2025 Beer in Review

BEST LOCAL BEER

Houndstooth Ordinary Bitter from Selvedge Brewing. Balances complexity and drinkability in a low ABV package. 

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN beer

Gorgons: Marq Rubus from Wunderkammer. Familiar and dynamic at the same time. It’s a special beer. 

FAVORITE wheatland BEERs

Two beers in particular made us smile this year, and they’re on opposite ends of the spectrum: Clover Estate lager released for Land Beer Fest and Mediate IPA. 

Working with grain we grow next to the brewhouse continues to teach us something every harvest and every batch. Clover afforded us the chance to take a step forward in expression, balance, and depth. It was brewed with renewable energy using a new type of barley from Virginia Tech that we regeneratively grew in a single field and custom malted to spec. Naturally carbonated in keg and patiently conditioned over many months. As natural as we could make it. It’s an honest beer that’s honestly from here.

The most recent batch of Mediate IPA lands for us. We’ve been imagining and reimagining the ingredients and methods since we first created the beer in 2023. Always with U.S. hops and Virginia malt and always evolving. This latest iteration best reflects what we had in mind for a modern IPA: hop saturation that’s bright and balanced.  

FAVORITE PLACE TO DRINK

The Brew Shop is a fantastic place run by outstanding people. Shoutout to Julie, Beth, and the incredible team! It’s welcoming with a casual-refined energy that really resonates with us. Everyone is wonderful at engaging customers across a spectrum of styles and familiarity. We’re big fans. 

POSITIVE 2025 TREND

We experienced a lot of small businesses supporting small businesses this year. That makes us really happy. Let’s keep that trend going. 

2026 HOPES AND WISHES

Extreme swings of so many things the last few years have left us all feeling a bit worn. Here’s hoping for some balance where we can find it and a good sense of humor where we can’t. Wishing everyone a peaceful, healthy, and bountiful 2026!

BEST LOCAL BEER

Jailbreak’s 2025 Barleywine Is Beer Cuvee with Coffee. I just had this last week, so it is fresh in my mind. Rob Fink is a big coffee nerd (who else includes the TDS for their cold brew concentrate in the description), and it shows in this one with loads of fresh-fruity coffee aroma layer onto a rich caramel from the malt and vanilla from the Willett barrels!

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN beer 

Hard to pass on Side Project’s MJK. It’s really approaching “cordial” territory at 20% ABV with intense marshmallow and cinnamon notes from nearly three years in bourbon and amburana barrels. As I’ve done more clean barrel aging, it makes me appreciate the great ones from other breweries even more.

FAVORITE sapwood beer

I was really proud of our Growth Rings 2025. It’s a blend of my favorite mixed-fermentation barrel-aged pale sour beers. This third biennial blend was the least acidic and most interesting, with loads of lemon and mineral from our house Brettanomyces. It’s what I like most about the best versions of lambic and gueuze: high drinkability combined with complexity.

FAVORITE PLACE TO DRINK

I still love going to homebrew club meetings when I can. It really reminds me of the excitement and fun of just getting to share something you’ve made with people who appreciate it. I love getting to try something delicious and then ask questions, and I love getting to share the how/why/what of my own beer. 

POSITIVE 2025 TREND

While the days of beer hype and lines are long gone – likely for good – there are still plenty of people searching out great beer. Even more people just want a good beer while they are eating, playing trivia, or talking with friends. I think good craft beer and on-premises consumption are here to stay, but it’s getting tougher for beer to be the “only” draw. 

LESS-DESIRABLE 2025 TREND

It’s sad to see closures, bankruptcies, and corporate takeovers of great classic craft breweries. Places like Rogue were a big part of my personal journey into beer. One of my first one-gallon all-grain batches was a Rogue Chocolate Stout clone recipe. I used to meet friend at The Reef in Adams Morgan for the monthly tapping of a one off “John’s Locker” series release.

2026 HOPES AND WISHES

With six months of food at Albura Taqueria under our belts, I’m looking forward to more “non-beer” people slowly learning we exist! It took seven years to get where we are now with Sapwood Cellars (in terms of quality and sales), and we’re hoping to slowly expand our customer base as Chef Brock and his staff do something similar with the kitchen!

BEST LOCAL BEERs

Well… I’ve got a couple, typical of me. I finally tried Mieza Blendery – it was on tap at High Side – and Alex Lynch is doing the real thing, the real work. I’m a huge fan of blended sours and would love to see them get hot, hot, hot again. Let’s all pilgrimage to Brussels for a sour trip.

Shout-out as well to Lost Generation and Sojourn Fermentory, whose dark lagers have been absolutely ripping as part of the Light & Dark combo at Eebee’s.

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN BEERs

I’ve been loving what Everywhere is making in California. I had them on at my Andy’s Pizza pre-Snally pizza party, they’re crushing it, and I crushed several pints.

FAVORITE eebee’s collab

I basically consider the Eastern Shore and beaches “local,” though I know not everyone agrees. When that salt life stays in your heart year-round, it’s easier to stretch the definition.

Randy [Mills] at Burnish makes Eebee’s house beer, and it’s perfect: easy-drinking, crispy, and endlessly crushable. The can art is my dented, down-on-its-luck 2008 Toyota Corolla, which still makes me laugh every time I see it.

That car has real sentimental value. When I moved back from NYC, I had no car and no money. COVID hit, I didn’t want to take public transportation, and a family friend gifted me the Corolla when they no longer needed it. It was a total lifesaver – and I’ll be keeping that car as long as possible.The beer is called Immaculate Whip. Get it?

OTHER FAVORITE EEBEE’S BEVERAGEs

I’m very into the Manhattan we’re making at Eebee’s, and the Old Raj classic gin martini is one of the best deals on the menu – beautiful vermouths.

But I’d be remiss not to mention that the actual second-best selling item at Eebee’s – across everything – is an ode to McSorley’s, poured off Czech LUKR faucets: Light & Dark. Schilling Alexandr for the Light, rotating Sojourn Fermentory and Lost Generation for the Dark.

I’m selling so many of these that I’m pretty sure Light & Dark will be instrumental to achieving my goal of taking my mother to Cabo next winter to thank her for her decor help!

FAVORITE PLACE TO DRINK 

When I’m specifically seeking out beer, I go to events at Shelter or ChurchKey. I also love Lost Generation locally – the people are incredible, the space is comfortable, and they always hype me up. What can I say, I love ‘em.I’m forever a sucker for old-school spots. You’ll catch me having a Guinness at The Tune Inn, Exiles, The Dubliner, or Old Ebbitt any day.

POSITIVE 2025 TRENDs

I have to be honest – I’ve been grinding. I’ve been building out Eebee’s, running out of money, gluing baseball cards to a bathroom wall, and figuring out permits. I’ve done a terrible job of keeping up with my usual obsession of knowing everything that’s happening in beer.

I’ve been getting pummeled, and if it’s not the Light & Dark, I barely know about it. Maybe people are milk-tubing smoothie sours? Fun? Maybe they’re dumping Underberg into stouts? I can’t lie and say it’s on my radar.

LESS-DESIRABLE 2025 TRENDs

I’ve been hearing a lot of complaints about how people drink their beer – or what they drink.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m particular too. I edge low or high. EeBee’s sells a lot of limited-release, wonderful small-batch beer, but we also sell a lot of Guinness. People roll their eyes at splitting the G, at snakebites, at a shot with a Diet Coke back. 

I can’t express how little I care what anyone orders. Yes, I’ll always support nuanced product – but when someone orders a burger and asks, “Is it okay if I get it well done?” and they have this embarrassed look on their face, T.I. starts playing in my head: You can have whatever you like. 

Less customer judgment. I am so happy for anyone giving me business!

2026 HOPES AND WISHES

I’ve worked really hard for a really long time. I want to operate a wonderful bar and restaurant where people make new friends and connections, where stories are shared – triumphs cheered and hardships eased. I want to stay busy, pay off my loan, and splash my mom out, as aforementioned.

