Landing Craft Beer in Lewes Delaware

For a couple years now a neighbor has been bringing home and sharing delicious sour beer from his weekend visits to Lewes, Delaware. Eventually, I found time to see where these beers call home during a weekend at the beach.  In 2018, Big Oyster Brewery was named the Brewers Association's Second Fastest Growing Brewery and their beer is available throughout the Delmarva peninsula and as far north as Allenton and west to D.C. I arrived at the Big Red Barn after the lunch crowd and had a quiet seating to revisit sours such as the Black Lips Blackberry Sour Ale and the Donut Kill My Vibe - Blueberry Lemon kettle sour. Both delicious beers. So was the "Gobsmakced" Hazelnut Porter which is a dry English porter with just subtle hazelnut intermixed with the expected porter flavors. However, my favorite beer was the simplest. The German styled Public Pilsner is a light yet flavorful bready pils where a growler goes well with bing watching college football on a Saturday afternoon.

Crooked Hammock Brewery is located less than a mile down the road which makes a beer tour very convenient.  They have also expanded into Middletown, Delaware and North Myrtle Beach providing easy access to Route 301 commuters and Coastal Carolina visitors. In Lewes, expect a large restaurant, possible live music (finally), and plenty of beer.  I went through a double flight of four and recommend the Lift Ticket Golden Stout for something very interesting (pleasantly less sweet than expected) and the Pass the Sauce Apple Cranberry Cobbler Sour.  Thanksgiving in a beer.  The "5" Hazy DIPA is solid and only 8% abv whereas the everyday beer - particularly during a gold outing - is the Four Tires, Two Friends, and a Radio American Lager.  Grab a six-pack of this beer. 

If you want to add a distillery and winery to your trip, Beach Time Distilling and Nassau Valley Vineyards are nearby, just check their hours before you visit. theCompass Craft Beverage Finder has directions and their contact information. Cheers.

Brewers Association Reveals the 50 Fastest Growing U.S. Craft Breweries of 2018

The Brewers Association released its second annual list of the 50 fastest growing small and independent craft brewing companies of 2018. "These small and independent craft breweries from 27 states registered a median growth of 163 percent in 2018 and included 13 brewpubs, 35 microbreweries, and two regional craft breweries".

"Even as market competition continues to increase, these small and independent breweries and brewpubs demonstrate there are still growth opportunities across a diverse set of regions and business models," said Bart Watson, chief economist, Brewers Association. And the list is rather representative of all geographic regions.

1. Lake Time Brewery, Clear Lake Iowa
2. Big Oyster Brewery, Lewes Delaware
3. Oak Road Brewery, Summerville South Carolina
4. The Dreamchaser’s Brewery, Waxhaw North Carolina
5. Shattered Oak Brewing, Oregon City Oregon

Methodology: The list presented includes only small and independent breweries. Growth is measured based on production at their own facilities. Breweries must have opened by December 31, 2016, or earlier to be considered. It only includes breweries that reported 2018 production to the Brewers Association’s annual Beer Industry Production Survey; breweries with staff estimates or data from state excise tax reports were not considered. Breweries also needed a validated production figure for 2017, either via the production survey, or state excise tax data.

A comprehensive State of the Industry report will be delivered during the 2019 Craft Brewers Conference® & BrewExpo America®, held from April 8-11 in Denver, Colorado. The association’s full 2018 industry analysis, which shows regional trends and sales by individual breweries, will be published in the May/June issue of The New Brewer, available in May 2019.

1 An American craft brewer is a small and independent brewer. Small: Annual production of 6 million barrels of beer or less (approximately 3 percent of U.S. annual sales). Beer production is attributed to the rules of alternating proprietorships. Independent: Less than 25 percent of the craft brewery is owned or controlled (or equivalent economic interest) by an alcoholic beverage industry member that is not itself a craft brewer. Brewer: Has a TTB Brewer’s Notice and makes beer.

Contact: Abby Cohen (on behalf of the Brewers Association) abby@rosengrouppr.com, 646-695-7044