Best All Around Brewery?

Really? What are they canning? I'd love to get Prima Pils in cans if that is indeed one of them. Hop Devil and Dirt Wolf would rock in cans as well.

 

Despite my argument for Victory, I voted Stone as well (Victory wasn't offered). Based on what the options were, I felt Stone exemplified "all around" better than the others. I may also be taking "all around" to a different length than the OP. I would still give Victory an edge over Stone though. It's the lager thing that I am getting hung up on (to best of my memory, I cannot recall any Stone lager -surprisingly enough, not even a marzen). What having so many high rated styles means to me is that the brewery is accessible to a wider range of drinker. So accessible styles, good distro, consistent quality and great prices. That's my opinion of "all around".

 

Three floyds for IPA's, CCB for stouts and porters, and almanac for sours

 

Lagunita's --By a lot of $ and beer

 

Evil Twin?

 

I know for sure they are starting with Summer Love, from there I have not heard yet. Here is the article from last fall about the canning line.

http://www.bizjournals.com/philadel...-co-to-roll-out-canning-line-in.html?page=all

 

Firestone is the best brewery in the US. They make exemplary beers across all styles, they are reasonably priced, and they have an excellent and growing distribution channel. No other brewery in the US can make the same claims to the same degree.

 

Where's plank road?!?

 

Lagunitas should have been on there. They have a massive variety of beer and are readily available just about everywhere. Don't get me wrong there are other breweries that make a better beer, but those are know for like 1 or 2. I can honestly say I have never had a beer from Lagunitas that I haven't liked.

 

Of the choices, I would say Firestone. However Bells and Sly Fox immediately jumped to mind.

 

None of the above

 

If a brewery is not involved in alternative fermentations(brett and/or bacteria) they cannot be the best all around, that drops many of your original list.

Russian River, Firestone Walker, Cigar City, Allagash are some of the best across all styles with a very large style diversity also in play.

 

My vote was Firestone, but I think the Bruery and Stone wouldn't be far behind. I'd also def. give a nod to Avery- their mastery of hoppy beers, belgians, barrel aged beers, sours, and ultra high ABV beers are too good to ignore.

 

Let's see, HF has made wild ales, stouts, porters, IPAs, pales, barleywines, pilsners, saisons, grissettes, brown ales, old ales (Peleg), wheat beers...

They don't do belgian-trappist styles, of course! But I'd say they are pretty wide ranging. Yet it's true that their focus is on Farmhouse ales, wild ales, IPAs, and barrel aged 'dark' beers.

 

The answer is BBC followed by new Belgium. That's why they are so goddamned huge. They do everything listed, and do it consistently well. While many here will disagree, it is true. They both can, they both bottle. Both breweries have huge style portfolios, and play with non-traditional fermentations as well.

 

I completely disagree. But I just look at the stats differently. They are an pale ale (IPA, Pale), Farmhouse, and Stout Factory.

Yes they have made a brown ale, an old ale, a couple wild ales, 1 barley wine (which is basically a heavy pale ale), a couple porters (which are stouts), 1 pilsner

They don't play in two very large spaces: German style ales and lagers and Traditional Belgian style beers. This is like 50 different styles.

For reference:
HF has made 20 differently styles
FW has made 33
Breakside Brewing who has only been around for 3 years or so has made 43 different styles.
Stone has made 50+
Deschuttes has made 64+


I am not disagreeing that HF is not amazing or do what they do well. But lets call a spade a spade - they focus on 3 styles more or less. This is not a bad thing. I think this is a great thing. Breweries need to focus on what they do well.


But saying HF does all styles well is misspeaking, because they do less than 20% of all styles.



...and yes I extrapolate one minor sentence into a whole rebuttal. Because I care too much about semantics.

 

I love HF and think they do no wrong. That said, their scale is tiny. I don't think it's a fair comparison to lump them in with places producing beers designed to supply even a whole state...let alone 1/2 the country.

 

You're right, although I do think they have made enough wild ales to say they are also focused on that part of the game.

It's true that I was being hyperbolic when saying they do everything well. But I think no one does so many things so well. The only exception being Firestone Walker, and Maybe SARA. I also didn't think Aaron was a 'really big PA' though!

But yes, they have their focuses, you're right.

 

Depends on what we're talking about. We're talking just who makes overall the best beer, without considerations of distribution, size and so on. If the latter comes into play, I don't think anyone can compete with Firestone Walker.

 

If there's no scale involved, the best might very well be this place: http://drydockbrewing.com/about-us/awards
They have the most hardware of anyone in the last few years. That said, I wouldn't put them up there with the FW's, Victory's, and Stone's of the world either.