The state of Maryland is no stranger to craft beer—there’s a longevity to the industry. Back in the Colonial days, Benjamin Fordham was granted a charter in 1703 to open the state’s first brewery in the Annapolis area.
What the state’s beer industry has traditionally lacked, however, is consistency. If Fordham’s sounds familiar, it’s because he was the namesake of Fordham Brewing Company, which brewed in Rams Head Tavern in downtown Annapolis in the mid-1990s—but that wasn’t a long-lived endeavor, as the company defected to Dover, Delaware, in 2003. In fact, despite the 300-year history of craft brewing in Maryland, the oldest brewery in the state—Oliver Brewing Co. in Baltimore—has been around only since 1993.
But Maryland isn’t alone in its inconsistency when it comes to the craft beer industry—it’s a longtime national trend, too. Go back 150 years to the early 1870s, and there were more than 4,000 breweries in America. However, the Temperance Movement stifled the growth of the industry, and then Prohibition smothered it. (It’s worth noting that Marylanders fought back against Prohibition, which they believed violated the state’s rights—it’s where the nickname the “Free State” originated.)
After Prohibition ended in December 1933, the beer industry slowly bounced back—but it wasn’t the craft beer industry (which is defined as a brewery that produces 6 million barrels of beer or less each year) that was thriving. Larger breweries kept buying up the smaller guys, and at one point, six brewing companies controlled 90 percent of the entire beer market in the U.S.
Finally, the first wave of craft breweries in the U.S. came in the 1990s, according to Jim Bauckman, director of communications for the Brewers Association of Maryland, with a second bump in the early 2000s and then a “huge” ramp up around 2012.
“The same was true here in Maryland,” Bauckman adds. “People were seeing what was happening nationally, and they were intrigued by what was happening.”
Legislation Paves the Way
Despite a growing number of breweries nationally in the early 2010s, the number of craft breweries in Maryland has lagged. As it turns out, prohibition wasn’t the only time a law would get in the way of the industry.
Before 2015, the laws in Maryland wove a complex web when it came to distribution, but what it came down to was this: Breweries could not sell a pint of beer directly to its customers. They could make beer, invite customers in for a tour and allow them to sample the wares, but they couldn’t complete a sale—instead, the manufacturer (i.e. the brewery) had to sell to a wholesaler, who would sell the beer to a distributor or retailer. “Breweries were just asking for a chance to complete a sale while [the customer] is there,” Bauckman says. “They asked for the ability to sell to the consumer with reasonable limits.”
Eventually, their requests were answered, and the tightly woven web of regulations started to loosen a bit—and it made a difference to entrepreneurs considering opening a brewery. “In Maryland, we have more than 100 breweries,” Bauckman shares. “In 2015, we may have had 50.”
It certainly made a difference to Jon Esposito, owner of Chesepiooc Real Beer in Crofton, which is one of the few breweries in Anne Arundel County. He had previously opened three breweries in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Virginia and “had no interest whatsoever in just getting into a production brewery again,” he claims. “If the taproom laws hadn’t changed to bring guests in and have a pub, I never would have considered it.”
With the change in the law, though, Esposito signed a lease that year and started construction on Chesepiooc, which opened in February 2018.
The laws surrounding breweries in Maryland continue to evolve, but also continue to limit. Most recently, the Brewery Modernization Act, which took effect in July 2019, increased the number of barrels that a brewery can sell in its taproom from 2,000 to 5,000—this is still the lowest cap for breweries in the United States.
Yes, the craft beer industry in Maryland has gradually warmed up, but compared to some of its neighbors, it can still be considered sluggish. According to the Brewer’s Association, a national organization, Maryland has 112 craft breweries and produces 301,966 barrels of craft beer per year, paving way for a $900 million economic impact for the state. Virginia, on the other hand, has more than double the number of craft breweries—290—and the industry has a $1.7 billion impact. Up north in Pennsylvania, 401 breweries provide a $6.3 billion economic impact.
