The 17 Best Breweries to Watch in 2025

A new year means 365 new days to try new beers and visit breweries new to us. Hopefully, you’ve already checked out everything from “The Juiciest,” our ranking of the best breweries, beers, drinking spots, and more from 2024. Highlights so far have included: “The Best New Breweries of 2024,” “The 11 Best Breweries of 2024,” and “The 19 Best Beers We Drank in 2024.” Since the calendar has officially flipped, we’re now turning our attention to the year ahead, starting with “The Best Breweries to Watch in 2025.”

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This is a unique list for us, one focused on breweries whose beers we had the chance to try once or twice and want to drink more of this year.

Or maybe we saw a lot of buzz about them on Instagram and made a note to reach out and get some beers in the office.

Perhaps we heard about them through friends or the grapevine, adding them to our lists of breweries to explore in 2025.

This year, in particular, we’re pulling data from our friends at Untappd, who ran a first-ever series called the Untappd Community Awards, which celebrated the thousands of great breweries and beers rated as best-in-class by Untappd’s eleven million users last year! Shout out to Hop Culture and Untappd Social Media Manager Magic Muncie, who put together all of the incredible content you’ll read below that includes Untappd data on breweries in this list.

Last year, for the first time, we began including international breweries in our rankings, and we’re going to expand on that even further this year. We’re splitting this piece into two categories—United States and International—because we realize that there are breweries doing extremely exciting things all over the world.

TL;DR – These are breweries that are already doing great things, and we’re excited to see them do even better things. Whatever the reason, we have our eyes locked on these places in 2025.

The breweries on this list are presented in no particular order. We acknowledge that this list is subjective. Quite simply, the Hop Culture team thinks these are the best breweries to watch in 2025. And we encourage you to do the same.

But do you know of a brewery that should be on this list? We’d love to hear your thoughts. Slide into our DMs at @hopculturemag and let us know!

The Best Breweries to Watch in 2025

United States

Forager Brewery

Rochester, MN

We already named Forager’s ROMP as one of the “19 Best Beers We Drank in 2024,” but as a brewery they’ve really excelled.

Currently the highest-rated brewery in Minnesota on Untappd, Forager has been slaying the craft beer game since first founded in 2015 in Rochester (about an hour and a half south of Minneapolis).

Although Forager has been around for almost a decade, they continue to crush it, and since they’re located in the Midwest, maybe they aren’t getting as much attention as they deserve.

We’d like to change that because we have the data to back it up.

With 200k+ check-ins and 860 beers listed on Untappd, Forager maintains an astronomical 4.22 overall rating.

In the Untappd Community Awards, the brewery racked up eighteen golds, ranging from imperial stouts and American wild ales to barleywines and IPAs.

Chances are, if you know where Rochester is at all, it’s because of the very famous Mayo Clinic. Well, now you can get to know the Southern Minnesota city for something a little more.

You may need to travel a little to discover Forager, but trust us, it’s worth the adventure.

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Lua Brewing

Des Moines, IA

One of the biggest pieces of constructive feedback we receive from fans is that we don’t feature enough breweries in the Midwest. It just so happens that most of our team has lived on the East Coast and the West Coast (although Hop Culture Senior Content Editor Grace Lee-Weitz reminds us that she is a proud Minnesotan and started her beer career in Chicago…it’s just been a while).

We hear you, so we’re keeping our eye out for any breweries between the coasts doing exciting things.

Those like Lua Brewing. The Des Moines-based brewery ranks as the highest in Iowa, with a 4.22 overall rating on Untappd.

After opening in Des Moines in November of 2019, Lua has skyrocketed up the rankings, registering over 400 beers and 139k check-ins along the way!

Helmed by founders Scott and Whitney Selix and Head Brewer/Co-Founder Zack Dunbar (formerly of Forager Brewing), Lua Brewing earned both a spot as one of the top fifty breweries in the world and another for being a top restaurant in Des Moines in just its first eighteen months.

During the Untappd Community Awards, Lua Brewing again showed its pedigree by winning thirty-three medals—including an impressive twelve golds in categories like German Pils, Berliner Weisse, Fruited Sour, Smoothie Sour, Oatmeal Stout, Stout (other), Hefeweizen, Doppelbock, Saison, DIPA, Triple Hazy IPA, and Pale Ale (other).

Celebrating its five-year anniversary last year, Lua Brewing has a lot to look forward to for the next five years.

Oh, and don’t sleep on their food! Executive Chef James Arbaugh joined the Lua team after leaving Michelin-starred Plumed Horse in the Bay Area—and the selection on the menu is seriously epic.