BEST LOCAL BEERS

Jack: I can’t speak to its newness, but Pen Druid’s Spontaneous Cherries was one of my favorite beers of the year. It leads with lush acidity — from the cherries and microflora — nuanced by gentle Basque-like funk and a kiss of struck matchstick. Truly an impressive confluence of terroir, method, and conditioning.

Rich: It’s been a Czech lager year for me. I would say around 70% of the beers I’ve had this year have been Czech-inspired. Matt [Furda] from Mayan Monkey Brewing dropped off his De Lujo a few months ago, and it was really good. It’s obviously Czech-inspired, but it also had some pleasant citrus notes coming from the use of Aztec in the hop schedule.

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN BEERS

Rich: Bernard’s Světlý Ležák 11°. I just had one of these pale lagers at a cool beer spot in Vilnius, Lithuania.

Jack: I quickly drank through a four-pack of Schilling’s Especial when it arrived in Northern Virginia. Their take on a Mexican Golden Lager is an exquisite balance of character and crushability. I quickly bought another four-pack… or two.

FAVORITE ocelot beer

Jack: Polvo Pils, our interpretation of a Czech pilsner, was as close to a complete thought as we had this year. What ended up in the glass mostly lined up with our intentions and recipe design, so that feels like a win to me. And speaking of dreams coordinating with reality, it was also a band collaboration with the indie rock legends in Polvo. We had a ton of fun bringing this beer to life with them.

Rich: Polvo Pils, by far. In fact, it might be my favorite beer we’ve ever made. Period.  I think we really nailed the balance between bitterness and malt complexity in the latest iteration.

FAVORITE PLACES TO DRINK 

Jack: Westover Beer Garden is my neighborhood haunt, and if I’m not at Ocelot or on my front stoop, you’re likely to find me there with a pint of Bitburger in my hand. I grew up in a small town, and Westover feels as familiar as home. I consider that to be the highest measure of praise for an establishment.

POSITIVE 2025 TRENDs 

Jack: Ask me again next year.

2026 HOPES AND WISHES 

Jack: I believe Emily Brown wrote about something similar last year, but I must reiterate it as we now move into 2026: Please stop sending me doom-and-gloom articles and memes about the current state of the beer industry. Seriously, please. The industry is in a state of flux and realignment. It’s sad enough to see breweries in your own immediate community struggle and close. I don’t need to know about every brewery and bar closure in the continental United States.

BEST LOCAL BEERs

Two beers come to mind here. The first is Dollyhyde from Milkhouse Brewery. I’m a sucker for simplicity, and Milkhouse beers always land on that Goldilocks line of simple perfection. I love their dedication to Maryland malt and seeing a flagship Belgian ale. The other beer is 7 Grain Situation from Elder Pine. This is the creativity I love to see today. Nuance on nuance while remaining crushable. Drinking this beer and searching for the flavor of each grain was a joy. 

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN BEERs

The West Coast IPAs coming from Shred and Slice are next level. Honestly, they’re better than the hype, and they’ve inspired me to go on a deep dive into hop flavor and aroma maxing. After tasting these beers, I’ve let go of my bias towards only using T-90 pellets and have started exploring all the new hop products.

FAVORITE mayan monkey BEERs

Reposado is my current go-to. It’s an oak-rested Mexican-inspired export lager. Based on a Dortmunder Export but with corn and oak. It’s full, yet light. Malty and oaky vanilla. I love it.But my heart really goes out to Chula, our light Mexican lager. I’m on the fifth iteration of this beer, and I will never stop trying to perfect it. Right now, it’s brewed with Hallertau Mittelfruh and Saaz, gets a single decoction, and is cereal mashed with Jala Amarillo corn, a Mexican heirloom corn that grows to 16-feet tall and is harvested on horseback. By summer 2026, half of our menu (six of twelve beers) will feature different heirloom corn varieties.

FAVORITE PLACES TO DRINK

Belles’ Sports Bar and Grill in Frederick. A true gem, Belles’ is an unpretentious, strip-mall dive that also happens to have a killer craft beer selection. I can’t think of another place where you can shoot pool and drink lambic or Hop Butcher or a great craft lager. I always cap the night with a Guinness and look forward to coming back.

positive 2025 trends

Hospitality. Serving beer is about hospitality, and everyone is talking about it. The third space is so needed in today’s world. When you walk through a brewery’s doors, you should be leaving the world behind for a smiling, genuine care, and great beer. Also, breweries like Sojourn Fermentory have championed the beer pour, and I am so grateful for it. More and more people know what a LUKR is, but the faucet is not really the point. The point is pouring and presenting with intention and care. This can be done regardless of what faucet is on the wall. It plays such an important yet often-overlooked role in overall enjoyment. The instant the guest sees the beer presented to them can be so special, and I love seeing more places nailing it.

2026 HOPES AND WISHES

This year and last were an inflection point for craft beer. The industry may continue on a downward trajectory for some time depending on what metrics you are looking at, like total number of breweries or overall volume decline. But beer tastes better than ever. And more people are drinking craft than ever. It’s natural for hype to vanish when average quality increases. There’s just a smaller difference between good and great, and this is a sign of a mature industry. I hope people stop mistaking the end of hype for the end of relevance. Craft beer doesn’t need to be loud anymore. It needs to be present, dependable, communal, and worth a second pint. If 2026 is about anything, I hope it’s about craft beer being a normal part of people’s lives again and not something chased, collected, or ranked. I hope it’s something shared amongst good company.

BEST LOCAL BEER 

Sojourn Fermentory is run by some of our favorite folk, and they are making tasty, tasty beers. Their lager game is strong, and at Foam Jam – what kind of crazy, amazing people run an all side pull beer event!? – we had their Ten, a delicious Czech Pils. Also, their brewer, Josh Chapman, won “Coolest Brewer” this year at an actual awards show, and he loves to be reminded of it, so please mention it whenever you see him. 

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN BEERs 

We had the great fortune of getting to pour down at Little Beer in Duluth, Georgia. It was an amazing experience being among some of the best lager breweries in the entire country and getting to taste all their wondrous wares. We don’t think we could pick just one as a favorite, but all of the delicious beers Todd [DiMatteo] was pouring at Good Word were truly inspiring.

FAVORITE Lost Generation BEERs

This year, we were able to install an awesome Czech side pull draft system. It’s been really remarkable to taste the same beer on our normal system and see how much getting a snyt or hladinka pour on our Czech system really impacts the product. Through All Eternity, our Czech pale lager, and Dying Moons & Shadows, our Czech dark lager, were some of our favorites to have on the side pull this year.

FAVORITE PLACES TO DRINK

Eebee’s Corner Bar. Hands down. There’s a reason Emily Brown is running the hottest bar in town, and it’s that it’s stupid good. Top to bottom – from the food, the beer, and the cocktails to just the downright amazing vibe – it’s phenomenal. Eebee’s is easily our favorite bar right now.

POSITIVE 2025 TRENDs

This year, we saw some pretty big shakeups from the powers that be that have the potential to really upend the craft beer market, impacting costs on everything from our aluminum cans to the raw ingredients we use to make the product that we put in them. That said, many suppliers have been working directly with craft breweries and helping ease these cost increases. Our main supplier for the lager malt we import from Germany, for instance, absorbed all tariff costs for 2025, giving us time to adjust our planning for 2026. Things like this are what we love about this industry. From grain to glass, the beer industry works together and lifts each other up. No other industry we’ve ever encountered is quite as collaborative.

LESS-DESIRABLE 2025 TRENDs

We’ve noticed that certain beer styles tend to get a little less love on rating apps. That a Taras Boulba, Allagash White, or a Schönramer Pils aren’t sitting at or around 5 stars seems like a crime. We know barrel-aged stouts and beers teeming with vanilla or packed with delicious fruits can really have that wow factor, but a near-perfect beer deserves to be rated as such. 

2026 HOPES AND WISHES

We debuted in Maryland in December, and we’re increasing our distribution footprint thanks to a bunch of new tanks and equipment. We’ve only ever been available in limited amounts in DC and Virginia, so it’ll be really nice to introduce ourselves to a whole new market and see where that takes us as a business this upcoming year.

