Oregon’s craft beer market has gone a little flat.
The number of breweries is at its lowest point in eight years and employment is down, too, amid signs that Oregonians have all the beer they can drink.
“The craft beer industry definitely has had a rough few years,” said Lisa Allen, co-owner and head brewer at McMinnville’s Heater Allen brewery and president of the Oregon Brewers Guild.
Breweries are contending with rising prices for malt, aluminum and many other materials they use to brew and can their beer. They’re also adjusting to an industry that appears to have plateaued after enjoying historic growth during the 2010s.
“We do have a more mature market,” Allen said. “We do have a lot of breweries.”
Craft brewing is one of Oregon’s signature industries thanks to locally grown ingredients and a reputation for stellar quality.
The state brews more than 1 million barrels annually and has close to 300 breweries, according to data from the Brewers Association. The Oregon Employment Department counts 7,600 people working in the state’s breweries and brewpubs.
The trouble is that the industry isn’t growing. Oregon barrel production peaked a decade ago and the number of breweries dropped by 3% last year to 297, the lowest point since 2018.
Nationwide, production of craft beers fell 4% in 2025.
Microbrewery pioneer Rogue Ales & Spirits abruptly closed its Newport brewery and Oregon pubs last fall after years of declining sales. Anheuser-Busch sold 10 Barrel Brewing and Widmer Brothers Brewing in 2023, a sign that big beverage companies wanted less exposure to the craft brew market.
For those who see the (pint) glass as half full, the craft brewing industry has largely recovered from the pandemic and appears broadly stable. It isn’t growing, but it isn’t going stale.
Oregon still has twice the number of craft breweries it had in 2012.
“The craft brewery pioneers could have never imagined that this is where we would have gotten to,” said Matt Gacioch, economist with the Brewers Association in Colorado.
Some big-name Oregon breweries have found new ways to compete, like offering non-alcoholic beers or finding new distribution channels. For example, Costco’s highly regarded Kirkland Signature Helles-Style Lager is brewed by Bend’s Deschutes Brewery.
New breweries face some of the biggest challenges, according to Gacioch, coping with higher borrowing costs and intense competition from established beers.
“The number of breweries opening has plummeted,” he said. “It has really dropped off.”
For new craft brewers to succeed, Allen said they need some way to stand out. Maybe that’s a brewpub with a well-known chef, or a delicious food cart outside the taproom. Or maybe it’s just excellent beer.
“It is a market with a lot of really good beer,” she said, “so you have to prove you can hang with the big guys.”
After a decade of rapid growth, it’s been challenging for Oregon brewers to adapt as the industry nears saturation. But the peaks and valleys that accompanied the pandemic and its aftermath are over, and Allen said that’s put most brewers on a better footing.
“The market has stabilized somewhat,” she said. “People are optimistic. That’s a good sign.”