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Elder Piper Beer & Cider

Petoskey, MI

We first met Elder Piper Beer & Cider Co-Founder and Creative Director Eeva Redmond when she worked as the Communications Manager at Highland Brewing. We were super excited when the Certified Cicerone let us know she left Asheville to return to her hometown of Petoskey, MI, planning to open her own brewery with her husband.

During the year, she kept in touch, sending us some of her favorite beers they’re making on the idyllic shores of Little Traverse Bay.

The Beach Grass Helles impressed us enough to name it one of our “Top 12 Beers We Drank in August.”

The beer pours a medium-clear gold and drinks with a great body. We immediately pulled out notes of sweet, fresh corn and homey brown rice cooking in our kitchen. Everything finishes with a snappy bite. Overall, we found this beer super well balanced, like just the right amount of salt added to a dish.

We expect big things from this neighborhood-focused newbie, especially since they’re making cider, too!

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Formula Brewing

Issaquah, WA

Seventeen. That’s the one number you need to remember in the equation at Formula Brewing.

Actually, the real formula for success at the only brewery in Issaquah (aka “the Quah”), WA, is pretty simple: “What makes the ideal party?” Formula Brewing Founder Danny Bohm says he asked himself before starting the business. “God damn, that was just a fun party. It wasn’t about drinking a lot or whatever. It was just like, what was so cool about that? And, okay, can you formulate that?”

Turns out: Formula can.

In what used to be a block of storage units, Formula Brewing has turned nothing into the most respectably fun party in the town of around 30,000 people. “It was go bigger or go home,” explains Bohm, noting the brewery opened up two weeks into the pandemic in 2020. “We took the floor and bare walls and just ran with it.”

Four years later, with seventeen medals for its beers and a buzzing taproom, Formula Brewing, we’d argue, has found the perfect recipe.

From award-winning German lagers to little-seen styles like leichtbier (a German light lager) to session West Coast IPAs, Formula has achieved quite a bit of success in just a few short years.

Basically, we’re watching whatever Head Brewer Jesse Brown puts on the tap list here.

In keeping with their goal to be a destination and community-based brewery in the Quah, you can only get Brown and Bohm’s beers at the taproom.

Editor’s Tip: If you visit in late September/early October, as we did, make sure to check out the salmon hatchery. You might even catch the salmon migrating home!

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Moniker Brewery

Providence, RI

Here’s what impressed us so much at Providence-based Moniker Brewery: Not only did we enjoy all the beers they so kindly sent us, but one of the styles that impressed us most is rarely seen in the States—Dortmunder.

We loved this beer so much that we named it to our ranking of ““The Top Fifteen Beers We Drank in March 2024.”

Moniker called the collab with Shaidzon Beer Co. a Goldilocks beer. And we have to say we agree! Monikel On immediately sprouted a malty breadiness on the nose undercut by just a slight ripple of spiciness (probably thanks to the one hundred percent Proximity Malt). Totally delicious, like fresh baked Irish soda bread or English crumpets, this Dortmunder drinks like a “bigger, maltier pilsner,” according to Moniker.

Again, we couldn’t agree more. “A crisp and clean taste with a balanced malt sweetness, subtle hop bitterness, and hints of biscuit-like flavors, creating a refreshing and satisfying drinking experience.” This is a simple, humble style, but we can’t help but feel like, with this beer, Moniker has treated us to high-noon tea and crumpets.

With other beers impressing us, from a State of Flow German pilsner to a Pils to Meet You West Coast pilsner, we’re definitely keeping an eye on what beers will arrive from Moniker in 2025.

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CLAG Brewing Company

Sandusky, OH

An acronym for “Cocky Little Asian Guy,” CLAG Brewing Company has one of the most passionate fan bases around and the beer to back it up.

You may be familiar with a little James Beard Foundations Awards Semifinalist brewery in Richmond, VA, called The Answer, started by An Bui. Well, CLAG comes from his brother Kha Bui.

Natives of Vietnam, the Buis have made a serious mark on the craft beer scene here in the States.

While The Answer may be more well known, you seriously shouldn’t sleep on CLAG.

With 65k total check-ins on Untappd, CLAG is currently the second highest-rated brewery in Ohio, hitting an awe-inspiring 4.29 overall average on Untappd. That also makes them one of the top 50 highest-rated breweries in the world (ranked 48th).

During the Untappd Community Awards, CLAG racked up twenty-five medals, including nine golds and two category sweeps with beers ranging from stouts to IPAs to lagers.

CLAG’s recent collaborations with notable breweries like North Park, Horus, Corporate Ladder, and Hop Butcher For The World are helping to spread the word about this incredible brewery.

