What Happens When Craft Breweries Return to Their Roots? | Imbibe Magazine

Photo: Matt Furman. The team behind family run McIlhenney Brewing.

Craft breweries of the mid-2010s existed in an exuberant era where the potential for double-digit growth seemed infinite. Brewing conglomerates regarded craft breweries like winning lottery tickets, no price too high. However, corporate capital wasn’t a cheat code for moving mountains of craft beer nationwide.

Once-sold breweries are now reversing course and repurchasing autonomy, returning to their hometown roots. This past May, Constellation Brands sold Four Corners Brewing and Funky Buddha back to their founders. The family behind Alpine Beer opened McIlhenney Brewing in their former brewery space. Independent breweries are also reining in distribution, focusing on selling beer in fewer states, and reviving bygone beers and brands like Chicago's Conrad Seipp that resonate with local communities. In Washington, D.C., that means toasting with Right Proper Brewing's Senate Beer, a historic corn lager first created in the 1890s.

“We want to be a brand for the people who call the District of Columbia their home,” says co-founder Thor Cheston.

My latest feature for Imbibe magazine is now in print and live online. It's been a wild ride watching so many breweries return to their roots