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Challenges felt by craft last yr jump out when surveying the segment's performance in Circana off-premise scans across a set of 11 key US city and state mkts. Craft $$ didn't grow in a single one of them and only gained share of beer $$ in one, Florida, where the segment picked up 0.1 share to 7.5 yet declined by 2.4%. That was same trend craft put up in North Carolina scans, tho it shed 0.3 share to 10.7 there, where total beer was much healthier than natl avg. (Note tho as always that Circana counts non-alc separately, impacting the segment overall and rankings of top suppliers and brand fams detailed below.) Craft $$ declined 4% in Dallas/Ft Worth, yet the segment held share of off-premise beer sales at just 6.2. That's still above the 5.9 share craft got in Houston scans last yr, off 0.1 pt after a 7.4% decline. The segment also slumped 7% or so statewide in Ohio. But its steepest drop showed up in Chicago, -10.2%, recall.Among craft's most developed mkts along the West Coast, where the segment holds 20 share or more of beer $$, it did best in San Diego and Seattle/Tacoma, down about 3% in each. Craft lost only slight share down in SD, but gave up a half-pt of share up north in Sea/Tac. It dipped 5% in Portland, where it lost 1.2 share but still held 30% of the city's beer $$ in Circana's multi-outlet + channels (excluding c-stores, tho trends reflect multi-outlet + convenience in all other mkts referenced in this article). Craft $$ also declined about 5% in 2 other big CA cities: San Francisco/Oakland and Los Angeles. The segment was just over 20 share in the former, but slipped to 9.4 share in the latter.Local Standouts: Pizza Port Slices Off More of SoCal Craft Pie; Georgetown Nears AB Craft in Seattle Despite the difficulties for craft overall, plenty of regional and hometown leaders did just fine last yr, this mkt by mkt data shows. Not many mkts have more hometown players than San Diego, but among the biggest, Pizza Port did best last yr, $$ up 9.4% in city Circana scans, enough to grab 0.8 share of craft to 6.8. It's now #5 craft supplier and #4 craft brand fam in the mkt, less than a pt behind Sierra Nevada. Coronado and AleSmith also grew there last yr, each up low single digits to #8 and 9. Pizza Port also picked up ground up the coast in LA, where it grew 4.6% to #8 craft supplier and #10 brand fam.All the way up in Seattle/Tacoma, Georgetown jumped 5.4% in hometown scans, tacking on 1.4 share of craft $$ to 18.1. That put it just 0.1 pt behind AB's total craft biz, which slipped 4.5%, driven by Elysian at 14.2 share of craft. Reuben's Brews also grew about 5%, now the #6 craft supplier and brand fam in Sea/Tac scans. And Icicle was on fire in the mkt, $$ up 24% to #9 supplier and #10 brand fam in craft.Saint Arnold Passed Shiner in Houston; Lone Pint, Manhattan Project Blowing Up Houston's hometown brand Saint Arnold grew $$ 2% in Circana scans there last yr, enough to pass Shiner and grab #1 in craft rank after over 30 yrs. A couple other Texas-based cos also outperformed in Houston: Lone Pint, up 11%, and Galveston Island up almost 30%, now the #10 craft supplier and #9 brand fam. Up in Dallas/Fort Worth, Manhattan Project was the standout, up 22% and 1 share of craft $$ to 4.6. The local co passed Sierra Nevada (up 3% in DFW) to be the #7 craft supplier and brand fam in its home mkt scans.Larger Local Leaders in SFO, PDX Speaking of Sierra Nevada, the co expanded its lead in San Fran/Oakland scans, picking up 1 share of craft $$ to 22.3, despite a slight 1% slip. Lagunitas declined about 5% but still picked up 0.1 share of craft $$ in the mkt to 14.8. Some smaller local players struggled in SFO and not a single top 10 craft supplier or brand grew there, including in and out-of-state players.In Portland, OR, tho, it's all local all the time. Every single top 10 brand fam there hails from Oregon and a few grew, too: pFriem (+6%), Fort George (+3%) and Boneyard (+9%). Down less than 1%, Ninkasi took over as top craft brand fam in the mkt from Deschutes, off high-singles (excluding big growth from non-alc brews and Costco partnership brands). And Pelican landed at #3, as Tilray brands 10 Barrel and Hop Valley (plus Widmer) fell double digits.AB, Kirin-Lion Among Top 3 Craft Suppliers in 6-7 Key Mkts with Varied Trends Portland was one of the few of these 11 mkts where top craft players in the US, Kirin-Lion and AB, weren't near the top of the list. In North Carolina scans, AB was #1 and Kirin-Lion #2, with AB up strong as Wicked Weed kept up double-digit gains. AB also #1 in Seattle/Tacoma and Florida, at about 18 share of craft $$ in each. It had the #2 craft biz in San Diego, LA and Chicago, up double-digits in SD, but down steep in LA and Chi. AB fell to #3 craft supplier in Houston, down 14%. Kirin-Lion held the top craft spot in LA (+4.5%), #2 in DFW (+7%) and #3 in SD, Ohio and Florida, tho it declined in all 3 mkts.See the complete top 10 craft supplier and brand fam rankings and trends for all 11 markets, plus so much more in our Craft Update 2026 report. Available for download tomorrow, this deep-dive into the US craft beer segment offers an unparalleled look at how major craft players performed last year. It includes exclusive info on total craft volume in the context of the US beer biz, as well as shipments stats and trends for top craft portfolios and brand families. You'll also get closer looks at craft in scans, supplier shipments trends in select states and a detailed tally of craft deals and major closures. Head to beerinsights.com for more info and order your copy now to be among the first to get this in-depth look.

Craft Struggled Across US in Tuff Yr, But Local Stars Outshone Segment in Home Mkt Scans

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