By Adam Krebs
editor@themonroetimes.com
MONROE — Wisconsin is home to three of the 50 top craft breweries across the United States — two of which are from right here in Green County.
Last week the Brewers Association released its annual list of the top 50 producing craft breweries (and top 50 overall producing breweries) in the country, and New Glarus Brewing Co. and Minhas Craft Brewery each earned a spot on the illustrious list.
New Glarus Brewing came in at No. 11 for craft brewing — an incredible feat for a small independent brewer that only distributes in the state of Wisconsin. Ten of the top 50 breweries are owned by large, corporate companies that distribute their beer across the nation.
New Glarus Brewing is known for its widely enjoyed flavors with equally clever names, like “Spotted Cow,” “Moon Man,” “Two Women,” “Road Slush,” and “Totally Naked.” Owners Dan and Deb Carey also have a charitable arm to the brand, called Only in Wisconsin, a play on the brand’s distribution slogan, which disperses funds to area organizations and fundraisers.
D.G Yuengling and Son, Inc., the oldest brewery in the country based in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, was the top craft brewing producer. Boston Beer Co. was second and Sierra Nevada Brewing third.
Overall, New Glarus Brewing ranked 21st in the country in beer production across all genres. Anheuser-Busch, makers of Budweiser, Bud Light and Busch Light, was No. 1, with MolsonCoors, producers of Molson, Coors Light and Miller products second. Constellation in Chicago was third, Heineken USA in New York was fourth and Pabst Brewing Company (now in Los Angeles) was fifth.
Minhas Craft Brewery was No. 29 in craft brewing and 39th overall. It’s known for its labels “Huber Bock,” “Swiss Amber,” “1845 Pils” and “Lazy Mutt Farmhouse Ale.”
Stevens Point Brewing was Wisconsin’s other top brewer, coming in at No. 19 at the craft level and 29th overall.
The Brewers Association (BA) is a trade association representing small and independent American craft brewers.
In an April 16 press release, BA noted that: “number of operating craft breweries continued to climb in 2023, reaching an all-time high of 9,761, including 2,092 microbreweries, 3,502 brewpubs, 3,910 taproom breweries, and 257 regional craft breweries. The total U.S. operating brewery count was 9,906, up from 9,824 in 2022. Throughout the year, there were 495 new brewery openings and 418 closings. Openings decreased for a second consecutive year, with the trend reflecting a more mature market. The closing rate increased in 2023 but continued to remain relatively low, at approximately 4%.
Craft brewers employed more than 191,000 people in 2023, according to the BA, an increase of 1.1% from the previous year.
“(Last year) was another competitive and challenging year for small and independent brewers,” said Bart Watson, vice president of strategy and chief economist of the Brewers Association. “Nevertheless, even as growth has downshifted, small brewers have proved quite resilient, as seen in the increase in number of breweries, relatively low closing rates, and gains in on-site sales and jobs.”
The overall beer market shrank by 5.1% in volume in 2023, and the retail dollar of the industry was an amounted estimated at $28.9 billion, about 3% growth from 2022, according to BA figures.
The Brewers Association also determined that, collectively, small and independent brewers produced 23.4 million barrels of beer in 2023, a decline of 1.0% from 2022, though craft’s overall beer market share by volume grew to 13.3%, up from 13.1% in 2022 as craft’s declines were smaller than overall beer volume losses.
“As always, the beverage alcohol market and consumer demand continue to evolve,” added Watson. ”Many brewers are accordingly updating their operations to match those changes, focusing on their business models, go-to-market strategies, and brand strategies to help their businesses match those shifts.”