Best Breweries in America
Rogue, Anderson Valley, Stone, Stone Brewing, Sweetwater, Sierra Nevada,
August Schell, Boston Beer, Great Divide, Bar Harbor, New Glarus

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Top Ten Breweries
Descriptions of Breweries and Beers

1. Rogue Brewing Company - Oregon

2. New Glarus Brewing - New Glarus, WI

3. Stone Brewing Company - San Diego, CA

4. Boston Beer Company - Massachuetts

5. Bar Harbor Brewing Company - Maine

6. Anderson Valley Brewing - California

7. Great Divide Brewing Company - Colorado

8. Sweetwater Brewing - Atlanta, GA

9. Sprecher Brewing Company - Glendale, WI

10. August Schell Brewing - Most picturesque brewery in the United States, Minnesota

Honorable Mention for brewing great Beers
Sierra Nevada - Califonia - Website
Deschutes Brewery - Oregon - Website
Dogfish Head Brewing - Delaware - Website
Old Dominion Brewing Co. - Virginia - Website
Pyramid Breweries - Washington - Website
Alaskan Brewing Company - Alaska - Website
Flying Dog Brewery - Colorado - Website
Widmer Brothers Brewing - Oregon - Website
New Belgium Brewing - Colorado - Website
 

Top Ten Fastest Growing Breweries
1. Widmer Brothers Brewing  (OR)
2. Pyramid Breweries (WA)
3. New Belgium Brewing  (CO)
4. Boulevard Brewing  (MO)
5. Deschutes Brewery (OR)
6. Kalamazoo Brewing  (MI)
7. Magic Hat Brewing  (VT)
8. Harpoon Brewery (MA)
9. Rogue Ales (OR)
10. Kona Brewery LLC (HI)

Top 50 Largest Breweries in the United States
This list has been moved to BeerInfo.com

 

Descriptions of Breweries and Beers
Rogue Brewing Company is our choice for best brewery in America. It was founded in 1988 by Jack Joyce, Rob Strasser and Bob Woodell. Rogue's first brewpub was located in Ashland, Oregon and was a 10bbl brewsystem. Rogue opened a second brewpub, 15bbl brewsystem, in May 1989 located in Newport, Oregon. In 1997, Rogue closed its Ashland operation after the great flood destroyed the place. In 1991, the 15bbl system, named Howard after John Maier's former boss, from the Newport brewpub was transferred across the bay to the current brewery and upgraded to a 30bbl system. In 1998 Rogue bought a 50bbl brewsystem, named Kobe. Rogue make the following brews: Brutal Bitter , Chocolate Stout, Dead Guy Ale, Half-e-Weizen, Honey Cream Ale, HazelNut, Brown Nectar, Imperial India Pale Ale, Imperial Stout, Juniper Pale Ale, Kells Lager, Mocha Porter, Morimoto Black Obi Soba Ale, Morimoto Imperial Pilsner, Morimoto Soba Ale, Old Crustacean, Oregon Golden Ale, Saint Rogue Red, Santa's Private Reserve, Shakespeare Stout.

New Glarus Brewing -  was started in 1993 by Dan and Deb Carey and has wasted no time in establishing itself as a world-class operation. At the 2005 Great American Beer Festival, it was judged best brewery in America(Mid Size Breweries) The brewery is noted for it's production of world class and handcrafted beers brewed with 100% natural ingredients. Production includes 10 to 14 beer varieties --- with a couple of surprises for good measure. Eight beers are offered year round, seven other varieties were designed to complement annual holidays and offer seasonal variety throughout the year. Their products can be found throughout the Wisconsin area and in our quaint gift shop located at the brewery. Products include: Edel-Pils, Native Ale, Fat Squirrel, Wisconsin Belgian Red,Hop Hearty Ale, Spotted Cow,Uff-da Bock, Raspberry Tart.