BEST LOCAL beers

Ponzi IPA and Bullpen Pilsner by Atlas Brew Works. If I see them on tap somewhere, I am usually buying them – assuming, of course, that Denizens beer isn’t already on tap! I am fairly certain this was my same answer last year. Creature of habit, as they say.

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN BEERS

I really enjoyed Maine Beer Company’s Woods and Waters IPA. The beer distribution system gets a lot of crap a lot of time, but it is impressive when you can get your hands on super fresh beer made hundreds of miles away. 

FAVORITE denizens BEERS

I think we really dialed in the art of collaboration beers in 2025. Between launching the All American Lager (with our friends at 2Fifty BBQ), Czexican Lager (with our friends at Sloppy Mama’s BBQ/Hill East Burger/Republic Cantina), and Happiness and Cheers Lager (with our friends at the 4 Corners Pub), we put out some of the crispiest, cleanest, clear-as-sunshine lagers around this year.

These were all really fun to put together, and they were true collaborations. Ingredient ideas and the balance of flavors were all designed by everyone – not just the team at Denizens. You can get all three of these year-round collaborations at each of the spots listed above, and of course at the Denizens taproom in Riverdale! 

All American Lager and Czexican are both in cans and on draft, and the Happiness and Cheers Lager is just on draft at this point. But who knows, maybe 2026 will add a package format! 

FAVORITE PLACES TO DRINK

Either the Denizens taproom, my house, the 19th hole at any golf course, or any bar that has pizza on the menu. 

I love a bar’s bar. Think heavily lacquered wooden bar tops with the elbow rests. Darker lighting. A few TVs showing whatever game is on. Essentially, places that are made for drinking and getting to know your neighbors. 

I have such a massive list of places I love that it is hard to name specific spots, but here are a few spots I spent a lot of time at this year: Moreland’s Tavern in DC, the Barking Dog in Bethesda, the 4 Corners Pub in Silver Spring, Stained Glass Pub in Silver Spring, and Sal’s Italian Kitchen in Cabin John. I have also been thoroughly enjoying Walter Reed’s Juneberry Garage, which is now open with their full food menu and inside area. I recommend their single patty smash burger. These guys are just giving the people what they want!

positive 2025 trends

Simplified menus! Places not trying to be everything to everyone. Bars and restaurants getting back to basics has been a really nice trend to see, and I hope that continues into 2026.

LESS-DESIRABLE 2025 TRENDS

A lot of things seem to be all or nothing these days. I wish a balanced approach was utilized by more folks when it comes to beer. I think loneliness will kill you 10x faster than having a few beers with your buddies once in a while. Let’s get together in person with friends more often in 2026!

2026 HOPES AND WISHES

We have been talking about potentially adding a new brand to our packaged beer line up this year. Being able to lean into the creative side of this business can really go a long way in fighting against the monotony of most weeks. I am also hoping that more places can stay open even though we are all facing major headwinds. Go out there and support your local and independent spots!

BEST local beers

Stephen: Across the DMV, I was fortunate enough to try a lot of great new beers this year – even if some of them were only new to me. (I don’t get out much.) 

One of the biggest and most memorable standouts was Sapwood Cellars’ Alburo Negra. This crispy-yet-malt-forward Mexican Vienna lager checks every box. While it’s not quite as dark as Modelo Negra – which I’m quite partial to – it’s far more nuanced, refined, and endlessly drinkable. 

On that note, I also have to mention the opportunity to try several of Sapwood’s mixed-culture beers. These are always a treat, especially when you consider the years of aging, blending, and sheer thought and care that go into each release. The fact that such expressive, world-class mixed-culture beers come out of a tightly packed brewery tucked away in an unassuming business park is a true testament to the skill and experience Mike [Tonsmeire] and Scott [Janish] bring to every brew.

This next one might not technically be “new” – it’s been a bit of an addiction of mine for years now – but I’d be remiss not to mention Port City Brewing’s Schwarzbier. We all know Port City doesn’t miss when it comes to lagers, but it’s rare to find a brewery still committed to this niche little gem of a style. It’s rarer still to find one that executes it at such a high level. This beer is clean, elegant, and quietly exceptional.

Last but certainly not least, a huge shoutout to Dan [Vilarubbi], Austin [Liebrum], and the talented team at Atlas Brew Works. While I genuinely enjoy everything they do, this year marked my first time trying their 202 Lager, and it’s now something I look forward to every visit. The subtle Brett funk, smooth lager drinkability, and approachable light acidity combine to create a beer I never knew I needed in my life.

METH: Locally, I really enjoyed this year’s Munich Dunkel from Manor Hill – really well done and nuanced and balanced. The farm is always worth a visit, and all of their beers are spot on without fail. I also super dug Ocelot’s Polvo Pils. All of the beers I’ve had from their collabs with bands and record labels have always hit, and this beer was no exception. I used to listen to a good bit of Polvo back in college, so it was really rad! Most recently, I was really impressed by the Dying Moons and Shadows Tmave at Lost Generation, really beautiful mid-tone malt character and super clean on the back end.

BEST OUT OF TOWN BEERS

Meth: I’ve been drinking a ton of the Sierra Nevada Pils in the baby cans. I’m a sucker for fun packaging, and the beer is stellar.

Stephen: Before I start, I have to admit I’m terrible at remembering specific beers I’ve had over the course of the year. I haven’t checked a beer into Untappd in years, so instead I’ll focus on breweries that, as a whole, truly stood out to me.

First off, I have to mention how much I enjoy drinking beers from Schilling and Dovetail Brewery’s whenever I get the chance. (Huge shoutout to Arlington Brew Shop for consistently keeping Dovetail in stock.) Both of these breweries are widely recognized for producing world-class beer, and I’m grateful that their lagers make their way to the D.C. area with some regularity.

That said, the brewery that really blew me away this year was Red Oak Brewery out of Whitsett, North Carolina. This Reinheitsgebot-focused lager brewery produces one of the single best amber lagers I’ve ever had. I even did a blind side-by-side tasting of their Helles against Dovetail’s – and, much to my surprise, I found myself favoring Red Oak’s. Beyond the beer itself, Red Oak’s beer hall is outstanding, making it feel like any given weekend could be an Oktoberfest celebration. Their Hummingbird Helles, Noble Pilsner, Bavarian Amber, and Red Oak Oktoberfest are all sold in straightforward 12-ounce six-packs, with simple labels and no-nonsense names – a true testament to letting the beer inside do the talking. I genuinely can’t sing their praises enough.

FAVORITE OTHER HALF BEERS

Stephen: Without a doubt, this is the hardest question for me. If you haven’t noticed by now, I tend to gravitate toward low-ABV beers, lagers, classic styles, and mixed-culture offerings – not exactly what we specialize in here at Other Half DC. That said, a few beers this year still managed to stand out and win me over.

All Fresh Citra Everything was truly on another level. Each year, we receive a relatively small shipment – just over 150 pounds – of freshly processed Citra Cryo. It’s processed frozen, packaged frozen, shipped frozen, and, unfortunately for my friend and coworker Meth this year, dry-hopped while still frozen. The end result was one of the most expressive Citra IPAs we’ve brewed all year: intensely fruit-forward, with an aroma that practically jumped out of the glass.

Another standout was Tour de Juice. I may be slightly biased thanks to its sessionable 5.5% ABV, but this Nectaron-forward “session IPA” genuinely impressed me the first time we brewed it. It wasn’t overly sweet, yet still had a solid body, and it maintained a bright, pleasant stone-fruit aroma throughout. All of that came together to make a very enjoyable – and very drinkable – IPA.

Meth: The Ivy City Vienna Lager we released this fall has been drinking really, really well. I think that one hit its stride – really clean and well rounded. Snaps, our new core lager, is also drinking really well with Motueka and Saphir. It’s got a pretty solid hop character without being over powering, and it’s crisp on the backend. For the haze, I really dig Biere du Freestyle. It’s hopped with Manalita and Motueka – a fun fruit salad in a 6.7% package. 

