Craft beer is a beer that has been made by craft breweries. They produce smaller amounts of beer, typically less than large breweries, and are often independently owned. Such breweries are generally perceived and marketed as having an emphasis on enthusiasm, new flavours, and varied brewing techniques.
The U.S. state of Oregon is home to more than 200 breweries and brew pubs that produce a large variety of beer.
Pyramid Breweries, Inc., is a brewing company headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It produces beer under the Pyramid brand at two breweries and several brewpubs in Washington, Oregon, and California. It was founded in 1984 as Hart Brewing, and is currently owned by North American Breweries, a subsidiary of the Costa Rican company Florida Ice & Farm Co.
Widmer Brothers is a brewery founded in 1984 in Portland, Oregon, by brothers Kurt and Robert Widmer. It is part of the Craft Brew Alliance, Inc., the 12th largest brewing company in the United States in 2017.
Russian River Brewing Company is a brewery and brewpub in downtown Santa Rosa, California, with a second location in Windsor. The company is known for strong India pale ales and sour beers.
The U.S. state of Vermont is home to several breweries, microbreweries, nanobreweries, and brewpubs that produce a wide variety of beer.
Great Lakes Brewing Company is a brewery and brewpub in Cleveland, Ohio. The first brewpub and microbrewery in the state, Great Lakes Brewing has been noted as important to Cleveland's local identity and as one of the initial forces behind the revival of the Ohio City neighborhood on the near West Side. In 2015, it was the 21st-largest craft brewery by volume and the 28th-largest overall brewery in the United States. The company was established in 1988 by brothers Patrick and Daniel Conway, both St. Edward High School graduates, in Cleveland's Ohio City neighborhood, located near St. Ignatius High School and the West Side Market. The brewpub and restaurant remain in their original locations, while production has expanded to adjacent properties.
Breweries in New Hampshire produce a wide range of beers in different styles that are marketed locally, regionally, and nationally. Brewing companies vary widely in the volume and variety of beer produced, from small nanobreweries and microbreweries to massive multinational conglomerate macrobreweries.
The Devils Backbone Brewing Company is a brewpub located in Roseland, Virginia, owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev. It was established in 2008 by Steven Crandall. In 2012, a 15,000 square foot production facility and tap room, referred to as "The Outpost", was established near Lexington, Virginia. In 2016, the company was purchased by Anheuser-Busch InBev, meaning that Devils Backbone Brewing Company would no longer meet the Brewers Association definition of a "craft brewery", since ownership by Anheuser-Busch InBev exceeds the definition's 25% maximum ownership by a non-craft brewery.
Green Flash Brewing Company is an American craft brewery headquartered in the Mira Mesa neighborhood of San Diego, California, and founded in 2002. In early April 2018, the company sold to a group of investors, WC IPA LLC following a foreclosure by the company’s principal lender, Comerica Bank.
21st Amendment Brewery is a brewery located in San Leandro, California. Their original location is a brewpub and restaurant in the South Park neighborhood of San Francisco, California, two blocks from Oracle Park. The brewery's name refers to the 21st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which repealed Prohibition.
The Elysian Brewing Company is an American brewery, owned by AB InBev, that operates two pubs and a taproom in Seattle.
Sudwerk is a brewery in Davis, California. It has been crafting German-style lagers since 1989. It was a pioneer of lager in microbrewing, following the strict requirements of the German Reinheitsgebot, and it continues to specialize in craft lagers.
Dock Street Brewing Company is an independent craft brewing company with a 10,500 square foot brewpub and production brewery in the Point Breeze neighborhood of Philadelphia, USA. Established in 1985, it claims to be the first craft brewing company based in the Philadelphia area following Prohibition and one of the first in the country. The name Dock Street was chosen in honor of the seaport district of the same name in Philadelphia which was the largest producer of beer in the then-newly formed country in the late 1700s.
San Diego County, California, has been called "the Craft Beer Capital of America". As of 2018, the county was home to 155 licensed craft breweries – the most of any county in the United States. Based on 2016 sales volume, three San Diego County breweries – Stone, Green Flash, and Karl Strauss – rank among the 50 largest craft brewers in the United States. San Diego County brewers pioneered the specialty beer style known as Double India Pale Ale, sometimes called San Diego Pale Ale. Its beer culture is a draw for tourism, particularly during major festivals such as San Diego Beer Week and the San Diego International Beer Competition. San Diego County breweries including Stone Brewing Co., AleSmith Brewing Company and Ballast Point Brewing Company are consistently rated among the top breweries in the world.
