See Who Made The List Of Top Craft Breweries In The U.S. And More Importantly, My Own Subjective Choices
The Brewers Association, a not-for-profit reppin’ small and independent craft brewers, just came out with the list of top beers by sales volume (units sold) for both craft & big brand beers. As a beer enthusiast myself & with an intense beer SZN upon us (St. Pat’s & March Madness & Uncle Mart’s Surprise 65th down at the Elks Club), I figured it was worth going over.
Plus, whenever I travel I love getting the *feel* for a place, and have found craft breweries to be a great spot to grasp those local vibes. They’re often happy to tell you about the different beers & inspirations behind them, and often times the brews contain local ingredients that open things up for convos about the area.
Also, you’re drinking beer while you do this so even if you don’t like them all you’re bound to feel pretty nice after. (Quick nod to Donny Does here, remember to #mixinanubah.)
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Without further ado, here’s the Top 10:
Yuengling is a considered… a craft beer??? Yep. There’s a pretty interesting story about that which you can read on Vox.
And who is Boston Beer Co.? Ah, they brew Samuel Adams.
You can see the rest of the list HERE.
And hey, since no one asked, here’s a quick top 6 craft beers for me in no particular order:
-Abita: Strawberry Lager (Paired this with some of the best BBQ I ever had during a trip to Savannah, GA & it was perfect combo.)
-Dogfish Head: Pennsylvania Tuxedo (A case of this is my annual Christmas treat to myself; the price at the counter always startles me.)
-Victory: Dirtwolf (Grew up nearby, it’s always been a staple.)
-Russian River: Pliny The Elder (Gave this a whirl at Monk’s Cafe in Philly awhile back & fell in love.)
-Stone: Xocoveza Stout (Like a Mexican hot cocoa for the soul.)
-Backward Flag: S.T.F.U. (All-time favorite brewers & the beer at this place in Jersey is amazing.)
Side note, a bunch of Barstool Gold members came through on a tour of the office yesterday and one of them worked for a brewery (that specific style of beard is a giveaway) called Bolero Snort. He brought some Magically Bullicious brews that I was skeptical of but tried anyway, & gotta say… not overkill on the sweetness. Actually good.
I wound up bugging Erika for the company card, & Smitty & I took the group out for a couple beers after their tour of the office. One of them was a college student who runs NY Sport Cast with his friends, one used to go to the old foam parties, another is a delivery driver who keeps a punching bag in the back of his van for road rage relief… all in all, a really interesting & fun group. Always love meeting people & catching up over some tasty beers.
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Overall, I’ve had so many more great ones from bigger & smaller craft spots, but quite honestly forget to write them down because I tend to get carried away in the moments, so many more great ones are missing from my list. Also worth noting, I’m nowhere close to a beer snob or connoisseur. Craft, or bigger brew – I sort of enjoy it all depending on the situation. (This was an excuse to recall the time I crushed Big Ev.)
If you have a favorite beer I should try, or you just want to let me know I’m a big dumb idiot-face, let me know in the comments!