FAVORITE PLACEs TO DRINK 

Meth: Locally, it’s gotta be both Boundary Stone and Snappy’s Small Bar. The Stone has one of the best pints of Guinness in the city and great people all around, and they’ve always got cans of Busch Light, which makes me so happy. 

Stephen: Given the choice, you’ll usually find me at The Dubliner, working my way through a corned beef sandwich and far too many pints of Guinness – often enough that I barely remember the sandwich or how I ended up next door at Kelly’s for a nightcap of more Guinness.

Sapwood Cellars is another longtime favorite. I didn’t think Sapwood could possibly get any better until a visit this past June, when I discovered they had opened an entire taco restaurant inside the taproom. Needless to say, I found myself indulging in elote corn fritters while sipping on a few pours of Albura Negra. Ever since that visit, I’ve been dreaming about going back and doing the exact same thing all over again.

POSITIVE 2025 TRENDS

Stephen: As an industry, I feel we’re so tangibly close to the death of the smoothie sour. I don’t want to celebrate prematurely, but I’m hopeful we can finally leave one of the most wretched “styles” behind and collectively start making better choices.

On a more serious note, there’s been a noticeable and growing appreciation for classic styles – beers that actually taste like beer. If this trend continues to gain momentum, I think we’ll all be better off for it.

Meth: Lager is back! And it feels like it’s here to stay. It’s been great the past couple of years having more options on at a bar that aren’t big ol’ stouts and IPAs. And I love seeing more breweries delve deeper into historic styles on a more regular basis. Also, it’s been really rad seeing breweries focus less on how many pounds per barrel they can put into a beer and focusing more on how to get the best character out of their hops. The research and new flowable hop products coming out have been super neat!

LESS DESIRABLE 2025 TRENDS

Meth: Why are smoothie sours still a thing? If you have to squeeze the can out, and it comes out the consistency and color of Baja Blast-flavored Velveeta cheese and makes an audible “plop” when it hits the glass, that’s… just gross. 

Stephen: On one hand, I’m not upset about the overall decline in barrel-aged imperial stouts. Much like smoothie sours and hazy IPAs, the style has increasingly drifted toward being sweeter, heavier, and more extreme with each release. That said, I genuinely hope this doesn’t translate into a broader loss of appreciation for barrel-aged beer as a whole. Oak-aged beers – whether sour, stout, or even sessionable – are a beautiful thing and deserve to be valued for the time, effort, and technical skill they require, not for how closely they can resemble a pistachio cheesecake. Fewer adjuncts and more restraint would go a long way toward letting the barrel itself do the talking.

2026 HOPES AND WISHES

Stephen: Looking ahead, I hope that consumers – who ultimately steer this volatile market – continue to dive deeper into classic styles. After all, the world would be a better place with more ESBs in it. I’d love to see more people expand their horizons beyond hazies, smoothie sours, and heavily adjuncted stouts, and instead discover the beauty, sessionability, and individuality found in lagers and other classic styles.

Meth: The Guild’s DC Beer Week used to be one of my favorite times of the year. The events celebrated local beer, but they also brought the brewing community together. Local brewers would hang out and catch up and talk shop. It truly was such a fun time. I would love to see something similar come back! 

BEST LOCAL BEER

I’ve been a huge fan of Wheatland Spring and their estate brewery concept since day one. Starting a brewery is already a challenge. Starting an estate brewery? That takes a rare mix of toughness, resilience, principle, and maybe just a touch of madness. John and Bonnie embody all of that in the best possible way.One beer that really stood out to me this year is their Moin, a German Pils made with 100% Virginia-grown grist. The balance between hoppiness and maltiness is dialed in from start to finish. After one, I immediately want another… and another. It’s the kind of beer that reminds you why local ingredients and thoughtful brewing matter.

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN BEERS

Schilling brewed a special commemorative batch of Alexandr to celebrate the beer’s 10th anniversary, and it absolutely blew me away. I’ve always been a fan of the original, but this edition took it to another level, showcasing the nuance of whole-leaf hops and the subtle depth of the malt with incredible craftsmanship. It’s the kind of beer that rewards slow sipping, especially when poured from a LUKR faucet. Elegant, expressive, and perfectly executed.

FAVORITE sojourn BEERs

I’m very proud of how both Ten (Czech pale lager) and Pettinga (Bavarian pils) have evolved this year. With Josh Chapman taking over Sojourn’s brewhouse, he fine-tuned the recipes, and it shows. Ten is now a crispier, more crushable lager with just enough bready malt character to give it satisfying depth. Pettinga really came alive, too. The noble hops pop more now, and the finish is crisper and drier. It’s everything I wanted from a Bavarian pils. Both are now the kind of lagers I’ve always dreamed of pouring.

FAVORITE PLACES TO DRINK

Hands down, my favorite new spot is Eebee’s Corner Bar, opened by my good friend Emily Brown. The vibe is killer, the food and cocktails are dialed in, and the beer selection is top notch. The best part (OK, one of them)? For just $8, you can get 10oz pours of both Schilling Alexandr and Sojourn Midnight. An absolute steal. Outside of that, Snallygaster continues to be the best beer fest in the region. Amazing beer, great people, and the kind of energy that reminds you why we love this industry.

POSITIVE 2025 TREND

The growing appreciation for lagers is a trend I’m fully behind. More brewers are giving them the time and respect they deserve, and more drinkers are starting to understand and seek out the subtlety and skill behind them. It’s not just hype, it’s progress.Another positive trend: More “sought-after” beers are making their way to Northern Virginia. Whether it’s Perennial’s BA Abraxas, The Alchemist’s Heady Topper and Focal Banger, Lawson’s Sip of Sunshine, or Toppling Goliath’s IPAs and stouts, we’re seeing better access to iconic beers. Anytime great beer becomes more available to passionate drinkers, that’s a win in my book.

LESS-DESIRABLE 2025 TREND

I’m still scratching my head over the non-alcoholic beer trend. If I don’t want alcohol, I’ll have water or seltzer. No judgment, but it’s just not for me.

On a more serious note, it was tough watching so many great breweries close this year. The industry is shifting fast, and the squeeze is real. I hope we see a bounce-back for the passionate, quality-driven producers who are struggling right now.

2026 HOPES AND WISHES

2025 was a year of contraction for the craft beer industry – a period of regrouping, consolidation, pivots, and hard decisions. Looking ahead, I’m hopeful that 2026 brings a renewed recognition that beer isn’t just a beverage; it’s a social connector and a catalyst for conversation, connection, and community.

I’d love to see breweries continue evolving into true hospitality spaces – not just where beer is made, but where people gather, share moments, and feel a sense of place.

And, as always, I’ll be doing my part in 2026 to promote non-non-alcoholic beers. Let’s make that a trend again.

best local beers

I’m partially biased, but we brewed a French pilsner in collaboration with Elder Pine called Knotted Amongst the Trees that was exceptional. Hope they bring it back again!I also spend a lot of time at Sapwood Cellars and just always enjoy both the Albura Lager and Albura Negra. Pairs well with tacos!

best OUT-OF-TOWN BEERs 

We worked at a festival this summer thrown by our friends at Roadmap Brewing in San Antonio, and they have been making some exceptional lagers. They won a GABF gold for their Alright Alright Alright Pilsner – which is fantastic – as is a brand-new Japanese rice lager called Road Less Traveled.I always love some good hops, and the new-to-me brewery that really impressed me this year was Freak Folk out of Waterbury Vermont. Exceptionally soft and flavorful IPAs that truly stand out.

FAVORITE crooked crab BEERS

All of them! But if I am forced to pick, one beer I am particularly proud of is our Pils Boh Baggins Bohemian pilsner. This year, the lager became a core/year-round beer for us. And, after a few years of making it, we focused on really dialing it in and making it exceptionally flavorful and crispy. It’s firing on all cylinders right now. Nothing beats having a pint in our taproom and seeing the lacing on the glass and the bubbles from the nucleation!

