Most popular craft brew style?

Was wondering, what do you think is the most popular craft brew style?

I was thinking IPAs, but that may just be what I buy the most.

Pale Ale. That's my guess, followed by IPA, and Hefe.

I think its more Pale Ales, Hefe and then IPA not that many people in strong hops taste.

My guess is that it is likely very regional. What sells well on the west coast is not the same as the east coast, midwest or south.

GT

I'd say probably Pale Ale, Vienna Lager, Dry Irish Stout, and (American) Witbier are the top 4 in some order. Blue Moon and Shock Top are made by BMC, but they ship a ton of product in a "craft style", Guinness sells truckloads, and Sierra Nevada and Sam Adams are behemoths as well.

Combine Pyramid, Red Hook, Widmer, and others and American Wheats are right up there, too (I don't think true hefeweizens sell nearly as much as American Wheats).

I'd guess that IPAs, hefeweizens, and other beers that most serious craft brew fans love sell a lot less than those 5 craft styles.

Are the Vienna Lagers you're talking about imports? If not, which craft breweries are doing Vienna Lagers?


What brought this up was an article I read about a local brewpub that has maybe 10 of their beers on tap (no outside sales, more of a sports bar kinda place, connected to a mall) and the owner stated that their IPA was their number one seller. Struck me as a little strange.

henkyjenky said:

Are the Vienna Lagers you're talking about imports? If not, which craft breweries are doing Vienna Lagers?


What brought this up was an article I read about a local brewpub that has maybe 10 of their beers on tap (no outside sales, more of a sports bar kinda place, connected to a mall) and the owner stated that their IPA was their number one seller. Struck me as a little strange.

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Sam Adams Boston Lager is a Vienna Lager. Boston Lager sales alone probably put that style near or in the top five craft beer styles.

American wheats and blonde ales are usually the top sellers at brewpubs.

85% of SN's production is Pale Ale.

slowbie said:

Sam Adams Boston Lager is a Vienna Lager. Boston Lager sales alone probably put that style near or in the top five craft beer styles.

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Ah, right right, forgot about that, was going to exclude them and imports from the convo, but forgot that as well.

henkyjenky said:

Ah, right right, forgot about that, was going to exclude them and imports from the convo, but forgot that as well.

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Then it's almost definitely Pale Ales and Witbiers. If you also want to throw out Sierra and the BMC craft-style wits (Blue Moon and Shock Top), I'd guess that the Pyramid/Red Hook/Widmer "hefeweizens" (actually American wheats) are next, and Anchor Steam (Cali Common), Fat Tire (Amber), and the combined weight of all the craft IPAs are entering that discussion as well.

But by that point the conversation's getting a little self-selecting (if you throw out the 50 beers that I don't want to discuss, then of course Berliner Weiss is the best selling style in America!)

henkyjenky said:

Ah, right right, forgot about that, was going to exclude them and imports from the convo, but forgot that as well.

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I think even if they are included it doesn't change the answer. Most breweries have a flagship that makes up a huge percentage of their sales (think Boston Lager, SNPA, Fat Tire) and most of those sales are to people who are not exclusively craft beer drinkers. However, very few breweries have the facilities available to make that flagship a lager, and instead make it an ale in order to have higher production from the same equipment. It basically comes down to pale ales and American wheats (I think that any popular wheat beer that is relevant to discussion, with the exception of Leinenkugel because they're lagers, is really an American wheat, no matter what its label might say).

I think two ways you can change this answer without randomly picking and choosing is to ask what is the most popular style among craft brewers using the Brewer's Association Definition of Craft Brewer (you don't have to worry about including Blue Moon et al.). Of course then, you have Boston Beer Co. (Sam Adams) as nearly 20% of craft beer sales, with the vast majority of that being Boston Lager.

Otherwise, a much harder to nail down answer would be 'What is the most popular style among people who exclusively (90%+ of intake) drink craft beer?' That's the question where you might get IPA as an answer IMO.

If you're talking about the style produced by the most breweries I'd think it would be pale ale. It seems like just about every craft brewery makes a pale ale.

I have no idea what the top selling style is but I'm sure the Brewer's Association does so that's probably available somewhere to someone.

My guess in no particular order would be:
A) Blonde/Am Wheat - lots of crossover between these styles (pub biers)
B) Brown/Amber - A lot of ambers aren't roasty enough to be browns but aren't hoppy enough to be true ambers (moose drool, black dog, turbodog)
C) Pale Ale - Everyone makes one & most sell better than IPAs

Schlante,
Phillip

there are also a ton of amber ales, at least around here. Ales that aren't too big, aren't too bitter or hoppy, that have enough character to appeal to microbrewers, but no so much as to put it into beer-geek nichedom.

Wits have also taken off over the past few years.