Local Regulations Vary (and, Sometimes, Suppress)
Despite improvements in state laws, Anne Arundel County—and specifically Annapolis—aren’t home to very many breweries. In part, that can be attributed to local zoning laws, which require a brewery to open in a place zoned for manufacturing, Bauckman says.
Additionally, breweries are regulated much like bars, so there are restrictions on what you can be located near. “In Anne Arundel County, you have to be a certain distance from churches, schools, and daycare facilities. It’s a particularly big one—1,000 feet,” says Jesse McKnew, who opened Cult Classic Brewing in Stevensville in August 2018 with his brother, Brooks. “You take any church, school, or daycare and draw a 1,000-foot radius around it, and the county starts to look unusable.”
Queen Anne’s County has similar zoning restrictions that disallow breweries near churches, schools, and libraries, but only requires a 500-foot distance, says McKnew, who formerly co-owned Annapolis Homebrew Shop in Severna Park before selling it in 2017 to open the brewery right off of Route 50. Even after they found the location—which took a full year—the pair was nervous because they wouldn’t be grandfathered in if a church, school, or library opened within 500 feet during the brewery’s 11-month construction process.
“At any time in those 11 months, if a church had opened up within 500 feet of us—the building next door has a lot of vacant spaces—we would have had to pack it up and leave,” he says.
But, wait, there’s one more real estate challenge when it comes to opening up a brewery. “You need a very specific type of real estate,” comments Alex Josephs, co-founder of Crooked Crab Brewing Co. in Odenton. “You need high ceilings; you have to have concrete floors that can bear a lot of weight; you need square footage to accommodate all of the equipment. It’s really expensive to find that kind of space somewhere like downtown Annapolis.”
Forward Brewing, which opened in May in Eastport, is the first brewery to set up shop in Annapolis in a number of years. Forward, however, is a nanobrewery, rather than a microbrewery, meaning they manufacture fewer gallons of beer per year—but that doesn’t mean that the challenges for owner Cam Bowdren were any fewer.
“The sheer number of regulations that you need to be keenly aware of, and licenses and permits that you need to hold—beyond the obvious, like a liquor license—do create quite a web,” Bowdren explains. “I actually keep a binder of all of the rules that we are subject to. It’s been disappointing to see how much money it takes to start a small business, because you essentially need a lawyer or to be a lawyer to navigate the process, and even with that, you need to be prepared to spend years going through the process.”
Additionally, Eastport residents filed appeals in opposition to not only the brewery but other proposed projects, claiming that it could increase traffic and reduce parking. The appeals were later withdrawn.
A Celebration of Beer and Community
After breweries cut through all of the red tape and logistical challenges, their owners and employees are ready to welcome the community and offer up varying styles of beer. Most of the breweries have staples that are nearly always on tap—for example, Forward Brewing plans to have its kolsch-style ale, Boat Beer, around “forever,” Bowdren says—but flex their creative muscles to come up with additional options, whether to meet the requests of their customers or simply to try something new.
In recent years, sour beers have come into their own as a prominently desired style, and Crooked Crab has found success with its “Walked Into a Bar” line of beers, which combine hundreds of pounds of two types of fruit—for example, one beer is called “A Blackberry and Cherry Walked Into a Bar”—and soured with lactobacillus to create a balance of sweet and sour flavors. “Then we do a bigger version of that called the Punchline series, which is the imperial version,” Joseph shares.
At Chesepiooc in Crofton, Esposito’s goal was to have an ever-rotating selection of beer brewed in small batches, so nothing is ever guaranteed to be on tap. “It takes roughly the same amount of time to brew a batch of my size as it does for a 20-barrel batch,” he shares. “It wasn’t the smartest idea to go tiny-batch, but it gives me a chance to be creative.” He’s made 430 beers since the brewery opened.
Esposito regularly makes cask beers, a type of beer that’s unfiltered, then transferred into casks, where it undergoes a slight final fermentation by live yeasts. It results in a drink that’s lower in carbonation, a rounder mouthfeel, and has a slightly more complex flavor. It’s typically served at a slightly higher temperature—55°F—and appears a little cloudy. “It’s my personal taste; I love cask ales,” Esposito says. “One of our most popular casks is the hefeweizen.”