We’ve also made quite a few banger IPAs. One of my favorites was Juicenado X, a hazy triple IPA that, even at 10.5%, tasted like a sub-7% beer.

Lastly, fall is my favorite beer season, and I always want to shout out our Crabtoberfest märzen, Das Crabbe festbier, and Snow Crab winter lager. All three are exceptional and delicious for different reasons. Great time of year to be a beer drinker!

FAVORITE PLACES TO DRINK

I always love festivals (shout out Snallygaster!), but my favorite place to drink beer this year was a cheesy one – it’s with friends. Whether that be in our taproom, at my house, or at a destination somewhere. Beer is meant to be shared with friends. Beer is meant to bring people together. I love getting out and socializing and sharing a beer and sharing an experience with other people, and I was lucky enough to share quite a few beers with many amazing people in 2025!

POSITIVE 2025 TRENDs

People coming to the taproom! Brewery programming in 2025 was a big win for us, and we saw more and more people come out for not just beer but also the experiences. We’ve done both small and large programming events with great success all around. It’s great seeing people come through our taproom and enjoying Crooked Crab. It’s also been great seeing people increasingly gravitate towards lagers and lighter styles. Our tap list is the most diverse it’s ever been, all thanks to educated consumers choosing to drink lagers and lighter malt-forward styles we otherwise wouldn’t brew!

LESS-DESIRABLE 2025 TRENDs

People drinking less beer. It feels like not only has there been a push on health consciousness, but people are drinking more beer alternatives. Ready-to-drink cocktails and THC/CBD beverages, among other options, are more readily available than ever and are competing with craft beer on shelves. It’s great for consumers but less than desirable for breweries.

2026 HOPES AND WISHES

I hope beer consumption across the country ticks upwards in 2026. I hope people continue to drink more lagers and interesting styles of beer. And last but not least, I hope to share more beer with all of you in 2026.

BEST LOCAL BEERs 

Henceforth opened a beautiful spot on H Street, and I was happy to get to see the brewhouse when I went to visit. Everything I had was great, but their Coal Miner’s Daughter Grisette was particularly striking. A not-often-seen style, a low-ABV beer, packed full of flavor and nuance, and just super easy drinking. 

Port City Brewing did a few batches of their porter on coffee – different coffee roasters for the different batches – and every one I had was fantastic. Each batch (I think I tried 3 different ones over the year) had subtle differences, but all were built on that great, full porter base. Also, anytime Wheatland Spring makes something new I know I want it, and Moin was that beer for me this year. 

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN BEERs

We were impressed with the whole lineup from Everywhere and, in particular, the Human Robot collab zwickelbier Robotic Humans. Cellarmaker sent some of the best West Coast IPAs we had in 2025. We also discovered Wayward Lane this year and were especially taken with their coffee stout, Hollow Ground. Speaking of warming beers, Schilling’s draft-only Georg Munich Dunkel was incredible – so balanced and complex.

FAVORITE brew shop COLLAB

Our tenth birthday is coming up next month, and we just brewed a West Coast pilsner with Lost Generation for the anniversary. We’re aiming for the dank side of the West Coast spectrum, and we’re sure the Lost Gen team nailed it. Plus, we were so happy to get to make a beer with such great people. Jared, Anne, and Cody took great care of us on collab day and are running such a wonderful team of people.

This year, we also launched a pop-up partnership with Wheatland Spring. We’ll have everything they have on the farm here at The Brew Shop. We hear often that people love Wheatland Spring but it’s so far away and they wish they could get more of the beer here locally. Well, now they can! John and Bonnie are such good humans and we’re humbled to get to take on a project like this with them.

FAVORITE PLACEs TO DRINK 

2025 has been a year of going straight to the breweries for me. Nothing captures a brewery’s beer so well as consuming it right there in their home. There’s something a little magical about taprooms and knowing that every piece of how the beer is being presented to me is exactly what the brewer and brewery wanted it to be. But we’d be remiss to not mention Eebee’s Corner Bar. When someone as smart and intentional as Emily opens a spot of their own, you take note. This is a person who knows this industry and cares so much about the people who make it, on both sides of the counter – and that shows in a million different ways at Eebee’s. The beer menu is as good as the cocktail menu, is as good as the wine menu, is as good as the food menu. Here’s Emily Brown over here showing us that yes, you can do it all. 

POSITIVE 2025 TRENDs 

Lower ABV! This year, we saw a big growth in demand for what we’ll call more-reasonable ABV. Not necessarily all the way down to the “session” beers of old, but more beers in that 6% range instead of 8%. A lot of that seems to be borne out of people wanting to try more different things. The thought of: “Well, if I’m going to try three or four different beers, I want to be able to enjoy them and still get to work tomorrow.” Another thing we’ve loved is the developments in hop science. We say this not as brewers, but as retailers and end consumers ourselves. People are really enjoying what can be imparted into a beer from things like Hop Kief, lupulin powder, and biotransformation from a dry hop. Consumers are more educated than ever, and they’re so excited to get to taste what new science can bring.

LESS-DESIRABLE 2025 TRENDs 

New breweries debuting in market with old beer. We saw multiple out-of-town breweries launch into the state this year and send months-old IPAs on that first drop. Obviously, we always want things as fresh as possible, but when you are launching into a new market, don’t you want to put your best foot forward? It feels like a lack of respect for our market and the consumers here, and makes it seem like this new market is just a dumping ground. 

2026 HOPES AND WISHES

It’s been a very tumultuous year – for craft beer, for the food and beverage industry, and particularly for the DC area. We’re really hoping for some stability in the new year. How we get there is anybody’s guess, but a little bit of steadying would be so lovely. As business owners, we both love and hate it – stasis is never good, but sometimes it’s nice when things are a bit calmer and more predictable – but, more than that, we can see that our customers are really craving stability. Coming up on ten years now, it’s been very cool to see the shop transform from the fun, new thing to something people have come to rely on as a steady hand. We feel like a part of the community and a comforting, safe space for all. We joke that we’re part-time therapists, but that’s definitely part of the job for anyone in the service industry, and that’s part of the magic and what makes it special and connective. So yeah, we’re seeing a want and a need for some stability and we’d love to see that come quickly in 2026.

BEST LOCAL BEER

Mayan Monkey Brewing and Waredaca Brewing collaborated on a fantastic smoked helles lager called La Lumbre. It’s very hard to find local smoked beers, especially ones brewed with unique ingredients like mulberry-smoked pilsner malt. 

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN BEER

New Image and Bierstadt Lagerhaus recently collaborated on a smoked bock called Invisible Smoke. This beer is perfect for the cold weather, and seeing more smoked beers pop up around the country warms my heart.

FAVORITE elder pine BEER

Our year-round flagship pilsner, EP Pils, has been dialed in to the max. It’s hard to believe EP Pils has been around for nearly three years now, and its popularity and overall movement continues to grow. My personal favorite Elder Pine beer is Empyreumatic, our once-a-year smoked helles lager brewed with Lapsang Souchong (pine wood-smoked black tea). The next batch of Empyreumatic will be released in March 2026, and I’m already counting down the days. 

FAVORITE PLACE TO DRINK

My favorite place will always be the seating area in our forest at Elder Pine, but I spent over half of 2025 replacing the rotten deck at my home with a paver patio, so more often than not, I can be found there with a lager or scotch in my hand gazing into the fire pit.

positive 2025 trends

Lagers appear to still be on the rise as more beer drinkers wise up to the fact that “juicy” IPAs and smoothie sours are basically just liquid sugar. Drink more lager!

LESS-DESIRABLE 2025 TRENDs

Well, brewers are still putting ice cream and flavorings in their beers, so there’s that. But what’s far less desirable is how many breweries are closing due to the current economy. Seeing colleagues that poured their heart and soul into their breweries just to have no choice but to close is incredibly saddening.

2026 Hopes and Wishes

Let’s hope the economy gets back on track so we can stop seeing a new closure every week. I also hope consumers continue to support their favorite breweries by visiting their taprooms whenever possible. Buying beer directly from the source is incredibly helpful to the businesses, and we love having face-to-face time!

