U.S. Brewery Count Surpasses 2,000

Beer drinkers rejoice!

There are now more than 2,000 breweries currently in operation in the U.S. according to Paul Gatza, the Director of the Brewers Association.

Gatza wrote on the organizations blog yesterday that the number of brick and mortar breweries in the U.S. has officially eclipsed the 2,000 barrier and according the organizations most recent data (April 30th), the total count is now 2,051.

But especially telling in that figure is the amount of craft breweries — 2,000.

And it’s highly likely that those numbers still don’t reflect the actual amount of brick and mortar facilities currently in operation. With approximately 950 breweries in planning, there is a good chance the 2,000 count has increased since last calculation.

The stat should come as no surprise to those familiar with the craft space. In March, the Brewers Association released data revealing that 250 new breweries opened in 2011, up from 152 the year before. The category also saw a 13 percent rise in volume during 2011.

You can check out Gatza’s full blog post here. The write-up also includes some pretty interesting historical data.