CA
35 Victory Brewing Co., Downingtown, PA
36 Mac and Jack's Brewery, Redmond, WA
37 Lost Coast Brewery and Café, Eureka, CA
38 Big Sky Brewing Co., Missoula, MT
39 Pete's Brewing Co., San Antonio, TX
40 Otter Creek Brewing Co., Middlebury, VT
41 Karl Strauss Breweries, San Diego, CA
42 Breckenridge Brewery, Denver, CO
43 Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant, Chattanooga, TN
44 Anderson Valley Brewing Co., Boonville, CA
45 Boulder Beer Co., Boulder, CO
46 North Coast Brewing Co. Inc., Fort Bragg, CA
47 McMenamins, Portland, OR
48 Utah Brewers Cooperative, Salt Lake City, UT
49 Capital Brewing Co., Middleton, WI
50 Blue Point Brewing Co., Patchogue, NY

Top 50 Overall Brewing Companies by Beer Sales Volume (2007 sales)
1 Anheuser- Busch Inc., St. Louis, MO
2 Miller Brewing Co., Milwaukee, WI
3 Coors Brewing Co., Golden, CO
4 Pabst Brewing Co., Woodridge, IL
5 Boston Beer Co., Boston, MA
6 D.G. Yuengling and Son Inc., Pottsville, PA
7 Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Chico, CA
8 New Belgium Brewing Co. Inc., Fort Collins, CO
9 High Falls Brewing Co., NY
10 Spoetzl Brewery, Shiner, TX
11 Widmer Brothers Brewing Co., Portland, OR
12 Redhook Ale Brewery, Woodinville, WA
13 Pyramid Breweries Inc., Seattle, WA
14 Matt Brewing Co., Utica, NY
15 Minhas Craft Brewery, Monroe, WI
16 Deschutes Brewery, Inc., Bend, OR
17 Iron City Brewing Co., Pittsburgh, PA
18 Boulevard Brewing Co., Kansas City, MO
19 Full Sail Brewing Co., Hood River, OR
20 Harpoon Brewery, Boston, MA
21 Alaskan Brewing and Bottling Co., Juneau, AK
22 Magic Hat Brewing Co. & Performing Arts Center, South Burlington, VT
23 Anchor Brewing Co., San Francisco, CA
24 Bell's Brewery, Inc., Galesburg, MI
25 Goose Island Beer Co., Chicago, IL
26 August Schell Brewing Co., New Ulm, MN
27 Shipyard Brewing Co., Portland, ME
28 Summit Brewing Co., St. Paul, MN
29 Mendocino Brewing Co., Ukiah, CA
30 Abita Brewing Co., Abita Springs, LA
31 Gordon Biersch Brewing Co., San Jose, CA
32 Brooklyn Brewery, Brooklyn, NY
33 Stone Brewing Co., Escondido, CA
34 Rogue Ales / Oregon Brewing, Newport, OR
35 Long Trail Brewing Co., Bridgewater Corners, VT
36 New Glarus Brewing Co., New Glarus, WI
37 Kona Brewing Co., Kailua-Kona, HI
38 Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, Milton, DE
39 Firestone Walker Brewing Co., Paso Robles, CA
40 Great Lakes Brewing Co./Ohio, Cleveland, OH
41 The Lagunitas Brewing Co., Petaluma, CA
42 Flying Dog Brewery, Denver, CO
43 Sweetwater Brewing Co., Atlanta, GA
44 Bridgeport Brewing Co., Portland, OR
45 Rock Bottom Brewery Restaurants, Louisville, CO
46 Gluek Brewing Co., Cold Spring, MN
47 Straub Brewery, St. Mary's, PA
48 Odell Brewing Co., Fort Collins, CO
49 BJ's Restaurant & Brewery, Huntington Beach, CA
50 Victory Brewing Co., Downingtown, PA
 

* The 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 2 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 brewers 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.

For more statistics visit the updated 2007 Craft Beer Industry Statistics Web page, www.beertown.org. A more extensive analysis of statistics on the craft beer segment in 2007 will be released April 17 during the Craft Brewers Conference in San Diego, California. The Association's full 2007 industry analysis, which shows regional trends and sales by individual breweries, is published in the May/June issue of The New Brewer.

Based in Boulder, Colo., U.S.A., the Brewers Association (BA) is the not-for-profit trade and education association for American craft brewers and the community of beer enthusiasts. Visit the website:www.beertown.org to learn more. The association’s activities include events and publishing: World Beer Cup®; Great American Beer Festival sm ; Craft Brewers Conference and BrewExpo America®; National Homebrewers Conference; National Homebrew Competition; American Craft Beer Week (May); Zymurgy magazine; The New Brewer magazine; and books on beer and brewing. The Brewers Association has an additional membership division of 15,000+ homebrewers: American Homebrewers Association.