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International

Pioneer Beer

Žatec, Czechia

Tucked away in the Žatec region, one of the three main hop-producing areas of Czechia, Pioneer Beer represents the new wave of craft beer in this historic beer-producing country.

Pioneer opened in 2018 in a former hop warehouse. Refurbished and spruced up, Pioneer’s taproom is absolutely gorgeous inside.

Walk in, and you’ll immediately notice gleaming silver tanks.

Pioneer represents a mashing of tradition and innovation. Right alongside lagers like Pioneer’s well-known Rezident, you’ll also find a smattering of more contemporary American styles, including hazies, DDH IPAs, and even a Cold IPA.

For instance, COMFORT, a single-hop Czech pale lager featuring Saaz Comfort, a mildly bitter variation on Saaz.

The beer’s elegant balance of hops and malt had us returning not once but twice for refills. We think that says it all about the potential of Pioneer.

Dare we say this brewery is…pioneering. 🤦‍♀️

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Newbarns Brewery

Edinburgh, Scotland

Veer off the main thoroughfare in Leith and stroll behind a car repair and maintenance shop called Bob’s Garage. There, you’ll find Newbarns, helmed by brewer Jonny Hamilton and started by Gordon McKenzie, Emma McIntosh, and Freddie Bjerkseth.

When Lee-Weitz visited at just shy of 5 p.m. on a Friday, all the tables were full, the lights were turned down low, and the LUKR faucet was cranking.

Before working at Newbarns, Hamilton did stints at Beavertown in London with Bjerkseth. Newbarns other co-owners McKenzie and McIntosh worked nearby at The Kernel.

To unwind, all four would go to craft beer bars, often across town, just to try a new American import. But they started to feel jaded.

“We didn’t want to talk about work,” Hamilton told Lee-Weitz. “We just wanted to drink bottles of Augustiner Helles or Pale Fire Pressure Drop, pints of it.”

Hamilton needed a new spark.

When McKenzie bought an old brew kit at an industrial auction for £5,500 (£15,000 with transportation and dismantling fees, according to Hamilton), starting their own business became a reality.

“Yeah, it was dirt cheap,” Hamilton said, smiling.

At Newbarns, the atmosphere is relaxed—more like you are in your friend’s basement. Even the glassware, Hamilton says, came from his personal collection. “And then it turned into anyone who found nice glasses in the charity shop were just bringing them in,” says Hamilton, noting they do have a special collection for friends, family, and regulars. Old beer adverts from Double Diamond, Harp, and, obviously, Guinness dot the wall. “If you have a look in the bathroom, you’ll see the walls covered in old beer mats!” Hamilton tells me.

Even the beers themselves seem laid back, called simply “Pilsner,” “Stout,” “Pale Ale,” or “the almost passive-aggressive name of ‘Plain Dark Beer,’ which is our imperial stout,” Hamilton explained. “The whole point is we wanted to make an imperial stout with just malt, hops, and barley, no adjuncts. For our day-to-day beers, we pretty much never use adjuncts.”

Unfussy, unflappable.

Hamilton, much like the pace of Newbarns itself, moves with a languid confidence. But make no mistake; his brain seems always to rove, noticing a tapped keg, cautioning against an overpowered pint.

Much like his brewing, he’s constantly tweaking his techniques.

“No one’s here, so we can go work in a huge brewery and press buttons all day,” says Hamilton, who used his master’s in chemistry in the pharmaceutical industry before getting one for brewing and distilling. “I’ve always been a creative person but was put in the science box. When I found brewing, I got to nerd out and be knowledgeable but also make something tangible you can drink and enjoy.”

He adds, “We’ve focused and tried to be the best at what we can do in the style we do, which is low-ABV beers between 3% and 5% ABV,” Hamilton shares. “We just like anything that you can drink by the pint.”

You won’t find hardcore beer nerds here. And you won’t find people looking for flights. You’ll just find people like Hamilton, those looking for a beer, maybe two, three, or four. One they can grab and tuck into with friends, whiling away the hours, forgetting that the world outside exists.

Lee-Weitz’s dad recently emailed her asking for recommendations to share with a friend visiting Scotland. She replied with Newbarns at the top of the list, saying, “If you only have time to visit one brewery in Edinburgh, make it Newbarns.”

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Vault City Brewing

Edinburgh, Scotland

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But if you do have time for another stop, hit Vault City Brewing.

The highest-rated brewery in Scotland on Untappd, Vault City has racked up nearly 1 million check-ins with an impressive 3.97 overall rating.

