Aaron Stevens

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.

Altstadt

Altstadt Brewery Wins Big at 2026 U.S. Beer Open

By / / Austin Breweries, Beer Data and Statistics, CBA, Craft Beer News

Altstadt Brewery Wins Big at 2026 U.S. Beer Open After a seven-year hiatus, Fredericksburg’s Altstadt Brewery finished among the top 10 breweries at the 2026 U.S. Beer Open. In 2019, the one-year-old brewery won big at the Great American Beer Festival and took home the fourth-most prizes of any brewery at the U.S. Beer Open, becoming the third brewery ever from Central Texas to place in the competition (the two previous top-10 finishes were by […]

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Opa! Frontyard’s Hellas Lager Comes to the Austin Greek Festival

By / / Craft Beer News, Event Listings and New Releases

Opa! Frontyard’s Hellas Lager Comes to the Austin Greek Festival Central Texas is no stranger to beer-centric cultural celebrations, from relative newcomer events like the ATX Filipino Day Market to decades-old Oktoberfest events every fall. The latest addition to this rich local tradition is a unique collaboration between Spicewood’s Frontyard Brewing and the Austin Greek Festival. Hellas Lager is a play on the ancient Greek name for Greece and the ultra-drinkable German lager style. Frontyard Head

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Two Texas Breweries Among Top 50 Producers in 2025

By / / Craft Beer News

Two Texas Breweries Among Top 50 Producers in 2025 For the first time in six years, Texas had only two breweries among the top 50 craft breweries in the United States by production according to newly published 2025 data from the Brewers Association. The organization published its annual Craft Brewing Industry Production Report for 2025 in April. Gambrinus, the parent company of Shiner Bock producer Spoetzl Brewery, dropped one spot from the sixth largest to

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2025 Year in Review: Checking Back In On Our Beer Stories to Watch For in 2025

By / / CBA, Craft Beer News, Features

2025 Year in Review: Checking Back In On Our Beer Stories to Watch For in 2025 Last January, I put together a list of major industry stories to monitor over the course of 2025. It’s time to check in and see what actually happened. In a surprising twist, not everything was as bad as I anticipated! Read on to learn what I got right (and wrong) in 2025. Tariffs Tariffs may have been the defining

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Beer Tripping in Spring, TX

By / / Beer Travel

Beer Tripping in Spring, TX The northern suburbs of Houston are teeming with breweries, but only a handful of beers from the area find their way to Austin. While Magnolia’s Lone Pint might be the only brewery from that part of the state with consistent distribution across Central Texas, some of the best-regarded and most up-and-coming breweries in the Lone Star state can be found between Montgomery and Cypress. By Untappd ratings, eleven of the top fifty breweries in Texas are in this area, almost

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Celebrate American Craft Beer Week

By / / Austin Breweries, Event Listings and New Releases

The Brewers Association’s annual salute to craft beer kicks off May 12 with American Craft Beer Week, a spring celebration of local beer and breweries. “Small and independent American craft breweries are a vital ingredient to the health and wealth of our communities as they support growers, distributors, supply partners, retailers, and beer lovers,” said Ann Obenchain, vice president of marketing and communications at the Brewers Association. “Craft beer is more than a beverage, it’s

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The Definitive Guide to Austin Brewery Tours

By / / Austin Breweries, Beer Travel, CBA

The Definitive Guide to Austin Brewery Tours Updated April 2025 The City of Austin is home to over 45 different breweries within a 326 square mile footprint, plus an additional 71 breweries spread across the 4,285 square miles of the greater Austin area. This vast landscape is conducive to brewery experiences of all shapes and sizes. From the chic, tiny brewpubs of downtown Austin to the sprawling farmstead breweries of the Hill Country and the

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The Definitive Guide to Austin Mug Clubs

By / / Austin Breweries, CBA

Updated April 2024 Since this article was originally published, several breweries have closed or made changes to their mug club. Updates are in parentheses next to the brewery name. Mug Clubs have been an essential part of the craft beer scene in the United States for decades as a way to reward regulars, foster loyalty to tap rooms, and help small breweries make money at the end of the year. Almost a third of Central

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Texas Brewery Running Series Brings 5K Fun Runs to Central Texas Breweries

By / / Austin Breweries, Event Listings and New Releases

Texas Brewery Running Series Brings 5K Fun Runs to Central Texas Breweries It’s been a tough month for the association between health and craft beer. The increasing prevalence of Dry January, a new Surgeon General’s advisory linking alcohol consumption to cancer risk, and looming updates to the USDA’s Nutrition Guidelines are all challenges for craft brewers. However, there are still ways to practice wellness while enjoying beer. Enter the Texas Brewery Running Series. Over the

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Year in Preview: Craft Beer Stories to Watch Out For in 2025

By / / CBA, Craft Beer News, Features

Year in Preview: Craft Beer Stories to Watch Out For in 2025 Originally published 1/2/2025 2024 was a tempestuous year for craft beer in Central Texas and across the country. What will 2025 hold? Below are some of the local and national developments that the Craft Beer Austin team will be watching for: Tariffs could drive up costs for craft brewers… In December, President-Elect Trump announced his intention to place a 25% percent tariff on

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Brewers Association Releases 2024 Year in Beer Retrospective

By / / Craft Beer News

Brewers Association Releases 2024 Year in Beer Retrospective The largest trade group for craft beer reported a down year across the industry earlier in December. The Brewers Association anticipates that 2024 will likely end with a decline in sales volume and in production after a slight drop-off (-2% production) midyear and weak scan data for Q3. The national brewery opening and closing numbers also showed a slight decline, with 335 openings to 399 closures. Those

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Fairweather Cider to Relocate, Current Location Closing November 23rd

By / / Austin Breweries, Craft Beer News

Fairweather Cider to Relocate, Metric Boulevard Location Closing November 23rd Fairweather Cider Co. has an official last day at their longtime location on Metric Boulevard. The final service for the cidermaker and their partner food truck Spicy Boys will be on November 23rd, per an announcement on Instagram. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Fairweather Cider Co (@fairweathercider) Fairweather announced that they would not be renewing their lease in August, citing a

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