Portland breweries make national ‘Top 50’ lists

Brendan McKay checks a bottle on May 22, 2013 before it gets filled at the Allagash Brewing Company in Portland. According to state data, output by Maine breweries in 2012 increased by more than 20 percent for the third year in a row. Troy R. Bennett | BDN

Brendan McKay checks a bottle on May 22, 2013 before it gets filled at the Allagash Brewing Company in Portland. According to state data, output by Maine breweries in 2012 increased by more than 20 percent for the third year in a row. Troy R. Bennett | BDN

Maine craft breweries – and the state’s craft beer sector in general – continue to make their presence known nationwide among craft beer lovers, according to the Brewers Association, a trade industry group that represents craft breweries across the country.

The group has released statistics for 2014, and two Maine breweries again have made the list of the top 50 craft beer producers by volume in the U.S.

For the first time, however, both breweries have also made the top 50 list for American beer, period – the list that reads “Anheuser-Busch” at the top.

Allagash Brewing eked its way onto the all-beer list in 2014 at 50th, joining Shipyard Brewing among the highest beer producers in the country. Shipyard, which had been among the Top 25 in 2012 and 2013, slipped a few notches down in the all-beer category to 31st (which I take to be a reflection of growth by its competitors, not a reduction in volume by Shipyard).

When it comes to the craft beer Top 50 list (the one that does not include the maker of Budweiser), Allagash and Shipyard have been on the list for a several years.

As a whole, Maine’s craft breweries compete even more favorably on a per-capita basis against those in other states, according to the trade group. As The BDN as reported before, the production of craft beer in Maine nearly doubled from 2009 to 2012.

The economic impact of the industry ranked Maine 4th per capita ($324 per resident) in 2012, behind Oregon, Colorado and Vermont. In terms of production volume, in 2013 Maine cranked out 8 gallons for every resident 21 years old or older, ranking the state behind Vermont, Colorado, Alaska, Delaware, and Oregon, in that order.

If you like statistics as much as you like beer, you can fill your glass many times over by delving into the multiple lists posted on the Brewer Association website.

If it’s actual beer that you’re after, here’s a map of Maine brewery locations that may help you with your search.

Bill Trotter

About Bill Trotter

A news reporter in coastal Maine for more than 20 years, Bill Trotter writes about how the Atlantic Ocean and the state's iconic coastline help to shape the lives of coastal Maine residents and visitors. He writes about fisheries, marine-related topics, eastern coastal Maine communities and more for the BDN. He lives in Ellsworth. Follow him on Twitter at @billtrotter.