BEST LOCAL BEERS

Nepenthe’s Mallet was something I tried this past spring, and it really surprised me. An American light lager done with only 2-row American malt and Cascade hops at an approachable price point? Sign me up! It is super crushable with refreshing citrus notes and a clean malt profile. Plus, it has a cute little crab on the can! I love Nepenthe’s beer in general, so I hope to see more accounts in DC pick them up.

Guilford Hall’s Helles – and most of the beers I had there, in general – also really impressed me. Guilford Hall is stumbling distance to Penn Station in Baltimore, so a quick jaunt up is worth the fare on the MARC train. 

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN BEER 

For this year’s Oyster Wars, I got to bring in the Party Eyes Kolsch and Brain Bypass Helles by Brewbilt out of Nevada City, CA. Their head brewer, Austen Conn, is a great friend from when we worked at Wheatland Spring together. I am never not impressed by his beers, and it was such an honor to bring some in and share with the community! It sold out so fast, but I was luckily able to stash a couple cans for myself and a couple friends.

Convivium by Sgraffito Beer was a highlight from Logjammin’ IV up in Philly. I am really excited to see what they do next, and their vintage, one-of-a-kind merch is killer. I see big things for them in the future!

FAVORITE salt line pour

Gansett Bohemian Pils was formerly not available outside of Providence, but at the suggestion of Legends (now Chesapeake) rep Sam Ridder-Beardsley, Narragansett provided us a LUKR faucet to pour it. Gansett’s rep Raf went to the ends of the earth to get it here and installed, which was a gamble: It may or may not have taken a lot of professional and emotional manipulation to get it approved by our facilities team and ownership. But they all ended up loving it, and now drink it every time they visit. 

FAVORITE PLACES TO DRINK 

I was once again able to make a stop at Delaware Supply in Albany. It’s a quaint little beer bar dedicated to craft, and the owner, Lauren, is just absolutely lovely! It’s the kind of warm and inviting place I would be at all the time if I lived anywhere close. If you make it there, grab a seat in the sunny window. If you visit on a Sunday, get the jambon buerre and a slow pour. 

Honorable mention to Shelter at The Roost. Kurt is the best bartender in the city IMHO, despite his terrible dad jokes. But above all: Eebee’s Corner Bar, obviously.

POSITIVE 2025 TRENDS 

I’ve seen a few Michelin-starred and Michelin-rated places begin to take their beer programs more seriously. Jont and Oyster Oyster in DC come to mind, and I think (hope!) it will become a lasting trend. Few places of that caliber have beer programs commensurate with their food/wine/cocktails/spirits, which has always been disappointing given the pair-ability of beer and food. Who the hell wants to sip on an old ass Stella Artois (no shade!) when I could have something to match the character and care of the food that the staff has been obsessing over for hours and hours. I will also add: the continued popularity of Czech-style beers and pours from LUKR faucets. The nuance and skill it takes to get it right is moving the needle on proper beer service, and it’s also a great gateway for non-craft beer people to learn about foam and proper beer service.

LESS-DESIRABLE 2025 TRENDs

Wholesaler consolidation and franchise laws continue to hurt small breweries and businesses. Wholesalers, in general, are a critical part of the industry (no one would have survived COVID without them), and there are quite a few I truly love and value (shout out to Allied and Reverie!), but seeing predatory and monopolistic practices from the big guys is always such a bummer. There are breweries still fighting to get out of often-lifelong contracts with wholesalers who do nothing to serve them or their customers. On the retail side, you also get a bit backed into a corner when you want to purchase a beer (from a local brewery, say) but the wholesaler that carries it caters to large conglomerate breweries and large chain retailers. In the end, the service and pricing are compromised instead. I could pick this apart for days and burn some real bridges (perhaps I already have!), but I will leave it at that. Oh, and preparing to make some real enemies here, but: West Coast pilsners. GTFOOH with that nonsense.

2026 HOPES AND WISHES

I am manifesting a resurgence of English-style beers. I can feel it coming! I think it complements the trend of lower-abv beers and a renewed interest in craft malts and grains. Plus, English beer is rich with variety. I am a brown ale girly, through and through, but I also fuck so hard with a brett porter, and the English just never miss with the herbal nuance of a pale ale. I know people will just lose their minds over a good dark mild, too.

BEST LOCAL BEER 

Sapwood Cellars’ Secret Sauce. This was my favorite hazy IPA I had in 2025, and likely my favorite beer of 2025. It harnessed the power of hop oil chemistry in such a remarkable manner, blending hot-side additions of hops high in the hop-derived ester 2-MIB (supercharged stone fruit – think more apricot/peach, less plum/cherry), with the complementary free thiol punch of Nelson Sauvin. Perhaps it was the particular lot of Nelson utilized, but the beer did not possess an excess of cattiness (often attributed to the free thiol 4MMP), nor did it ever come close to OG (onion/garlic) levels of dank. In another way, Secret Sauce is, by its very nature, complimentary, both in terms of conceptualization and execution. This is the type of beer that makes me want to be a better brewer.

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN BEER

Floodland Brewing’s Honey Punch, 2023 Vintage. I cannot remember the last time I had a beer with such astounding balance. I am so jealous of the deft nature of this beer as an experiential entity; all of its parts are inextricably bound to each other, and when a sip is consumed, each displays raucous intensity while somehow creating profound flavor synergy. Aromatically, pluots scream out of the glass, but present as moderating, seamless integration on the palate. I do not have a keen interest in making this style of mixed-fermentation sour beer, but it has nonetheless awakened my curiosity as to how I can apply its lessons to other, often disparate styles.

FAVORITE jailbreak BEERS

First, Hidden Paintbox, a collaboration with Port City Brewing (100% Nelson Sauvin West Coast Pilsner). For me, summer trips to San Diego are opportunities for beach family time and beer inspiration. My four-year-old daughter loves pizza, so I ended up taking her to North Park Pizza Shop and promptly had my mind blown with the hop saturation of their West Coast IPAs and West Coast pilsners. After that day, I did all the research I could on how I could pull this off back at Jailbreak. Adam from Port City is a longtime friend, and we’ve been meaning to brew a beer together for years. I wanted to conceive of a beer that married Jailbreak’s approach to hopping with the longstanding Port City lager tradition. We used floor-malted Bohemian pilsner malt, decoction, and spunding, juxtaposed with four different Nelson products (T90, Cryo, Hyperboost, and Hop Kief) to approximate what I experienced in San Diego. We were fortunate to utilize a very special lot of Nelson Sauvin from Freestyle Hops that allowed us to experience the hop in full technicolor, and I could not be more proud of how the beer turned out.

Second, a To-Be-Named Tripel Barrel-Aged English Barleywine. If I could create a heaven where all conceivable dreams are fulfilled, it would be in a barrel cellar where I could just blend barrels all day and never again worry about the supposed inevitability of brewing “core” beers. Brewing beers designed for extended time in oak spirit barrels is the truest expression of my brewing passion. Right now, I have a single Willett Family Reserve bourbon barrel housing an English barleywine base that previously spent time in a 4-year Willett bourbon barrel and, before that, a 6-year Willett bourbon barrel. Portions of the original barrel stock of Turning Truth Tables (a barrel-aged English barleywine collab with Sapwood Cellars) eventually made it into this single barrel, and I’m astounded at the complexity it’s gained between 15 months (when it was not chosen for the collaboration) and 31 months (now) in oak. There is a very good chance that this beer will be released in 2026, and I couldn’t be more excited to share it with folks.

FAVORITE PLACEs TO DRINK 

Monk’s Cafe in Philadelphia – the best bar in the country. I had just finished my first marathon, limped up to the only open seat at the bar, and promptly ordered a days-old draft pour of Russian River Pliny the Elder. In that circumstance, it’s virtually impossible to envision a more appropriate celebration.