While it may be a self-proclaimed “modern sour” brewery, Vault City crushes a variety of styles while constantly keeping things fresh, fun, and flavorful. But if sours are your jam, look no further, with many coveted mouth-puckering lineups—Stoopid, Sweet Shop, Slushy Sour, Scoop, and Double Deep Fried Series. Vault City consistently creates playful interpretations of popular dishes and sweet treats.

During the Untappd Community Awards, Vault City stacked up fifteen medals and secured full-on sweeps in the Smoothie Sour, Imperial Pastry Stout, and Sour IPA categories.

With 316 beers on Untappd (273 are sours), nearly half of all their listings are above that truly remarkable 4.0 rating. With 20k check-ins, “Triple Fruited Mango” ranks as Vault City’s most checked-in beer!

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Salama Brewing Company

Espoo, Uusimaa, Finland

Based in Finland, Salama Brewing has rocketed up the Untappd charts since it opened its doors back in 2019.

Now the second highest-rated brewery in all of Finland (with 10k+ check-ins), Salama has continued their ascent by producing some of the most exciting beers in Europe.

While the first two beers launched by this Finnish brewery were hazy IPAs, Salama consistently creates outstanding quality beers of varying styles and currently has a whopping 240 beers listed on Untappd.

“Salama Brewing is a Finland-based independent craft brewery specialising in modern extravagant beers, especially aromatic hop-forward IPAs, silky imperial stouts and innovative mixed-fermentation ales,” the brewery wrote in an email to Hop Culture. “Founded by four craft beer loving friends in 2018 and now quickly expanding across the cosmos, we want to turn strangers into friends, friends into lovers and lovers into a family that cherishes megalomanic visions, strange stories and bad jokes that always seem to cross at least our minds after a few great brewskies.”

Celebrating its fifth birthday last year, Salama also broke the 200k check-in mark.

During the Untappd Community Awards, Salama stacked up twenty-seven medals with thirteen golds—ranging from wild ales to pilsners to IPAs. Salama also secured sweeps in the American Barleywine and Fruited Berliner Weisse categories!

If you’re in the Helsinki area, Salama is a must-stop, as they are less than thirty minutes outside the city.

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Põhjala

Tallinn, Estonia

Based in Tallinn, Estonia, Põhjala opened back in 2011. Over the last decade, you may have seen its brews pouring at beer festivals.

Known for its creative offerings, Põhjala crushes it across all styles. This Estonian brewery has numerous sought-after offerings, with their Cellar Series holding down several dozens worth of 4.0+ ratings on Untappd.

The incredible team at Põhjala describes their mantra as “inspired by our heritage, local nature and cuisine. We take well‑known beer styles and add our own distinctive twist with surprising ingredients or long barrel aging.”

Located right on the waterfront, the Tallinn taproom includes twenty-four taps, a Texas-inspired BBQ menu, and even a private sauna for rent.

Suffice it to say, Põhjala may not be entirely new, but we are really looking forward to seeing what Põhjala brews up in 2025.

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West Coast Brewing

Shizuoka, Japan

Last year, Hop Culture Social Media Manager Magic Muncie named Uchu Brewing to this list. In 2025, he’s pointing us once again to Japan to keep an eye on West Coast Brewing (WCB).

Cultivating the craft beer scene in Japan for half of a decade, WCB celebrated its fifth anniversary last year.

Based in Shizuoka, WCB currently ranks as the third highest-rated Japanese brewery with an overall average rating of 3.97, 90k total check-ins, and 334 beers listed on Untappd.

WCB operates a number of different venues, including a beer hotel that pours exclusives never tapped anywhere else. Without any core offerings, WCB can constantly experiment and create new, unique beers.

While WCB brews a little of everything, their barrel-aged stouts, hazy IPAs, and barleywines have been the most popular among the Untappd community.

The Villa & Barrel Lounge (their beer hotel) opened up in the summer of 2022 and might be one of the coolest beer destinations around. There are specially made beers exclusive to the hotel room taps—and on the first floor, you’ll find the Barrel Lounge, which is the West Coast Brewing taproom.

Collaborations with breweries like Omnipollo, One Drop, and Living Haus have helped put WCB on the map, and we look forward to seeing what breweries from around the world they team up with this year.

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Spartacus Brewing

Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais, Brazil

Based in Brazil, Spartacus Brewing has been crushing the South American craft beer game for over half a decade now!

With over 178k total check-ins and 228 beers listed Untappd, Spartacus maintains a staggeringly high 4.21 overall rating, making this brewery the 8th highest-rated in all of Brazil.

Spartacus beers are known for their aromatic, complex, and, most importantly, delicious flavor profiles. From juicy, hazy IPAs to decadent imperial stouts, Spartacus is producing some of the most highly acclaimed brews around the world, with dozens of their beers rated 4.5 or more.