Stone Brewing Company -  comes in third in our top ten breweries and is the brainchild of beer-lover/brewer Steve Wagner and beer-lover/business guy Greg Koch. Between the two of them, there have been visits to over 140 different breweries in the US & Europe, more than 30 beer festivals and tastings, numerous classes in brewing, sensory evaluation and the microbrewing industry, several judgings in beer competitions, and memberships in the Institute for Brewing Studies and the Master Brewers Association of America.  Steve and Greg originally met each other in Los Angeles in 1989. Greg had just opened some music rehearsal studios, and Steve's band was amongst the first tenants. They met again a few years later at a weekend "Sensory Evaluation of Beer" class taught at at UC Davis. After the class, Steve and Greg not only discovered that they shared a love of beer, they also discovered that their tastes in beer and ideals in brewing matched as well. Over the next three years, Steve and Greg kept in touch and kept talking about beer and brewing. Eventually the only possible conclusion became clear --- they had to open their own brewery.
     Based on Steve's knowledge and experience in brewing and Greg's past successes in business, the two managed to convince some private investors to drop a bunch `o dough on some shiny new stainless steel brewing vessels, and off they went. After a nine month search, the newly formed team found the perfect location in San Marcos for the Stone Brewing Co. and moved in on February 1st, 1996. On July 26th, the ribbon was cut and the first beer was tapped in the brewery's tasting room, and at their first account. Soon to follow were other trend setting establishments with great taste. Stone’s beers include : Stone Pale Ale, Stone Smoked Porter, Arrogant Bastard Ale, Stone Ruination IPA, Stone Levitation Ale, Stone Old Guardian
Barley Wine, Double Bastard Ale, Stone Imperial Russian Stout.

Boston Beer Company -  Jim Koch founded The Boston Beer Company in 1984 because he believed that Americans deserved better beer. Today, Boston Beer Company has  a team of about 350 people who share a common passion for bringing great Samuel Adams® beers to beer lovers everywhere.  The Boston Beer Company has been cited as one of the best companies to work for by Boston Magazine, one of the Best Entry-Level Jobs by The Princeton Review, and our beers have won more awards than any beer in history. Jim has been named an "Entrepreneur of the Year" by Inc. Magazine. Products include:  Samuel Adams Lager, Samuel Adams Utopias, Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock, Sam Adams Boston Ale, Sam Adams Cherry, Sam Adams Cranberry Lambic,Sam Adams Cream Stout, Sam Adams Double Bock, Sam Adams Gold Pils, Sam Adams Honey Porter, Sam Adams Scotch Ale, Sam Adams Triple Bock.

Bar Harbor Brewing Company - A self-described "cottage brewery", this brewery is one of North America's smallest breweries, producing only 260 barrels of bottle-conditioned beer per year. Run  by husband and wife team Tod and Suzi Foster, with occasional help from a friend, they do everything themselves, from brewing to labeling to delivery. In the tradition of classic Bavarian brewers, they control their product until it is dropped at their customer's door.  An inspiration to other small brewers, their beers can be found on the Maine shore and are a must for those visiting nearby Acadia National Park. Products include: Cadillac Mtn. Stout & Thunder Hole Ale, First Place Harbor Lighthouse Ale, Bar Harbor Peach Ale and  Bar Harbor Root Beer and Blueberry Sodas.

Anderson Valley Brewing - Located in Boonville, California, in scenic, Mendocino County, Anderson Valley Brewing Company (AVBC) opened the doors to its brew pub in late 1987. Since then, Anderson has built a new facility, and now brews their  world-class ales in copper vessels salvaged from two defunct German breweries. They carefully craft their world-class ales using only the finest ingredients; premium malted and roasted grains, hops, yeast, and pristine Boonville water straight from their own unique aquifer, and  never heat pasteurize or sterile filter our beers.  Products include:  Boont Amber Ale, Hop Ottin' IPA, Poleeko Gold Pale Ale, Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout, Belk's ESB, Winter Solstice Seasonal Ale, Deep Enders Dark Porter, and High Rollers Wheat Beer, and Summer Solstice Cerveza Crema.

