Craft Breweries in the US

 

The first decade

Timeline 


Name in blue- still open. 

Year in red - closing date. 

 



1976

New Albion (Sonoma, CA) 1983


1979

Calif. Steam Beer (San Rafael) 1979

Franklin (Emeryville, CA) 1980


1980

Boulder (Boulder, CO)

DeBakker (Novato, CA)

Cartwright (Portland, OR) 1982

River City (Sacramento, CA)

Sierra Nevada (Chico, CA)


1981

Wm. Newman (Albany, NY) 1987



1982

Yakima Brewing & Malting 2005

Thousand Oaks (Berkley CA) 1990

Real Ale (Chelsea, MI)

Redhook Ale Brewery* (Seattle)


1983

Hale's Ales (Colesville, WA)

Buffalo Bill’s (Hayward, CA)

Mendocino (Hopland, CA)


1984

Chesapeake Bay [later Virginia]

Manhattan (NYC) 1991

Columbia River [later BridgePort]

Hart [merged > Pyramid] (WA)

Kuefnerbrau (Monroe, WA) 1991

Riley-Lyon [later Arkansas] (Little Rock)

Snake River (Idaho)

Widmer* (Portland, OR)

St. Stanislaus (Modesto, CA)

Montana Beverage Ltd. (Helena) 2000

Palo Alto (Mountain View, CA)


1985

Old New York (New Amsterdam) 1988

Hillsdale [later McMenamin’s] (Portland)

Kemper [merged to form Pyramid] (WA)

Kalamazoo [now Bell’s]

Millstream (IA)

Reinheitsgebot (Plano, TX) 1990

Sprecher (Milwaukee)
 
 Vernon Valley (NJ)


1986

Abita (LA)

D. L. Geary's (ME)

Catamount (VT) 2000

Pacific (Maui, HI)

Redwood (Petaluma, CA)

Santa Cruz (CA)

Saxton (Chico, CA)

Summit (MN)

 * merged in 2008 to form Craft Brewers Alliance 

 



 1986's TOP 12 "MICRO BREWERS"

(defined as less than 10,000 barrels-"Brewers Digest" 3/87)

1. Old New York Brewing Co., Inc.

2. Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

3. Redhook Ale Brewery

4. Wm. S. Newman Brewing Co.

5. Boulder Brewing Co.

6. Yakima Brewing.& Malting Inc.

7. Manhattan Brewing Co., Inc

8. Hale's Ales Ltd.

9. Montana Beverage Ltd.

10. Columbia River Brewery

11. Chesapeake Bay Brewing Co.

12. Widmer Brewing Co.

-- 

Total of Top 12 - 48,375 bbl.

Total of all "Microbreweries" - 64,967 bbl.

           

Early Contract brewed craft beers

 

1982

New Amsterdam Amber - Old New York Brewing Co., NYC (Matt) 

1985

Portland Ale - Portland Brewing Co., OR (Grant's)

Vienna All-Malt Lager -  Vienna Brewing Co. Milw. WA (Hibernia) 

Samuel Adams Boston Lager - Boston Beer Co. MA (Pittsburgh) *

1986 

Smith & Riley - Smith & Riley, Vancover , WA. (General)

Olde Heurich Amber Ale - Olde Heurich Brewing Co., Wash, DC (Pittsburgh)

XIIIth Colony Amber Beer - Savannah Beer Co., GA (Pittsburgh)

Pennsylvania Pilsner - Pennsylvania Brewing Co., (Pittsburgh) 

Dock Street Amber Beer - Dock Street Brewing Co., Phila. (Matt)

Pete's Wicked Ale - (Palo Alto, later Schell Brewing Co.)**

 


 * Samuel Adams beers have been contract-brewed by:


Pittsburgh Brewing Company
Heileman (inc. Blitz-Weinhard subsidiary)
Stroh (Allentown, PA)
Genesee/High Falls
F X Matt
Hudepohl-Schoenling
City (Latrobe, PA and La Crosse, WI)
Miller (Tumwater, WA, Eden, NC)

plus BBC-owned breweries in Boston, Philadelphia, Cincinnati and Breinigsville, PA.


** Approx. time line of Pete's contract breweries:


Palo Alto Brewing Co., CA (1986)
Schell's, MN (1987-1992)
Minnesota Brewing, St. Paul MN (1992-1995)
Stroh, MN-WA-NC (1995-1999)
(1998 - Brand sold to Gambrinus)
Miller (1999-2004)
F X Matt (2004-2011)
        Gambrinus announces discontinuation of the Pete's brand, as of 3/1/11