American Craft Beer The Best Craft Beer, Breweries, Bars, Brewpubs, Beer Stores, And Restaurants Serving Serious Beer.
The beer biz never sleeps at American Craft Beer. And here’s just some of what’s been happening in the beer world while you were enjoying the weekend.
41 Colorado Breweries Close in 2024
Colorado’s brewers faced another challenging year in 2024, with even more breweries, taprooms and brewpubs closing than in 2023.
“We are arguably the most important beer producing state in America and should be proud to be the State of Craft Beer. But Colorado’s breweries are facing major challenges,” said Shawnee Adelson, executive director of the Colorado Brewers Guild. “Between inflation, supply chain issues, employee shortages, a pandemic and a downward trend of drinking, these local businesses need the support of the public and lawmakers to survive.”
According to Colorado’s Liquor Enforcement Division, beer sales in the state are down -3.2%, worse than the Brewers Association’s national average showing craft beer down -2% in 2024. Also, more breweries, taprooms and brewpubs closed in 2024 than new ones opened according to the Brewers Association.
Since the pandemic, Colorado’s lost 140 craft breweries – 41 of those in 2024 and 35 in 2023.
“It was an incredibly difficult decision to close our Denver taproom,” said Christa Kilpatrick, former co-owner of the closed E. Colfax Fiction Beer Company taproom. “The craft beer business is a difficult and demanding one, and it was time to move on to less stressful ventures.”
Colorado’s nearly 450 breweries help create 63,000 jobs, $4 billion in wages each year and contribute $12.7 billion in economic activity for the state.
Words to Drink By
“‘It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.” Charles Darwin, English naturalist, geologist and biologist
Beer Pub Crawls Banned In Prague
Prague ended 2024 by officially banned organized weekend pub crawls, beer drinking parades that drew over 7 million beer lovers to the Czech capital last year.
The ban was implemented to address the negative effects of pub crawls on the city, including public drunkenness, noise, garbage, and security concerns. The city also wanted to discourage “cheap alco-tourism” and promote a more respectful cultural tourism.
The ban is in effect from 10 PM–6 AM, (yep, these things would go all night), and organizers who violate it face fines of up to 100,000 koruna ($4,300), according to the NY Post.
Some say the ban won’t deter tourists from visiting Prague. They argue that tourists will just do their own pub crawls or simply start drinking earlier. Others argue that organizers and pub crawl guides actually help the city and police keep people quiet and enforce rules. But for now, these legendary pub crawls are done.
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