POSITIVE 2025 TRENDs 

I know that I’ve mentioned the popularity of this style previously, but I’m still impressed with the continuing “emergence” and/or evolution of what is deemed West Coast pilsner. After the incredibly positive experience brewing Hidden Paintbox, I was blown away by the extent to which lager fermentation-derived sulfur dioxide keeps an iron grasp on precious hop aromatics. In terms of tools that brewers can use to extend the shelf life of dry-hopped beers, it seems like a trend worthy of serious consideration.

LESS-DESIRABLE 2025 TRENDs

One of the more infuriating things I’ve seen this year is not nearly enough breweries have recognized the inevitable maturation of markets they operate in; far too many beer folks are more concerned with nostalgic rehashing of tired ideas for beers or with business models that have devolved into complete obsolescence. At this point, everyone knows that consumers are generally drinking less and, within that context, drinking less beer, if they are drinking at all. In some ways, market saturation can be better understood as idea or style saturation, and that “saturation” has grossly overstayed its welcome. As an industry, storytelling needs to become both more commonplace and more compelling; only then do we have a chance of creating authentic differentiation. Make it matter to people who would otherwise not care.

2026 HOPES AND WISHES

I’m anxious to discover whatever appears as the new craft beer zeitgeist, something that travels beyond mere popularity, something that builds a cultural apparatus with staying power, something with direct, impactful meaning. This could physically manifest as the meaningful inclusion of marginalized voices, a novel business practice, or ingenious new style creation, but I am spiritually desperate for it – alongside everyone else, I hope to find it.

BEST LOCAL BEER

Testudo by Union Brewing. I had this one for the first time at a Maryland Terps game – a solid, tasty lager that paired perfectly with the setting. Sometimes the best beer is the one that fits the moment: hot dogs, sunshine, and a clean, drinkable lager that doesn’t ask for too much attention.

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN BEERs 

Highland Park Brewery’s Timbo Pils. A West Coast pilsner that nailed the balance between assertiveness and drinkability. The Terple variant – brewed with King Louie and Pineapple Express terpenes – took it even further. The terp integration was expressive but controlled, never dominating the base beer. Really impressive work.

George by Hill Farmstead. Brown ale isn’t usually my jam, but this one changed my mind. Exceptionally clean with genuine depth and layering – a reminder that classic styles, when executed at this level, can compete with anything happening in modern brewing.

L’Anglais from Menaud. Discovered this one while in Quebec, and it was a highlight of the trip. A straightforward, well-executed bitter that delivered exactly what the style promises – s refreshing proof that sometimes the simple things done right are all you need.Russian River’s Docta-Ron. A New Zealand IPA honoring hop breeder Dr. Ron Beatson. Having grown up in New Zealand before moving to the U.S. in 2004, this one hit differently – balance and refinement showcasing NZ hops at their best. Russian River continues to set the benchmark, especially in their lagers and hop-forward beers.

FAVORITE new third hill BEERs

Our lagers have taken a step forward this year. Notably, Gesundheit (our German pils) and Day Without Sirens (our helles). We’ve been incorporating decoction mashing into the program, and while it’s labor intensive, the payoff in malt complexity and depth is undeniable.

On the IPA front, Visionary – hopped with select Citra, Mosaic, and lot-select Freestyle Hops Nelson Sauvin – hit all the right notes: hoppiness, flavor, aroma bomb, and malt balance working together.The project I’m most excited about right now is a single-decoction rauchbier collaboration with my old mate Johnathon [Reeves] and the team at Silver Branch. It’s currently in fermentation, but the early signs are excellent – this one’s shaping up to be something special.

FAVORITE PLACES TO DRINK

Santa Monica’s Library Ale House reliably delivers well-kept beer in a setting that lets you actually enjoy it.

Monk’s Cafe continues to impress with a great beer list and food selection. It made for a solid visit with the kids in tow – proof that a serious beer bar can still be welcoming and fun.

The backyard deserves mention too. Good mates, fresh beer, good times – that’s what it’s all about.

POSITIVE 2025 TRENDs

More west coast Pilsners showing up on tap lists.

Real attention being paid to malt-forward lagers – nuance and intention instead of going through the motions.

Decoction mashing gaining traction among brewers willing to invest the time for what it adds to the final beer.

LESS-DESIRABLE 2025 TREND

The continued chase for novelty through over-flavoring and gimmicky additions. Too many beers sacrificing balance and drinkability for short-term wow factor. I’d rather see brewers trust their fundamentals and let process-driven quality do the work.

2026 HOPES AND WISHES

I want to see more breweries committing to thoughtfully made lagers and investing in time-intensive techniques, even when they’re less efficient.

At Third Hill, we’ll keep refining our lager program – building on decoction and other traditional methods to create beers with real depth and connection to brewing history. Process with purpose, not just performance.

BEST LOCAL BEERS

My new favorite local brewery would have to be Lost Generation. Great beers and great vibes every time I’m there. 

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN BEERS

My favorite out-of-town beer would have to be anything from New Glarus. My best friend lives in Wisconsin, and every time I go out there it’s all I drink. Still haven’t made it to the actual brewery, but I will for sure make it to Madison next year!

FAVORITE new port city beer

My new favorite Port City beer is our Italian pilsner, Il Palio. It will be released again near the end of December [editor’s note: dropping Friday, 1/2!]. It’s our third time brewing it, and it’s been a big hit past couple years. Be sure to be on the look out for it!

FAVORITE PLACES TO DRINK

My favorite place to drink is still Snappy’s Small Bar! Be on the lookout for their second location. Opening soon!

POSITIVE 2025 TRENDs 

The trend I liked the most this year was desire for more dank beers. I also love everyone coming back to the lagers. We are currently working on a new one, so be sure to be on the lookout for that! All I can say right now is get ready for March.

LESS-DESIRABLE 2025 TRENDs 

Hazy beers. Let’s get away from haze and go clear!

2025 HOPES & WISHES

In 2026, I want us to keep pushing forward. Building a bigger and stronger community. Keep brewing unto others! At the end of the day, hard work does pay off, and we should keep pushing our selves to be the best we can be! Let’s keep going!

BEST LOCAL BEER

Lost Generation’s Early Dusk. I really enjoyed this märzen, along with everything else I’ve had from Lost Gen.

Right Proper’s Shortest Night. I’m always a fan of Josh Chapman’s beers, including this Baltic porter and now the ones he’s making at Sojourn Fermentory in Suffolk.

Ocelot’s 10-year anniversary beers were all great.

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN BEERs

Cushwa’s Flow Deluxe West Coast pilsner. Great execution on a style that sometimes gets fumbled.De La Senne’s Jambe-de-Bois tripel. My favorite beer I had this year. They do Belgian-style beers that are somehow very clean and have a great bitterness.
Sierra Nevada’s Premium Pils. All the class and polish you’d expect from them. A good beer with national distribution.

FAVORITE crooked run BEER 

Sticky Rice, our Berliner with mango and coconut. Years ago, an owner of another brewery with a lot of momentum told me, “At some point, you’ll find a break-out hit.”  I thought our market was pretty well established and wasn’t sure if anything would really garner much attention this far in, but lo and behold, Sticky Rice has become a latter-day success for us. Recently, it was picked up by Trader Joe’s, and it moves really well at our place and elsewhere in distro, too. The ingredients just work. I even had another brewery owner who isn’t fond of sours tell me he liked this one a lot!

FAVORITE PLACE TO DRINK

It’s kind of a lame answer, but our DC spot. It’s been great to see the enthusiasm for our restaurant there, J&J Pizza, especially compared to the previous restaurant that we licensed to handle the food. I worked a lot in designing the menu, so it’s unsurprisingly all food I really like. Pizza and wings go so well with beer. Also, always High Side in Fairfax.

POSITIVE 2025 TRENDS

Quality hops. This past year, we contracted with Freestyle Hops – the venerable New Zealand hops farm – and with Haas for hop selection. Both Freestyle and Haas are super impressive with what they offer. Your IPAs are only as good as the hops you have access to, but it’s become much easier to get more consistently good stuff, as well as the latest-and-greatest newer hops and products.

