Beer is big business and as American as apple pie. Whether you’re having one over dinner or with friends while watching the game, there are craft beers for everyone. The craft beer industry has a problem with a lack of diversity. Less than 1% of the nearly 8,500 craft breweries in America are Black-owned and that needs to change. Several Black-owned craft breweries have opened their doors and kegs to critical acclaim and growing fan bases. Here are just a few of the beer brands that we would happily pour a pint of.
18th Street Brewery
18th Street Brewery was founded as a home brewery by Drew Fox in 2010. After years of hands-on learning and exploration, 18th Street Brewery became official with the release of Sinster Dipa in 2013. Shortly after, they opened a 3,200 square foot brewpub in an old dry cleaner’s building in Gary, IN. Quickly outgrowing that space, we purchased a 32,000 square foot warehouse in Hammond, Indiana. After years of hands-on learning and exploration, 18th Street became official with the release of Sinister DIPA in 2013. Since then, Fox and his team opened a brewpub in nearby Gary, as well as a taproom and a full-service kitchen in Hammond.
Green Bench Brewing Company
This Florida, brewery specializes in lagers. Green Bench production capacity sits at 12,000 BBLs (372,000 gallons) annually. It recently collaborated with Beer Kulture to create a keller Pils, Kulture Khronicles Volume II, to benefit Building Beds, a nonprofit that assembles and delivers beds and bedding to children in need. Khris Johnson is co-founder of Green Bench has been an active member of the Tampa Bay beer scene for years, working for Cigar City Brewing and Southern Brewing and Winemaking before developing and pursuing opportunities to open and run his own brewery.
Métier Brewing Company
Located in the winery-heavy town of Woodinville, WA, Métier first opened its doors in 2017 and has gone to produce award-winning beer, including its coconut porter, which won a silver medal at the 2018 Washington Beer Awards. Metier means “one’s calling,” and at Metier Brewing Company, their calling is brewing good beer and building stronger community to inspire bigger dreams for all. Métier Brewing Company current has on tap and available to-go their Chasing Days IPA, Strawberry Gose, El Dorado Pale Ale and their award-winning Beligian Golden.
Weathered Souls Brewing Co.
In 2020 it was the Black Is Beautiful initiative from Weathered Souls that made one of the biggest impacts on the craft beer world. Conceived by co-founder and head brewer Markus Baskerville, the collab brought together nearly 1,200 breweries from around the world, designed to raise awareness about the inequalities and injustices Black people face every day. Baskerville and Weathered Souls are rising stars in craft beerdom with deep stouts and thirst-quenching IPAs. They also source their grain locally and deliver to San Antonio, Houston, Austin and South Texas.
Four City Brewing
New Jersey has a deep brewing history so it’s no surprised Four City Brewing has made it on this list. Founded by Roger Apollon Jr, Jeff Gattens, and Anthony Minervino, Four City was named for “the Oranges”—the city it’s based in and the three surrounding cities. Recently, the brewery rebranded its patriotic Keg Stand Lager, an homage to the country’s first Black woman Vice President, Kamala Harris. “We have spent the last ten years perfecting recipes that are exciting, innovative, and most importantly, delicious,” say the founders on their website. “Four City Brewing Company is dedicated to providing the quality craft beer that discerning beer drinkers have come to expect.”
Sankofa Beer Company
Sankofa Beer Company is a Washington, DC-based producer and distributor of premium craft beer, inspired by the founders’ connection to West Africa. They are on a mission to expand the conventions of craft beer by creating a space where culture meets craft. Sankofa is a word from the Ashanti/Akan people in Ghana and translates to “Go back and get”. It is visually represented by a mythic bird with its head turned backward with an egg in its beak, or as a stylized heart. Sankofa is a symbol for the understanding that in order to ensure a strong future you must return to collect and understand your past.
Crowns & Hops
Founded by Beny Ashburn and Teo Hunter, Crowns & Hops has been focusing its work on closing the racial and gender gap in craft beer for years. ‘Black People Love Beer.’ A pretty simple statement, but when Teo Hunter andThey founded Crowns and Hopes and have been focusing on closing the racial and gender gap in craft beer for years
While the duo looks to open their brewery in Inglewood, California, they’ve already released three beers that recognize historically Black colleges and universities or are done in conjunction with other Black-owned proprietors like Red Bay Coffee. Their diverse portfolio of beers ranges from pilsners to West Coast IPAs and more. Crowns & Hops is currently building its first brewpub.
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Boitumelo Masihleho is a South African digital content creator. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from Rhodes University in Journalism and Media Studies and Politics and International Studies. She’s an experienced multimedia journalist who is committed to writing balanced, informative and interesting stories on a number of topics. Boitumelo has her own YouTube channel where she shares her love for affordable beauty and lifestyle content.
