It was a roller-coaster year for Georgia breweries in 2024.
There were numerous closures, including Dry County Brewery in Kennesaw, Steady Hand Beer in west Midtown, Elsewhere Brewing in Grant Park and west Midtown, Eventide Brewing in Grant Park, Kettlerock Brewing in Peachtree Corners, Iron Hill Brewery in Buckhead, Schoolhouse Brewing at Emory Point, Torched Hop Brewing in Midtown and Best End Brewery in West End.
But there also were several openings, and some breweries continued to thrive.
In January, I checked out tiny Beacon Brewery and Restaurant in LaGrange. Founder-owner Chase Hudson was exuberant about his Czech-style beers, and he created an Italian pilsner for his new restaurant, Tutto Pepe. Also, I was excited to see Beacon Brewery beers on tap at Brick Store Pub in Decatur.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
In April, Athens-based Creature Comforts Brewing turned 10. “I’m not sure anyone could have ever imagined what Creature has accomplished in these first 10 years,” co-founder Chris Heron said. “We became recognized for our world-class beer, grew to become nearly a top 30 brewery, and sold over a million cases in a year.”
In June, I visited Cumming’s NoFo Brewing, which now has breweries in Gainesville and Cleveland. Surprisingly, it’s also a sponsor of Walsall Football Club in England, and distributes beer in the U.K.
Round Trip Brewing opened a second brewery in June in the Avenue East Cobb development in Marietta. It also added a private event space, bar and patio to its taproom, along with a covered courtyard that has a large stage and a jumbotron screen.
Atlanta’s Scofflaw Brewing celebrated eight years in business in August. During that time, the company has grown from its original Westside location, adding Dr. Scofflaw’s at the Works and a new brewery in Columbus.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
In September, just before its first anniversary, I visited Crooked Culture Brewing in the Cumming City Center. The impressive brewery’s free-standing building is spacious, and partner Patrick Leonard offered a taste of 14 beers on tap, with a wide range of styles.
As for what lies ahead for the craft beer business, that depends on your perspective.
In a recent story for The New York Times, Joshua M. Bernstein noted that, after a period of fast growth, the number of breweries declined in 2024, with 335 craft breweries opening and 399 closing. The string of closures, he wrote, is symptomatic of an overall decline in beer drinking, as the industry “has steadily lost market share to spirits, flavored malt beverages, hard seltzers and other alcoholic drinks.”
However, Brewers Association President and CEO Bart Watson said last fall that, despite craft brewery closings, he thinks “the health of the craft brewing industry has never been better.”
He added that there are a variety of reasons microbreweries and brewpubs close, “and with the increased number of entrants into the industry, that number is probably going to rise a lot in the coming years. This is a sign of market competition, not a sign of problems in the craft beer market.”
The coming year likely will show which view is correct.
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