During the Untappd Community Awards, Spartacus stacked up six total medals and golds.

After epic collaborations with legends like Bottle Logic, Pinta Barrel, Browar Funky Fluid, Seven Island, The Eighth State (RIP!), 3 Sons, and Jester King, the trajectory of this South American brewery is becoming increasingly apparent.

Long story short, don’t hesitate if you get a chance to try any beers from these incredible Brazilian beer-makers.

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Microbrasserie Le Ketch

Sainte-Flavie, QC, Canada

Sitting on the banks of the St. Lawrence River in Sainte-Flaive, Le Ketch is one of Canada’s most sought-after breweries. Word on the street is Le Ketch is making some of the best hazies around!

Since 2018, Le Ketch has steadily climbed up the Untappd charts. Now, with an overall rating of 4.18, Le Ketch ranks as the 8th highest-rated brewery in all of Canada.

The level of detail Le Ketch puts into each beer is incredible. Throughout 23k check-ins of the 209 beers listed on Untappd, over 50 are rated 4.3 or more!

There’s something extra special going on with the hoppy beers at Le Ketch. Over half of their beers listed on Untappd are some form of IPA and pale ales, with a vast majority achieving a rating of 4.0 or more. The hazy IPAs are super luscious, creamy, and uber-crushable.

During the Untappd Community Awards, Le Ketch racked up seven medals and secured golds in the Double Hazy IPA, Cold IPA, and Wheat/White IPA categories, beating out some seriously strong competition.

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Range Brewing

Newstead, Queensland, Australia

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Based in Newstead, a suburb of Brisbane, Australia, Range Brewing boasts an impressive 4.02 overall brewery rating on Untappd—and that’s with a staggering 739 beers listed!

A small-batch brewery established in 2018 by Matt McIver and Gerard Martin, Range Brewing is driven by the philosophy of “forever exploring, forever evolving.”

The Range crew regularly tastes beers from various countries to spark ideas for innovative brews, with head brewer Mitch Pickford creating a diverse range of beers, including hoppy, dark, and sour varieties.

At the Untappd Community Awards, this Australian brewery clinched an impressive thirteen medals across various categories, including NZ Pils, Pastry Stout, DIPA, IPA (Other), Hazy TIPA, Kellerbier, American Light Lager, Pale Lager, NA Pale Ale, and German Pils, showcasing their, dare we say, remarkable range.

Range also secured golds in the following categories: DIPA, American Light Lager, Pale Lager, and Non-Alcoholic Pale Lager.

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FUERST WIACEK

Berlin, Germany

Based in Berlin, Germany, FUERST WIACEK focuses on creating full-flavored beers with a focus on quality, freshness, and innovation.

In 2016, head brewers Georg Fuerst and Lukasz Wiacek burst into the Berlin craft beer scene with A Quick One While She’s Away. Not only was this the first beer they’d brewed on commercial brewing equipment, but it was also Germany’s first New England IPA.

Fuerst Wiacek executes all the modern styles (and traditional as well) wondrously, with harmonious hazy IPAs and sublime stouts leading the way when it comes to their highest-rated offerings on Untappd. With nearly a 4.0 average rating on the app, this German brewery has proven they are making beers the community loves.

And we believe they will continue to well into the future. What’s next for this contemporary German powerhouse?

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SOMA Beer

Girona, Catalunya, Spain

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A small brewery based in Cornellà del Terri in the province of Girona in the northeastern part of Spain, close to the French border, SOMA Beer specializes in immaculately crafted hoppy ales.

Since its inception in 2016, this Girona-based brewery has helped take the European haze game to another level. According to the Untappd community, SOMA Beer is known for its “refined beers, excellent structure, as well as nuanced, layered flavors.”

Did you know that SOMA Beer is currently the highest-rated brewery in all of Spain? With 131k check-ins and 343 beers listed on Untappd, Soma Beer maintains an extraordinary 4.09 overall rating from the beer community. While they do brew up exceptional stouts as well, less than 20 of their beers on Untappd are non-IPAs.

During the Untappd Community Awards, SOMA Beer collected seven medals, with three golds in the following categories: Imperial/Double Coffee Stout, Triple IPA, and New Zealand IPA.

After collabs with craft beer legends like Outer Range, Northern Monk, Arpus Brewing, Track Brewing, FUERST WIACEK, and fellow Spaniards Garage Beer, SOMA Beer has become a household name for European beer lovers, and it’s only a matter of time until the entire world knows all about these hop phenoms.

Get on board the SOMA Beer train!

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