Great Divide Brewing Company - Since 1994, Great Divide has brewed the most balanced yet assertive and flavorful beers possible.  This commitment has not gone unrewarded – Great Divide has racked up nine Great American Beer Festival Medals and four World Beer Cup awards. While every brewery tour seems to start in the brewhouse, Great Divide’s world-renowned beers get their start well before our brewers open a single valve. Starting with a carefully crafted recipe, choice American hops and up to seven types of malted barley, each Great Divide beer has a carefully planned pedigree. From there, our brewers work their wonders, crafting our hugely-popular ‘big beers’ such as Hercules Double IPA and Old Ruffian Barley Wine, as well as our more-accessible offerings such as Denver Pale Ale and HotShot ESB.

Sweetwater Brewing - Fredrick Bensch and Kevin McNerney  founded Sweetwater in 1997.This 18,000-barrel microbrewery is located in Atlanta, GA and specializes in producing aggressive West Coast style beers to be enjoyed in the Southeast US. Having had great success, (2002 Small Brewery of the Year at the GABF!) Sweetwater's taste has grown throughout Georgia and beyond by word of mouth. The market of beer lover's has fallen for this Georgia brew, which has begun spreading throughout the city of Atlanta and its neighboring states. Brews include: Sweet Georgia Brown,  Sweetwater Blue, SweetWater Exodus, SweetWater Festive Ale, Sweetwater IPA, Sweetwater 420, and Sweetwater India Pale Ale.

Sprecher Brewing Company -  was founded in 1985 by Randel Sprecher, formerly a brewing supervisor at Pabst Brewing Company. From 1985 to 1994, the brewery was located at 730 W. Oregon Street in Milwaukee's Walker's Point area. Through the first ten years the company grew steadily as more and more people found out about Sprecher's high quality beers and sodas. In 1994, Sprecher purchased its current building, located at 701 W. Glendale Ave., a former elevator car factory. The new, larger brewery will allow the company to continue growing, and allow more people to enjoy all of Sprecher's fine products which include: Abbey Triple, Black Bavarian, Hefe Weiss, Pub Ale, Special Amber.

August Schell Brewing - There’s an old saying “Never trust a brewery under 140 years old." Okay, it’s our old saying, but it’s true, nonetheless. Schell's is the second oldest family-owned brewery in the country. While microbreweries and beer trends have come and gone, we’ve been right here, tirelessly brewing fine lagers and ales for the people who appreciate them. Visit our brewery grounds and you’ll see deer, roaming peacocks, gnomes, not to mention barrel after barrel of the finest beers imaginable. That’s just who we are, as it has been for over a century.  Products include: Firebrick, Pilsner, Pale Ale, Caramel Bock, Zomerfest and Snowstorm.

Beer Magazines and Newspapers

Ale Street News
Beer newspaper featuring news, articles, beer tours and calendar.

All About Beer
Magazine includes information about all beers imaginable, from Amstel Light to Zima.

American Brewer: A Premier Beer, Brewing and Microbrewing Magazine.
A beer publication covering the brewpub and Microbrewing industry.

Beer Across America
Features month's selected microbrew, newsletter and beer store.

Beer Travelers
State-by-state guide to brewpubs, bars and restaurants.

Brew Your Own Magazine Brew Your Own is a how-to homebrew beer magazine for all levels of brewers, from the beginner to the all-grain expert.

BrewingTechniques - BrewingTechniques. The award-winning magazine of craft brewing. Always Online. Please join me in welcoming him as the new "face" of BrewingTechniques.
 
Celebrator Beer News
US newspaper providing beer features, regional news and beer reviews.

Modern Brewery Age
Professional's source for beer brewing industry.

Realbeer.com
Comprehensive resource for the beer drinker and home brewer with over 150,000 pages of information about beer.

Yankee Brew News - The Real Beer Page Yankee Brew News Archive Welcome to the Yankee Brew News archive. Yankee Brew News - a pioneer in providing regional craft breweries.
 

Beer Forums
Real Beer Forum - Portal with searchable brewery and pub databases. Also news, festival, and homebrew event calendars.

Beer Advocate - Beer advocacy community and resource that promotes the beer industry through beer education, appreciation and searchable guides for brewers, beers, news.


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