WElcome

Welcome to the American Craft Beer Hall of Fame!

At long last, many people will be getting the credit and attention they deserve. Reaching back to the genesis of the craft beer industry -that’s over four decades ago now- there are so many people who have contributed their minds and their money, their time and their toil, to making the American craft beer industry come to life. It’s high time they get their due.

While some people were already aware of good beer in the early-mid 1980’s (mostly imported from Europe), little by little, microbrewed beer -as it was called back then- was creeping into the market and into the consciousness of those who were paying attention.

Watching and witnessing the industry’s growth and the attendant enthusiasm it spawned, was very encouraging. Craft beer was slowly but surely becoming the antidote to what had been dominating the American beer market for so long: bland and boring mass-produced product many disparaged as “yellow fizzy water”.

Some referred this movement towards good beer a revolution, some called it a renaissance, but all seemed to agree that it was a renewal of a brewing industry that had downsized and homogenized over the previous half-century. Beer drinkers with an interest in taste and variety were now being treated to a bounty of beer styles, all of them brimming with flavor and character.

But the beer didn’t make itself. The people who pioneered this industry, the folks with the vision and tenacity to start a small brewery, are the ones we celebrate here. Along with the like-minded people who were allied with those small brewers to help, to support, to advocate for them and to encourage them in their aspirations to make quality beer for the enjoyment of all.

These people are the inspiration for the American Craft Beer Hall of Fame. And they are finally getting their due.

August 1, 2024