May/June 2021

Industry Review Issue

For the May/June 2021 The New Brewer, we present our annual Industry Review issue. The year 2020 was undoubtedly craft’s toughest so far, with overall volume down 9%. We take a look back at how each segment fared during a tumultuous year, with taprooms leading the way at nearly flat growth and brewpubs taking the biggest hit, down 19.3%.

Please Log In to View The New Brewer^® Online.

Member-Only Content

Please Log In to View The New Brewer^® Online.

Want a sneak peek?

Check out a free issue of the magazine!

About The New Brewer

Cover Story

Industry Review Issue

2020 Overview

As bad as circumstances were for 2020, there are reasons for optimism. Many craft breweries took a direct hit with double-digit declines, but found a way to survive.

Industry Review Issue

Featured Stories

Brewpubs

Stan Hieronymus

Overall, brewpubs were hit harder than any other segment of craft beer in 2020, with production tumbling 19.3%. The impact varied from region to region.

Micros

Gabe Toth

Across the country, microbreweries facing widespread shutdowns and business restrictions just a couple of months into the year found ways to adjust and innovate.

Taprooms

Stephanie Grant

Taprooms in particular showed a remarkable ability to adapt while many individual businesses struggled in 2020. They finished the year down just 0.1%.

Regionals

Greg Kitsock

The COVID-19 pandemic seems to have tipped the playing field in favor of older, larger breweries with familiar brand names and high-speed packaging lines.

Large Breweries + Imports

Harry Schuhmacher

Fueled by the pandemic and pantry loading, Big Beer bounced back in 2020. Even some big legacy beer brands that had previously posted down numbers showed some strength.

Local Beer is Better

Ann Obenchain

Details about the “Local Beer is Better” Craft Campaign.

A Note From the Editor

Jill Redding, Editor-in-Chief

This issue also includes most of our usual informative departments, plus brewery-generated news about the craft brewing community in the Brewery Updates, Distribution News, and Beer Releases sections; and new products and services from the allied trade in Industry Supplier News. In our back-page interview, we highlight Marcus Baskerville of Weathered Souls Brewing, who started the Black is Beautiful project to raise awareness for the injustices that people of color face on a daily basis.

Cheers, and we hope you enjoy this issue of The New Brewer.

About The New Brewer