A new brewery in Queenstown, Ten Eyck—which is notably a 100 percent women-owned brewery—plans to offer foeder-fermented beer in addition to some traditional steel-fermented beers. A foeder (pronounced “food-er”), more commonly found in Europe, is a larger oak barrel that’s around three times the size of the average barrel and holds around 160 gallons. They require such great lengths to be constructed that just one company in America in Missouri makes them, says owner Nicki Snyder. “Having it fermented on the oak gives the beer a really great flavor,” she says. “We’re going to create a market for those where there isn’t one. It takes longer and is a labor of love.”
But it’s not just about the beer. For all of the breweries, it’s also about the community. Cult Classic in Stevensville has opened a performance space to bring in local and touring bands, and they’re working on a larger outdoor space that will allow for live music, as well.
And although Forward Brewery had a bit of local opposition during the permitting process, Bowdren—who was born in Eastport and lived in Annapolis for most of his life—is optimistic that the brewery will be a community space, especially since it’s also a restaurant. “More and more, I started seeing what breweries were offering in other cities: Not only delicious, fresh beer, but also a place to meet friends at any time of the day. A place for families to spend time without worrying about taking up tables at a restaurant, A place to gather and actually talk to your neighbors,” Bowdren muses. “...We’re excited to offer Annapolis a brewery it can call its own.”
A Rich Homebrewing Community
When the COVID-19 pandemic started to hit Maryland in mid-March, people looked for a way to fill their time—and if sales at Annapolis Home Brew in Severna Park were any indication, a lot of them filled it with making beer at home. “It was the best three months since we took over the business,” in 2017, says owner Steve Bolton. “People turned to beer-making and wine-making as a way to pass the time.”
Homebrewing was federally legalized in 1978 (Prohibition made it illegal in 1919), and while it wasn’t a mainstream activity for quite a while, the hobby has seen exponential growth in recent years. According to market research firm Grandview Research, around 1.1 million people brew their own beer, which numbered upward of 1.4 million barrels as of 2017.
Odenton resident Mike O’Toole began dabbling in homebrewing in 2013 after trying it out with his brother one holiday weekend. “The following Christmas, my wife got me a brewing kit from Northern Brewer, and it came with two recipes,” he recalls. “I brewed them both between Christmas and New Year’s. I was hooked immediately.”
About a year later, O’Toole joined Annapolis Homebrew Club, established in 2012, a group that hosts regular meet-ups, beer competitions and organizes Pints 4 Paws, an annual festival that raises money for the Annapolis SPCA. Eventually, O’Toole served as the club’s president for two years.
“When I first got into brewing, I was really thirsty for more information and help to become a better brewer,” he says. “I always look forward to sharing beer and conversations at our monthly meetings.”
For those who want to start brewing their own beer (or making their own wine), but don’t know where to begin, local homebrew stores can help. Most offer a number of beer-, wine- and cider-making classes.
Even people who aren’t new to brewing benefit from resources at the shops. “A lot of people are in military housing here and don’t have a lot of spare room,” Bolton explains. “They can use our equipment and store their beer, which saved them from taking up extra room that they might not have—and they still get a good product.”
Such stores may also offer simpler beginner brewing classes for all sorts of beverages (including a newer addition, kombucha) and host local homebrewer meetings. “There’s something for everyone in this hobby,” Bolton says.
Craft Beer by the Numbers
- $79.1 billion National economic contribution of craft brewing industry
- 25,917,766 Barrels produced by craft brewers nationally
- 7,346 breweries operating nationally
- 112+ Craft breweries in Maryland
- 2.5 Craft breweries per capita in Maryland
- 301,966 Barrels of craft beer produced in Maryland annually
- $889,302,000 Economic impact of craft breweries in Maryland
*As of 2018—Source: Brewers Association