LESS-DESIRABLE 2025 TREND

Tariffs. Especially on ingredients we don’t even produce in the U.S. 

2026 HOPES AND WISHES

Generally, I hope people get out and drink beer more with their friends. Life is too short to spend it all on your phone.

For Crooked Run specifically, location #4!  Nothing is signed yet, but it’s looking good.

BEST LOCAL BEERS

I’m always loving the great beers coming out of Port City Brewing. Coffee Porter and Il Palio Italian Pilsner were standouts to me this year. Also, I’ve loved everything I’ve had from another Alexandria brewery, Mieza Blendery. They’re making some very high-level oak-aged, blended wild ales.

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN BEERS

Well, I’m not breaking any news here, but Russian River is really, really good. I had the chance to visit the Windsor brewery on a trip earlier this year, and we loved every last beer we tried. And then, on the much smaller end of the spectrum, Burgaw Brewing, a neighborhood brewpub located about 30 miles north of Wilmington, North Carolina. Great beers, great food, and good people! 

FAVORITE right proper BEER

The brew team made a West Coast pilsner called Scotty Doesn’t Know. It’s named for our brewer, Scott Lassetter, who firmly believes that anything dry-hopped cannot be called a pilsner. We are all really loving it. Except for Scott. 

FAVORITE PLACES TO DRINK

Everywhere that pours Right Proper beer is my favorite! Pandering aside, I find myself most at Belle Haven Pizzeria and Southside 815, both located in Alexandria (and both carrying Right Proper beer).  

POSITIVE 2025 TRENDS

For beer styles, it’s great to see more lagers and West Coast IPAs being brewed. For the industry, I love seeing new innovation, whether it’s a unique style trend or a new product format. Sierra Nevada Pilsner in 8oz cans comes to mind.

LESS-DESIRABLE 2025 TRENDS

Hazy IPAs, double hazy IPAs, lactose IPAs, AI art, novelty flavors, “juice,” “fire,” sales team layoffs, and sober months.

2026 HOPES AND WISHES

I am very excited for all of the new things we’ve got planned at Right Proper in 2026. New beers, new artists we’re working with, and a new location in Eckington!

BEST LOCAL BEER 

This year, I’ve probably done the most exploration of breweries outside of DC. It’s kind of hard for me to nail down one favorite beer, but in my local travels, I particularity enjoyed Maryland breweries. Checkerspot in Baltimore comes to mind. Elder Pine isn’t new, but they always surprise me with heat. I’m really digging Sapwood Cellars’ clean, flavor-forward approaches to their beers without mudding up the style. Also, Richmond’s Brainstorm is a cool twist to the shared space model, and I was really digging their IPAs and dark beers.

BEST OUT-OF-TOWN beers

Every time I go out of town, I try to find new local breweries to hit. Shamelessly, I don’t think I’ve been to many new places this year. I tend to revert back to old faithfuls. With that being said, there were a few out-of-town brands that I’d heard of but hadn’t really got a chance to explore until lately, namely Eckhardt Beer, Wild East Brewing, and Back Home – all out of New York. I know I’m late as hell to Wild East, but everything I tried on their menu was fire, from the IPAs to the  schwarzbier to the saisons. I like that Eckhardt are coming out of the gate with more traditional beer styles. And I finally got a chance to tap in with Zahra from Back Home. I like her approach to incorporating her culture into a brew with sourced ingredients. The Sumac Gose and Persian Lager were very refreshing. 

Also, shout out to other good beers pumping out of Cerebral in Denver and Piece in Chicago. I think it’s really cool what Garage Beer in Barcelona (not Ohio) is doing with the various versions of their sour hazy IPA. 

FAVORITE soul mega BEERs

We’re always looking for production efficiency while maintaining or improving quality. But I will say as the company grows, we have been really locking in on ensuring that our products are the highest quality possible. With Worldwide, we’ve achieved the perfect balance of citrus, and we’ve dialed in a hop combo on Metropolis to punch up on aroma while keeping it super crushable. Shout out to the product dev team!As far as new Soul Mega collabs, this year was mega and super fun! I finally got to work with the other black-owned brands in Maryland and Virginia for the Chocolate City Porter collab hosted at Third Hill. Another long-overdue, bucket list item for me was the Bluejacket collab Distortion to Static, a New Zealand pilsner with Garston Hops. We collaborated with Liquid Intrusion on the Genetically Unapologetic Belgian tripel – dangerously crushable for 9%. That one was super important because the beer was inspired by LIBCO co-founder Jasmine Dill’s deeply personal health journey and sought to bring awareness to those who have been misdiagnosed.

We got a chance to work with one of the GOATs, Troegs, and Zero Day on an altbier called Alternative Galaxy that we debuted at the Barrel & Flow this. And we closed out the year with the homies – and also GOATs – Green Bench down in St. Pete for the Soul Selection West Coast Pale, which we brewed with Fonio and the Michael James Jackson Haas hop blend. Looking back, this year was pretty cool, and I think it amplified what the Soul Mega brand is all about: a community centered around the pursuit of passion and dedication.

FAVORITE PLACES TO DRINK

Oh man, what a loaded question. I have a few favorite places in DC to enjoy pints with my friends – and sometimes alone. Gold Clover is the home front and staple – no frills, just vibes, sports, and combos. Other places include Lost Generation for great brews, Boundary Stone, Pub and the People, Eebee’s Corner Bar, Churchkey, Shelter, Proper Bar, Shanklin Hall, and Sost. MEGAFEST is always a great time to try a good variety of beers. Shout out to DC Brau, Port City, Allagash, Lost Gen, Liquid Intrusion, Black Beauty, Bluejacket, Dope Cider, and Paradise Cove for keeping me and the guests “festive” this year. As Is in NYC is also a great place to grab a pint, along with Blind Tiger and TØRST in Brooklyn.

POSITIVE 2025 TRENDS

Locally, I think a positive trend is expansion. There are a number of local breweries who are expanding their footprint and/or production capacity, so that gives me hope – from both a business perspective and as a fan – that they are prepping for continued success. 

This might be a hot take, but a national positive-ish trend I’ve noticed this year is the acknowledgement and discussions around the state of our industry and just how hard it is to operate in current micro/macro environments. With the overall industry in the mature phase, I think it’s important for industry participants and leaders to have open and honest conversations as we navigate the waters together.  I’m also seeing more brand collabs within and outside of the industry which is also very cool.

LESS-DESIRABLE 2025 TREND

Current draft distribution performance off premise for local quality craft beer does not align with my personal and professional taste.

2026 HOPES AND WISHES

My hopes and wishes for 2026 is that macroeconomic pressures will ease for suppliers and consumers and that messaging and promotion of craft beer returns to “the craft” of manufacturing high-quality beverages. In terms of Soul Mega, we are looking forward to expanding our distribution footprint regionally and excited to roll out a few new products to the market.  We’re also looking forward to a year of kick-ass events!

POSITIVE 2025 TRENDs

I’ve often found in life that the pivots, intersections, and cruxes of trajectories are generally not identified until well after they have happened. Just like the Talking Heads song, we may find ourselves in positions where we ask, “Well, how did I get here?” 

2025 seemed to be such a year for the brewery. Our industry appears to be going through changes that can seem healthy, chaotic, necessary, or “corrective.” Whatever adjective you choose to describe the vicissitudes of this movement will be different. But they are happening. I am mentioning this because my whole perception of craft beer and the culture and community of craft beer has been tempered by these changes.

Pen Druid had the distinct honor of hosting some really incredible breweries this year at our annual food and beer events: Yeaster and End of Oktoberfest. With many breweries closing around us, I am happy to see that we still have really solid brewers putting out great beers. Give me a brown ale! Give me a pale ale or a blonde! 

This year marked our first year all of our beers were carbonated using “spiesing,” whereby the beer is put straight into kegs while there is still a bit of fermentation left and that action promotes the carbonation. The bubbles are even tinnier, the foam is more structurally solid, and we can build really beautiful foam castles for our customers.