Among the e-mail questions we see most often is: “What are the top ten selling beer brands in the USA?”
Since the Information Resources Inc. that indicate craft beer sales are on fire also list the best selling beers overall we can provide an up-to-date ranking..
1. Bud Light
2. Budweiser
3. Miller Lite
4. Coors Light
5. Corona Extra
6. Natural Light
7. Heineken
8. Michelob Ultra Light
9. Busch Light
10. Miller High Life
These are sales in outlets that IRI tracks, mostly supermarkets with at least $2 million in sales, plus some convenience stores and retail liquor stores. But even if you could count everything else the order would be unlikely to change.
Can you tell me what the top selling microbrews are?
The top 15 micro/craft brands make up 55% of sales in stores that IRI tracks (again, that’s not everybody). The top 5:
1. Sierra Nevada Pale Ale
2. Sam Adams Boston Lager
3. New Belgium Fat Tire
4. Sam Adams Seasonal
5. Sam Adams Light
This list does not include Coors’ Blue Moon White (it is considered Super Premium since it is owned by a megabrewer). Its sales are up more than 100% so far this year and it would rank behind only SNPA and Boston Lager.
Sam Adams is NOT a “Micro”. It is by far one of the biggest, best selling brands to compete with imports In America, most people even think it is an Import. Local companies like CBC (Columbus Brewing Co.) and Iron City Brewing Co. are true “Micros”.
I also think that if Fat Tire was sold farther east, their sales would probably double if not triple, I’m a huge fan, but not able to get it where I live.
What about the Top 100 Best Selling Beers in the US. Any chance you have that data?
Fat Tire is definitly the best micro made. Lucky me I guess. Montana.
I’ve never met anyone who thought Sam Adams was an import. Maybe Sam Smith, but not Sam Adams!
Well just go to a chain restaurant and ask some waitress what imports they have, and she will almost always say Sam Adams. Happens almost everytime I ask that question.
You people are either dumb, or beer is too rough on your labia. Sam Adams holds lees than 0.1% of the U.S. beer sales market. Just because it now reaches markets across the country, people assume Sam Adams is brewed in some huge factory and rivals Anheiser Busch in popularity. It most certainly IS a micro…and Beantown is damn proud of it!!
Costco brews its own beer and as far as I know the only one in the states that does NOT add any sugar.
How about a petition to the FDA to require ingredients on their labels, we do ingest it.