craft beer

Medusa Brewing Company co-founder Keith Sullivan checks on the beer in the brewing area. "There are very few big breweries that have this family, community, connected feel. That's what we're selling," he says.

National

The Next Big Thing In Beer Is Being A Small Taproom

9:16am September 27, 2017

by Aaron Schachter

The explosion of these cozy craft breweries has happened as states relax laws to allow them direct-to-consumer retail rights, meaning the majority of their revenue no longer has to come from food.

Queue Listen Now

The Pico C is an automated beer-brewing device, or "beerbot," that can be monitored remotely from a smartphone or tablet.

National

Rise Of The Beerbots: Is Tech Taking The Craft Out Of Homebrewing?

11:44am September 19, 2017

by Alastair Bland

Automated systems have turned the messy, ancient art of brewing into a tidy hobby requiring fairly minimal skill, and of course, a smartphone or tablet. Critics ask: Where's the craft in that?

At the Portsmouth Brewery in New Hampshire, the kelp beer "Selkie" is sold both on tap and in bottles.

From Ocean To Potion: Kelp Finds A Niche In The Craft Beer Market

5:02pm September 08, 2017

by Andrea Shea

Kelp isn't a new flavor enhancer for brewers. For hundreds of years, coastal farmers in Scotland grew grains in seaweed beds. But briny brews have been slow to catch on in the United States.

National

Craft Beer, Brought To You By Big Beer

3:27pm July 28, 2017

by Alastair Bland

More than a dozen of America's most popular craft breweries have been bought by global beverage companies in recent years. Craft beer brewers say they're under attack by what they call "Big Beer."

From left, Von Humbolt's Natur wasser, named after the German explorer and naturalist; Blood & Sand, inspired by silent movie star Rudolph Valentino; and a single malt by Macallan in collaboration with artist Steven Klein.

From Film Stars To Naturalists, These Lives Have Become Boozy Inspirations

12:32pm June 27, 2017

by Kristen Hartke

Breweries and distilleries are collaborating with artists and fashioning their drinks after influential people to try to better connect with customers or bring attention to the drink's origin.

Sunn O)))'s Greg Anderson (center) mugs with brewers from Right Proper, Stone and Pen Druid to make "Soused," a beer inspired by the drone-metal band's collaboration with Scott Walker.

Music & Culture

Maximum Hops Yield Maximum Results: Making Beer With Sunn O)))

11:03am April 11, 2017

by Lars Gotrich

Scott Walker and Sunn O)))'s collaborative record Soused, a dark and wild leap into the metallic abyss, has inspired a collaborative beer by the same name. What does that beer taste like?

Craft breweries now account for 5,234 of 5,301 U.S. beer makers, according to an industry group's annual tally. Here, Danielle Coons, the tasting room ambassador at D.L. Geary Brewing Co. serves a beer in Portland, Maine, last November.

National

U.S. Breweries Top 5,300 As Craft Beer Makers Ride Double-Digit Gains

3:43pm March 28, 2017

by Bill Chappell

Just five years ago, there were only about 2,000 U.S. craft brewers. More than 800 opened for business in 2016 — and they're finding a changing market.

Ignacio Nicolas Campillo, director of a hops production facility in northern Spain, peels apart the flower of the hops plant, to reveal yellow powder inside. The powder is used to make beer.

No Bitterness Here: Craft Beer Boom Boosts Spain's Hops Growers

4:41pm December 15, 2016

by Lauren Frayer

When Germany halted exports in WWII, Spanish brewers asked farmers in a town in northern Spain to plant hops. Now, the town produces 99 percent of the country's hops used by the craft beer industry.

Queue Listen Now

AJS made these cone-headed taps for Stevens Point Brewery in Wisconsin.

Arts And Craft Beers: Brewers Draw Drinkers' Eyes With Snazzy Tap Handles

4:53pm September 26, 2016

by Bonnie Petrie

As craft brewers try to make their brews stand out in an increasingly crowded field, they're driving the expansion of a singular business: custom-made beer taps.

Queue Listen Now

The spike in demand for small-batch beers has infused new life into small, family owned hop farms that were teetering on the edge of bankruptcy.

National

Hop Growers Cheer Craft Brewers For Saving An Ailing Industry

10:09am August 02, 2016

by Jodi Helmer

The spike in demand for small-batch beers has infused new life into small, family-owned hop farms that were teetering on the edge of bankruptcy.