TEN NEW BREWERIES OPENED IN 2020
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| Bud and Greta Mohr at Idaho's newest brewery |
by Bob Hubler
The Year 2020 will always remembered as the COVID Year. The year that the government shut down small businesses to attempt to control the COVID Pandemic. Many small businesses did not survive the shutdowns and there will be more that will fail in 2021 due to the impact of the COVID Pandemic. Please remember to support your local breweries!
SURPRISINGLY TEN NEW IDAHO BREWERIES OPENED IN 2020
100 Eight Twelve Main Brewery in Caldwell
101 Groundwork Brewing in Lewiston
102 Off The Rails Brewing in Pocatello
103 Loose Screw Beer Co. in Garden City (formerly Bella Brewing)
104 Trails End Brewery in Coeur d'Alene
105 Spring Creek Brewing Company North of Eagle
106 Blue Pit Brewing in Mountain Home
107 Idaho Farm House Ales in Shelley (No Tap House)
108 Star Route Brewing in Pocatello
109 Twisted District Brew Co. in Garden City
The numbering system above is based on the number of total breweries opened in Idaho during the Craft Brewing Era. Idaho started 2020 with 73 active brewers and ended the year with 81 active breweries for a net gain of 8 breweries. Two Breweries closed during the year and Bella Brewing added new owners and became Loose Screw Beer Co.
THE LIST OF BREWERIES THAT CLOSED IN 2020:
16 Bertram's Salmon Valley Brewing in Salmon
31 Von Scheidt' Brewing in Twin Falls
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SUMMARY OF THE IDAHO BREWERY ACTIVITY IN 2020
The Treasure Valley now has 29 breweries with two more ready to open in 2021, but the biggest brewery boom is in Eastern Idaho where Pocatello now has 4 breweries within one mile of one another. Two years ago, there was only Penny Pink's Portneuf Valley Brewing. Forty five minutes to north, Idaho Falls has 3 breweries and another forty five minutes to the east of Idaho Falls, there are two breweries in Victor and another two breweries in Driggs. Teton County in southeast Idaho can claim the most breweries per capita with a brewery for every 3,000 people.
North Idaho has two new breweries bringing the number of their total breweries to 29 tied for the most with Southwestern Idaho. Lewiston has a brewery again with the addition of Groundwork Brewing. They lost MJ Barley Hoppers in 2018.
Idaho added 75 new breweries in the last decade while closing 15 breweries over the same period. Only 21 breweries open today started pouring their beer before this decade. Idaho has approximately one brewery for every 22,000 people living in Idaho. That puts Idaho in the top ten states by brewery per capita.
The question is "Are there enough breweries in Idaho or are there too many?" I know Eagle needs a brewery and Caldwell could use another Brewery. How about Meridian? I think there is still room for new breweries in the state and I am really looking forward to a new brewery near Melba. Is this the year that it opens?
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CURRENT LIST OF IDAHO BREWERIES
List of Idaho Breweries - Includes a list of every craft beer brewery that has opened in Idaho since Time Batt's Snake River Brewery between Caldwell and Notus. Also includes a complete list of all the breweries that have opened and closed in that time. There is a list of breweries that plan to open in the near future too.
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