SANTA ROSA, CA – FEBRUARY 07: Russian River Brewing Company customers clink their glasses while drinking the newly released Pliny the Younger triple IPA beer on February 7, 2014 in Santa Rosa, California. Hundreds of people lined up hours before the opening of Russian River Brewing Co. to taste the 10th annual release of the wildly popular Pliny the Younger triple IPA beer that will only be available on tap from February 7th through February 20th. Craft beer aficionados rank Pliny the Younger as one of the top beers in the world. The craft beer sector of the beverage industry has grown from being a niche market into a fast growing 12 billion dollar business, as global breweries continue to purchase smaller regional craft breweries such this week’s purchase of New York’s Blue Point Brewing by AB Inbev. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Last year, as taprooms were forced to shutter for months and supply-chain problems complicated the sudden transition to canning, brewers fretted about the future — not only of their own breweries, but also of the industry.
But the industry barely slowed in 2020, according to a Business Journal analysis of data from the Brewers Association, the state's Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission and industry blogs. While the industry did contract slightly, last year's growth was on par with that of previous years, coming in slightly below 2019 growth but higher than each of the previous years.
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