The craft beer industry is defined by four distinct markets—brewpubs, microbreweries, regional specialty breweries and contract brewing companies.
| 2002* | 2001* | Vol. Change | % Change | |
| Contract | 1,148,374 | 1,016,478 | 131,896 | 13.00% |
| Regional Specialty | 3,767,421 | 3,666,525 | 100,896 | 2.80% |
| Microbrewery | 748,560 | 759,654 | -11,094 | -1.50% |
| Brewpub | 656,373 | 669,853 | -13,480 | -2.00% |
| Overall | 6,320,728 | 6,112,510 | 208,218 | 3.40% |
* number of barrels of beer produced
1 barrel=31 U.S. gallons=2 "half=barrel" (15.5 gallon) kegs=13.78 cases (of 24 12-ounce bottles)
1 U.S. gallon = 3.785 litre
Craft beer industry definitions
Microbrewery: A brewery that produces less than 15,000 barrels (17,600 hectoliters) of beer per year. Microbreweries sell to the public by one or more of the following methods: the traditional three-tier system (brewer to wholesaler to retailer to consumer); the two-tier system (brewer acting as wholesaler to retailer to consumer); and, directly to the consumer through carryouts and/or on-site tap-room or restaurant sales.
Brewpub: A restaurant-brewery that sells the majority of its beer on site. The beer is brewed primarily for sale in the restaurant and bar. The beer is often dispensed directly from the brewery's storage tanks. Where allowed by law, brewpubs often sell beer "to go" and /or distribute to off site accounts. Note: IBS re-categorizes a company as a microbrewery if its off-site (distributed) beer sales exceed 50 percent.
Contract Brewing Company: A business that hires another brewery to produce its beer. It can also be a brewery that hires another brewery to produce additional beer. The contract brewing company handles marketing, sales, and distribution of its beer, while generally leaving the brewing and packaging to its producer-brewery (which, confusingly, is also sometimes referred to as a contract brewer).
Regional Brewery: A brewery with the capacity to brew between 15,000 and 2,000,000 barrels.
Regional Specialty Brewery: A regional brewery whose flagship brand is an all-malt or specialty beer. For example, Sierra Nevada, New Belgium Brewing Co. and Magic Hat are regional specialty breweries.
Craft Beers: Generally, "all-malt," domestic beers produced using 100 percent malted barley. Craft beers that are not all-malt sometimes substitute a percentage of malted wheat (for wheat beers) or malted rye (for rye beers). Their inspiration can be traced to British, German or Belgian traditions or is often uniquely American. Craft beers range from pale to dark in color and from mild to strong in alcohol content. Sometimes they include unusual ingredients such as fruit, herbs or spices. Compared with other beers, their emphasis is more on flavor, and less on appealing to a mass market. (The best-selling American beers are brewed using 30 to 40 percent rice or corn "adjunct," resulting in a paler, lighter-bodied and lighter-flavored beer).
Craft Brewer: A brewpub, microbrewery, regional specialty brewery or contract brewing company whose majority of sales is considered craft beer.
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