Massachusetts-based Tree House Brewing Co. is the top brewery of the year, according to Untappd, an app for beer aficionados that ranks top beer labels, producers, and venues across the globe.
Like the similar “Top 10 Beers” and “Top 10 Beer Cities” lists released last week, “The Top 10 Breweries of 2021” was ranked based on the total number of check-ins made by users at brewery taprooms. Tree House received 875 thousand individual check-ins during the calendar year, rising from its runner-up spot in 2020. Last year’s top taproom, Scotland’s BrewDog, fell to third place. Untappd released the list on Dec. 18 as part of its “Untappd Year in Beer for 2021.”
The 2021 top breweries came from all over the country, with BrewDog being the only international contender on the list. The list featured some of craft brewing’s heavy hitters, including Sierra Nevada, Founders, Stone Brewing and Goose Island Beer Co. The smallest brewing company taproom featured is Brooklyn’s Other Half Brewing Co., which came in second with 835 thousand check-ins.
In an interesting turn of events, beer industry leviathan Anheuser Busch InBev, which single-handedly produces the most beer on the globe, came in ninth place with 427 thousand check-ins at their St. Louis taproom. Anheuser Busch was not featured in the 2020 list.
The data provided by Untappd is not a calibration of the quality or quantity of these breweries, but is more representative of where Untappd’s active user base was visiting the most often and is concentrated. Untappd is an app designed for beer enthusiasts, promoting a gamification and “ticker culture” that allows users to post where and what they are drinking, and to see their friends’ favorite libations as well.
Check out Untappd’s list of the top breweries in 2021:
- Tree House Brewing Co. — Charlton, Mass. — 875,520 check-ins
- Other Half Brewing Co. — Brooklyn, N.Y. — 835,580 check-ins
- BrewDog — Ellon, Scotland — 810,702 check-ins
- Founders Brewing Co. — Grand Rapids, Mich. — 564,976 check-ins
- Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. — Chico, Calif. — 526,659 check-ins
- New Belgium Brewing Co — Fort Collins, Colo. — 503,685 check-ins
- Stone Brewing — Escondido, Calif. — 499,393 check-ins
- Goose Island Beer Co. — Chicago — 462,196 check-ins.
- Anheuser-Busch — St. Louis, Mo. — 427,391 check-ins
- Equilibrium Brewery — Middletown, N.Y.— 415,121 check-ins