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In 2025, craft was dying. In 2026, long live craft? That's the premise of two pieces pubbed this weekend, both of which are optimistic about the industry, albeit/encouragingly for very different reasons. In "How craft beer got fun again," author Astrid Kane explicates the importance of on-premise experiences in the SF Standard, focusing on success stories in their city like those of Fieldwork and Almanac, which have thrived by focusing on in-person experiences. In "After the Craft Beer Gold Rush," author Jordan Michelman comes to the same conclusion in Punch from an entirely different angle, arguing that the right-sizing of craft is a cause for celebration, with more variety from which to choose, more space to breathe and craft beer on tap virtually all across America, and not just places like Portland and Brooklyn. "We Haven't Had Any Hiccups" If creating "experiences" is the new way forward for many craft cos, Fieldwork was there first. The CA-only outfit has long been focused on-premise and has expanded in lockstep with state laws that have gradually increased the number of locations a brewer can have. While it just closed its Monterey location, its 4-mo-old beer space in the shadow of Oracle Park (home of the Giants) "might be San Francisco's most perfectly situated beer garden: a shipping container turned bar" near a lawn and bike bath where "fans can hear the action of Giants home games while watching on a giant mobile screen." A second, larger SF indoor location is slated to open this year, bringing co's total number of taprooms back up to 10.The focus on in-person experiences put Fieldwork far enough ahead of the game that "we haven't had any hiccups," said co-founder Barry Braden, who added, "I'm bullish." Author Astrid is as well, not leastwise because of the variety of in-person experiences from breweries like Fieldwork, Almanac, Standard Deviant, Fifty Vara and Two Pitchers, among others, but because of the return of Dave McLean, the "godfather of the Bay Area's craft brewing scene" who founded Magnolia and is planning to open a new brewpub called Excelsior this summer. Like Astrid (and many customers), Dave is excited about a return to a more holistic craft environment. "It's healthy to get to a place of balance," he said. "Most people are focused on how beer fits into their lives.""You Have to Count That as a Win" Over in Punch, author Jordan Michelman has found craft fits into his life better than it has in over a decade, as "I've found myself unexpectedly drawn back into the surviving nodes of craft beer culture in America." He continues: "after the hype has faded, now that the release lines have died down and the hazy bros have moved on, craft beer culture in America looks more like how it did 20 years ago: rooms full of interesting and eccentric people, drinking stuff because they like it and think it tastes good."While it's a first-person essay, Jordan backs up his thesis with testimony from Other Half, one of the success stories of recent years. "I tend to be optimistic about where beer is heading," said co-founder Sam Richardson. "This is far from the first time craft beer has had a dip. And I think it's starting to look up, or even inch slightly forward." One of the biggest victories, Sam said, has already been won: "Overall far more people are aware today of craft beer than 10 or 20 years ago. And you have to count that as a win."Losing Battles While Winning the War? That's undeniably true, even if the more recent years have been unkind, with craft $$ sales falling across the board in key US markets in 2025, including 5% in the Bay Area, despite Astrid's testimony above. At the same time, local breweries were apt to stand out in ways that align with Jordan's theory, especially in San Diego and Seattle, where Pizza Port (+9.4% in-city) and Georgetown (+5.4%), respectively, bucked trends. And as noted above, craft beer $$ sales are now down slightly in yr-to-date Circana multi-outlet + convenience scans thru Mar 22.Still, the war has been won, to some degree, he argues: "I lived in Pittsburgh for a lost year in the early aughts, when it was still the dominion of Iron City; today it is a craft beer wonderland on par with any megalopolis, and a similar story can be told in places like Spokane and Grand Rapids, Wichita, Reno and Ronkonkoma." A big part of that, says Harrison Riddell, manager of Seattle's famous Bottleworks store, is precisely because of the pullback from fad-chasing. "Now that things have slowed down, it's more about the communal aspect of beer culture," he said. Or, as Jordan puts it, "I actually enjoy craft beer far more now that it is decidedly, avowedly no longer cool."

Is Craft Culture Back? Two Authors Say Yes, Touting Success of On-Premise and Nationwide Availability

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