What is Independent Craft Beer?

What Is Independent Craft Beer?

You’ve likely seen the independent craft beer logo on our cans here at Full Circle Brewing. It’s an identifier that many beer drinkers seek and it indicates that your drinking-dollars are supporting an independent, locally owned brewery. But with so many definitions, and lack of definitions, for craft beer and similar terms in the industry, there’s a good chance you have found yourself wondering what it really means to be an independent craft brewery creating independent craft beer.

The Independent Craft Brewer Seal

The small logo that you see on our cans is a seal created by the Brewer’s Association (BA), a non-profit trade organization with a mission of promoting and protecting American craft brewers, the beers they produce, and brewing enthusiasts around the country. The BA created the seal as a way to unite independent brewers and provide a way for them to display that independent spirit. For beer drinkers, it means having a quick and easy way to know if the beer you are purchasing has come from an independent craft brewer.

The upside down bottle on the logo represents the impact small, independent craft brewers have had on the beer industry in the U.S. The BA explains on their website that this community has turned the beer world upside down by taking risks and creating innovative flavors.

What Is a Craft Brewer?

The BA has a very specific definition for the craft brewers that are part of the association. They define an American craft brewer as both small and independent.

Small is related to the amount of beer produced and these brewers must have an annual production of six million barrels or less. To be considered independent, less than 25 percent of the brewery can be owned or controlled by another entity in the alcohol industry, if that entity is not also a craft brewery.

Independent Craft Beer

Any brewery that meets the above description is producing independent craft beer. When they feature the seal on beer packaging it’s an easy way for consumers to know right away that they are supporting a local, independent business and that they are about to drink some outstanding hand-crafted beer.

We’re proud to share the logo on all our beers here at Full Circle and to be a part of the #SeekTheSeal movement.