What’s brewing? Over 4100 craft breweries and counting!

If you don’t know about the Brewers Association (BA), get thee to their website as soon as you’re finished reading this post, because it’s a one-stop craft beer resource you won’t want to be without. (www.brewersassociation.org). They just announced this new stat:

The Year In Beer: U.S. Brewery Count Reaches All-Time High of 4,144

Latest year-end stats from Brewers Association

Latest year-end stats from Brewers Association

Back in July, 2014, when I was writing my second edition of What’s Brewing in New England (still with the editor), that statistic was 3,000 and counting. In just a year and a half, over 1100 makers-of-beer opened their doors. Bart Watson, chief economist for BA said,   “This is a remarkable achievement, and it’s just the beginning …  Beer has always been a hallmark of this country and it is even more apparent today as America’s beer culture continues to expand.”

Other factoids of note:

-India Pale Ale (IPA) is the most popular style among the throngs of categories of style available;

-Breweries are opening at a rate of 2 per day;

-“locally made” is important to over half of craft beer buyers;

– knowing that the beer is made by a small and independent brewery is important to a majority of craft drinkers in their purchase decision. (Brewers Association).

Beer II

Draft beer mag listed Maine Beer Company’s  Beer II session IPA as one of the top 25 beers of 2015. I’m not picking favorites, but this is hot off the presses, as shared on Twitter by Don Littlefield of the Maine Brew Bus crew, just this morning.

http://draftmag.com/top-25-beers-of-2015/

To keep up with the goings-on of Maine craft breweries, sign up to receive email updates from the Maine Brewers Guild at: http://mainebrewersguild.org/

There, you can download and print the Maine Beer Trail guide and find out more about upcoming festivals and other beer-related events.

Established in 2009, the Maine Beer Trail spotlights the high quality and creative diversity of fresh, hand-crafted, Maine-made beer.  The purpose of the Trail is to give visitors a unique way to enjoy the vibrant micro and craft brewing industry found throughout the state.  The Maine Beer Trail is an easy to follow brochure that can be used throughout the state to find nearby pubs and breweries.

According to the Maine Brewers Guild website, Maine now has 45 craft breweries (as of July, 2015).

What’s your favorite style of beer?

The first edition of What's Brewing. Will the title be the same? Stay tuned!

The first edition of What’s Brewing. Will the title be the same? Stay tuned!

 

 

Kate Cone

About Kate Cone

Kate Cone has a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing, is a freelance writer and the author of "What's Brewing in New England: A Guide to Brewpubs and Microbreweries," published by Downeast Publications in 1997 and completely updated in 2016. She has been a foodie since age 8, when her dad taught her how to make coffee and an omelet, lifelong skills for happy eating.