The majority (29) of the Brewers Association’s (BA) top 50 craft breweries declined in volume in 2022, according to data in the May/June 2023 edition of the trade group’s New Brewer Magazine.
Eighteen of the country’s largest craft breweries grew in volume last year, while three reported flat production, according to the BA.
Overall, the top 50 craft breweries produced 11,960,170 barrels of beer in 2022, a -2% decline compared to 2021. That output accounted for 49.31% of the craft beer segment, marking a -1.05% decline in share and the first time the top 50’s combined volume has fallen below 50% since at least 2018.
Last year, the BA reported the 50 largest craft breweries’ output increased +3% year-over-year, following a -9% decline between 2019 and 2020. Gains in 2021 could be attributed to the reopening of the on-premise channel, where craft over-indexes, after COVID-19 pandemic restrictions hobbled the hospitality industry in 2020. Losses in 2022, however, are “a result of that distributed market becoming much more competitive,” BA chief economist Bart Watson said during a press conference last month to discuss the first release of 2022 volume data.
Total craft volume was roughly flat – increasing +0.1%, to 24.2 million barrels in 2022, according to the BA. The segment accounted for 13.2% of the overall beer category’s volume, a +0.2% increase from 2021.
The six largest craft breweries in the country recorded single-digit volume declines.
No. 1 D.G. Yuengling & Son Inc.’s volume declined -4%, to 2.287 million barrels, the first time in several years the Pottsville, Pennsylvania-based brewery permitted the BA to publish its output.
No. 2 Boston Beer Company (Samuel Adams, Dogfish Head, Angel City, Coney Island) recorded a -6% decline, to 1.69 million barrels.
No. 3 Sierra Nevada declined -4%, to 1.062 million barrels.
The three largest BA-defined independent craft breweries – those who produce fewer than 6 million barrels and are not more than 25% owned by a larger brewery – were the only craft breweries to produce more than 1 million barrels last year.
No. 4 Duvel Moortgat USA (Firestone Walker, Boulevard, Brewery Ommegang) declined -2%, to 688,210 barrels, of which 511,210 barrels were attributed to Firestone Walker. No. 5 Gambrinus (Shiner, Trumer) saw its volume decline -7%, to 492,320 barrels.
Artisanal Brewing Ventures (Victory, Sixpoint, Southern Tier) rose to the No. 6 spot from No. 8 last year, as 2022 was the first full year in which Bell’s Brewery was no longer included in the BA’s data set following its sale to Kirin-owned Lion Little World Beverages, parent company of New Belgium. The craft platform leapfrogged Monster-owned CANarchy last year. However, ABV’s volume declined -5%, to 386,469 barrels.
Stone Brewing, which was acquired by Japanese brewing giant Sapporo in late 2022 and will exit the BA set in 2023, jumped two spots to No. 7. Stone was the largest craft brewer to achieve growth in 2022, with a +3% increase, to 376,347 barrels.
No. 8 CANarchy (Oskar Blues, Cigar City, Deep Ellum, Wasatch, Squatters, Perrin) recorded the largest volume decline of the top 10, dropping -13%, to 371,781 barrels. No. 9 Tilray Beer Brands (SweetWater, Green Flash, Alpine, Montauk) rose one spot in rank; the craft roll up, owned by Canadian cannabis firm Tilray, increased its output +16%, to 358,499 barrels.
Brooklyn Brewery rose three spots from its 2021 ranking to No. 10 with a +28% increase in volume. At 36 years old, Brooklyn was the oldest brewery to achieve a sizable volume gain.
Non-alc brewer Athletic recorded the largest volume increase of the top 50, producing +63% more beer in 2022 (170,000 barrels). Athletic gained 14 spots, landing at No. 13. Fiddlehead achieved the next largest volume gain, increasing output +38%, to 71,185 barrels, and rising 13 spots to No. 36.
No. 15 Minhas increased production +18%, to 162,288 barrels. The next largest volume gain belonged to craft platform Made By The Water (Catawba, Faubourg, Palmetto and Oyster City), which recorded a +17% increase, to 51,000 barrels, enough to crack the top 50 for the first time at No. 50. No. 47 Jack’s Abby also entered the top 50 for the first time, with a +16% increase, to 52,046 barrels, as did No. 49 Pizza Port (+11%, to 51,030 barrels).
Three of the top 50 craft breweries reported flat volume for 2022: No. 12 New Glarus (231,395 barrels), No. 33 Kona Brewing’s Hawaii operations (80,000 barrels) and No. 48 North Coast (51,468 barrels).
Only seven the top 50 recorded double-digit declines in volume:
- No. 8 CANarchy (-13%, 371,781 barrels);
- No. 22 Odell (-11%, 115,369 barrels);
- No. 26 Summit (-12%, 103,800 barrels);
- No. 28 Craft Ohana (Maui, Modern Times) (-12%, 101,730 barrels);
- No. 32 Alaskan (-10%, 87,900 barrels);
- No. 40 Lost Coast (-10%, 68,000 barrels);
- No. 41. Rogue (-24%, 67,000 barrels).
More than half (28) of the top 50 craft breweries produced more than 100,000 barrels in 2022; however, no brewer crossed that threshold for the first time last year.
No breweries lost or gained a significant share of the segment’s volume. The steepest declines in share belonged to five of the top 10 craft breweries:
- No. 1 Yuengling, -0.39%, to 9.43% of craft volume;
- No. 2 Boston Beer, -0.46%, to 6.97% of craft volume;
- No. 3 Sierra Nevada, -0.17%, to 4.38% of craft volume;
- No. 5 Gambrinus, -0.15%, to 2.03% of craft volume;
- No. 8 CANarchy, -0.22%, to 1.53% of craft volume.
Athletic gained the most share (+0.27%, to 0.7% of craft volume), followed by Brooklyn (+0.25%, to 1.14% of craft volume), Tilray (+0.2%, to 1.48% of craft volume), Minhas (+0.1%, to 0.67% of craft volume), and Fiddlehead (+0.08%, to 0.29% of craft volume).
