Three Texas Breweries Among Top 50 in Craft Beer Production

spoetzl brewery
Shiner, Texas’ Spoetzl Brewing Company was the fifth largest craft beer producer in the nation in 2021. (Image courtesy of Brewbound.com)

A trio of familiar Lone Star breweries were among the top 50 craft breweries by production in the country last year according to the Brewers Association. The trade group published their annual Craft Brewing Industry Production Report for 2021 earlier this month. Gambrinus, which owns Shiner Bock maker Spoetzl, came in at #5 on the BA list. CANarchy (the parent company of Austin’s Oskar Blues and Dallas’ Deep Ellum) landed at #7. Rounding out the Texas triumvirate at #44 is Houston’s Saint Arnold Brewing. Forty of the breweries on the list are considered small and independent, including Saint Arnold. All three breweries have appeared on the BA’s list since 2017.

 

saint arnold icon
Houston’s Saint Arnold Brewing is named for the patron saint of brewers. (Image courtesy of HoustonHotSpots.com).

Overall, the BA reports collective craft production at 24.8 million barrels, with 8% growth in the sector. 646 new craft breweries opened in 2021 against 178 closings. This brings the total number of operating craft breweries to an all-time high of 9,118. “While the boom in breweries of a few years before has certainly slowed, the continued growth in small breweries shows the solid foundation of demand for their businesses and beer,” said BA’s chief economist Bart Watson.

canarchy beers
CANarchy Collective was the seventh largest craft and seventeenth largest overall brewer in the US. (Image courtesy of CANarchy).

About The Author

My fascination with craft beer began in college as a bartender and grew as a volunteer at Peticolas Brewing in Dallas. Since relocating to Austin, I have closely followed the growth and evolution of Central Texas' brewing scene.
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