Raise A Glass To Pinellas Breweries: It's National Beer Week

PINELLAS COUNTY, FL — Congratulations to all the breweries in Pinellas County. You've managed to weather the coronavirus pandemic and associated business closures. Now, as the country celebrates National Beer Week, Patch readers raise a glass to your success.

Florida now ranks ninth in the nation for the number of craft breweries - 329 in all producing 1,401,142 barrels of beer a year and having a $3.8 million impact on Florida's economy, according to the Brewers Association.

Craft breweries in the United States date back to the late 1970s, the first opening shortly after President Jimmy Carter signed legislation that made home-brewing legal in 1978.

Small and independent brewing companies accounted for 40 of the top 50 top-producing craft brewing companies in 2020 based on beer sales volume, according to the Brewers Association.
The year 2020, forever linked with the start of the coronavirus pandemic, brought about a drastic change in how Americans purchase alcohol, Bart Watson, economist for the Brewers Association, said.

When breweries were closed for business, owners quickly adapted, offering packaged brews to go and turning from the production of beer to hand sanitizer, allowing local breweries to weather the pandemic.

“Breweries who had established packaging and distribution capacity were best positioned to take advantage of the boom in off-premise sales and weather market uncertainty,” Watson said.

So, this week, Patch tips its hat to local brewers:

• Rapp Brewing Company, 10930 Endeavour Way, Seminole
• Big Storm Brewing Co., 12707 49th St N, Clearwater
• Crooked Thumb Brewery, 555 10th Ave S, Safety Harbor
• Clearwater Brewing Company, 1700 N Fort Harrison Ave, Clearwater,
• Arkane Aleworks, 2480 E Bay Drive, #23, Largo
• Dunedin Brewery, 937 Douglas Ave, Dunedin
• Two Lions Winery & Palm Harbor Brewery, 1022 Georgia Ave, Palm Harbor
• Grindhaus Brew Lab, Hercules Space Center Industrial Park, 1650 N Hercules Ave, Unit I, Clearwater
• Silverking Brewing Co., 325 E Lemon St, Tarpon Springs
• Cueni Brewing Co., 945 Huntley Ave, Dunedin
• Southern Lights Brewing Company, 2075 Sunnydale Blvd, Clearwater
• Two Frogs Brewing Company, 151 E Tarpon Ave, Tarpon Springs
• Unrefined Brewing, 312 E Tarpon Ave, Tarpon Springs
• 5 Branches Brewing, 531 Athens St, Tarpon Springs
• Anclote Brew, 735 Dodecanese Blvd, Tarpon Springs
• de Bine Brewing Company, 993 Florida Ave, Palm Harbor
• Stilt House Brewery, 625 Alternate U.S. 19, Palm Harbor
• Local Brewing Company, 35631 U.S. 19, Palm Harbor
• Beach Island Brewery, 2058 Bayshore Blvd Suite 5, Dunedin
• 7venth Sun Brewing Company, 1012 Broadway, Dunedin
• Mastry's Brewing Co., 7701 Blind Pass Rd, St Pete Beach
• Sea Dog Brewing Co., 9610 Gulf Blvd, Treasure Island, and 26200 U.S. 19, Clearwater
• Mad Beach Craft Brewing Company, 12945 Village Blvd, Madeira Beach
• Gulfport Brewery + Eatery, 3007 Beach Blvd S, Gulfport
• Anecdote Brewing Company, 321 Gulf Blvd, Indian Rocks Beach
• Hammerstein Brewing Co., 1158 7th St NW, Largo
• Soggy Bottom Brewery, 660 Main St, Dunedin
• Clearwater Social Brewing Company, 483 Mandalay Ave, #213, Clearwater Beach
• Caledonia Brewing, 587 Main St, Dunedin
• Lagerhaus Brewery & Grill, 3438 East Lake Business, Palm Harbor
• Brighter Days Brewing Company, 311 N Safford Ave, Tarpon Springs
• Troubled Waters Brewing, 670 Main St, Safety Harbor
• Woodwright Brewing Company, 985 Douglas Ave, Dunedin
• HOB Brewing Co., 931 Huntley Ave, Dunedin
• Antibrewery, 1367 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave, Dunedin

If we left you off the list, please let us know. Send an email to editor D'Ann White at dann.white@patch.com.