New York state has record number of breweries
SOUTH GLENS FALLS, N.Y. » New York is now home to a record number 400 breweries, eclipsing the mark set more than 140 years ago.
The state’s craft beverage industry started to skyrocket following a first-ever Wine, Beer and Spirits Summit in 2012.
Since then, 243 new breweries have obtained licenses, beer is currently being brewed in 57 of the New York’s 62 counties, and another 202 farm brewery licenses have been issued since a farm brewery law took effect five years ago.
“New York under Gov. Cuomo has relaxed a lot of laws and made it easier for breweries to grow,” said Christian Weber, owner of Common Roots Brewing Company in South Glens Falls. “Legislation allows brewers to get beer directly to consumers.”
His company, founded in December 2014, recently added four full-time employees, bringing total staff to 20. Weber credits a state economic development grant for helping the firm grow by allowing him to purchase equipment needed to expand capacity, plus a new grain management system.
Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul recently visited the site.
“Existence of craft breweries telegraphs that downtowns are vibrant places to gather and socialize,” she said. “The upstate resurgence is visible in brewing rooms across the state — young entrepreneurs living their dreams, new production jobs in formerly abandoned buildings, and farms that have new markets for their products. The hundreds of brewers across the state are boosting our economy with an increase in jobs and visitors.”
The Capital Region alone has dozens of breweries. Others in Saratoga County are: Artisanal Brew Works, Druthers Brewing Company, Racing City Brewing and Ten Springs Brewing in Saratoga Springs; Hank Hudson Brewing Company in Mechanicville; and Shmaltz Brewing Company in Clifton Park.
The farm brewery law went into effect in January 2013, mirroring the 1976 Farm Winery Act
that led to the growth of wineries and grape production throughout New York. The farm brewery license allows craft breweries that use ingredients grown in New York to conduct on-site tastings, open restaurants, engage in self- distribution, and operate up to five offsite branch stores anywhere in the state.
Cornell University says the farm brewery law has also led to a resurgence in New York’s hop and barley production. Acreage of hops grown in New York nearly doubled from 2014 to 2016, while the acreage of malting barley increased by 374 percent over the same two-year period.
New York is also now home to 13 malt houses, which have opened because of demand generated by the farm brewery license.
The previous record number of New York state breweries was 393, in 1876. The first commercial brewery in Colonial America opened in Manhattan in 1632, after settlers quickly realized the state’s climate was ideal for growing hops and barley. New York’s agriculture sector expanded throughout the 18th century and received a significant boost when the Erie Canal opened in 1825, helping promote the use of locally grown ingredients in beer production - a strong suit of New York’s craft beverage industry today. Later in the 19th century the state benefited from an influx of English, German and Irish immigrants who brought with them brewing skills that propelled New York into a thriving beverage boom. Between 1840 and 1900, New York grew more hops and brewed more beer than anywhere else in the country.
Today, a new entrepre- neurs are reviving New York’s position as a leader in craft brewing. Additionally, institutions such as Cornell University, SUNY Morrisville, the Geneva Experiment Station and Hartwick College’s Center for Craft Food and Beverage are now engaged in research and offering testing of barely, malt and beer quality.
Also, Erie Community College, Niagara Community College, the Culinary Institute of America, Schenectady Community College, Morrisville and Hartwick now have programs to train New York’s next generation of brewers.
“Once one of the largest producers of beer in the country, New York continues to lower the costs of business by modernizing laws and rolling back red tape to restore the Empire State as the standing leader in the craft beer manufacturing industry,” Cuomo said in a statement.