What are Microbreweries, Nanobreweries, and Brewpubs?

Are they the same? Find out now.

You can find more information on our web, so please take a look.

You would probably know that a brewery is a place where beer is made. But, then with the rise in craft beers, we hear plenty of new terms like &#; a microbrewery, nano brewery, brewpub, and more. What do all these terms mean? Is a nano-brewery a smaller microbrewery? Or is there no technical difference between them? Let&#;s find out now.

What are Microbreweries and Nanobreweries?

Microbrewery: Definition

As the prefix &#;micro&#; implies, a microbrewery is smaller than a conventional brewery. The term microbrewery was introduced in the late 70s, to describe these new small brewery houses.

Regular commercial breweries produce gallons and gallons of beer every year. Microbreweries, on the other hand, brew on a much smaller scale. According to the brewery laws in the US, any brewery that manufactures lesser than 15,000 beer barrels every year is classified as a microbrewery.

When compared with commercial breweries that manufacture and distribute on a large scale, microbreweries are limited in their distribution scale. They don&#;t have a nationwide reach as the big players, but they have a niche audience who are regular customers to their specialty brews and seasonal releases. The beers manufactured by microbreweries are termed as &#;craft beers.&#; Hence, sometimes microbreweries are also called as &#;craft breweries.&#;

Though the term, microbrewery was initially used to describe small breweries, it has come to mean more than that. Today, it also denotes a specific style and approach to brewing &#; that emphasizes creativity, experimentation, adaptability, sustainability, and flexibility. Microbreweries are known to push the boundaries when it comes to ingredients, process, flavor, marketing, operation and more.

Nanobrewery: Definition

As you would have guessed from the term, Nanobreweries are smaller than microbreweries, and they produce much lesser beer per annum. Unlike microbreweries, there is no defined number of barrels that distinguishes between a microbrewery and a nano brewery.

Generally, speaking Nanobreweries are small-scale operations, often managed as solo entrepreneurship.

What differentiates Micro and Nano Breweries from Commercial Large-Scale Breweries?

Apart from the volume of beer they manufacture, several other factors differentiate micro and nano breweries from large commercial breweries. These smaller breweries focus on the quality of their beer. Unlike the big players with deep marketing budgets, these breweries depend on word of mouth to highlight their products.

They don&#;t compete with the bigger national players on the number of barrels sold. Instead, they build a loyal customer base with their unique tastes and flavors. Each beer produced in a micro or nano brewery is carefully crafted with the finest ingredients and is unlike any other beer you can find on the market.

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What is a Brewpub?

If a brewery sells directly to the beer consumer, then it&#;s known as a brewpub. Some states in India allow micro and Nanobreweries to sell directly to customers. In such states, brewery owners open a restaurant or bar, where customers can drink freshly brewed beer from the brewery. Most brewpubs apart from serving in-house beers also serve other accompanying eats from the in-house kitchen.

Most beer connoisseurs love brewpubs because it lends authenticity to the experience. They know that they are drinking freshly made in-house beer that comes directly from the brewery&#;s storage tanks. Simply put, the customer knows where the craft beer is coming from.

Additionally, some Indian states allow brewpubs to sell their produce off-site. Brewpubs transport their produce to other restaurants nearby using kegs, and the beer is served in these restaurants on tap. Some brewpubs even sell their produce in bottles and cans.

Take a look at the various microbreweries, nanobreweries, and brewpubs we have helped in setting up all across the country. We have helped passionate craft brewers set up the best pub brewery plants in Gurgaon, Faridabad, Chandigarh, Panchkula, Ludhiana, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, and Bengaluru.

If you are thinking about opening a microbrewery, nano-brewery or brewpub in India, reach out to Rohit Jafa and team. With years of experience in the craft brewing industry and dozens of successfully completed projects under our belt, we are the leading brewpub equipment suppliers in India. We help you find the best beer manufacturing equipment at the most competitive rates on the market.

Give us a ring today and make your entrepreneurial dreams come true!

There are no set in stone definitions for craft brewery, micro-brewery or nano-brewery.

First off, a brewery is a place that makes beer. Breweries brew beer in "batches" like a batch of cookies. Each batch produces a set number of gallons or barrels of beer. The size of each batch is limited by the size of the equipment available to the brewery. Long Trail Brewery produces in the ball park of 100,000 barrels (3million gallons) of beer every year. Each batch is brewed in a 60barrel automated brewing system. The brewery consists of several brewing systems which, for the most part, are run at least once a day. This means Long Train Brewery and other similar breweries (like Magic Hat, Otter Creek) can be called a "Craft" brewery since they do produce less than 6million barrels of beer annually.

Now, Long Trail is just an example. It is mostly regionally consumed, but distributes to several states outside of Vermont. By comparison, a micro-brewery produces about 10% of the yearly output of Long Trail. Meaning what Long Trail Brewery outputs in 2months is more than the yearly output of the largest micro-brewery.

A micro-brewery typically uses between a 30 to 60 barrel brew system. The brewery typically only has one brew system, unlike Craft breweries which can have several brewing systems. At a micro-brewery the system will produce about one batch of beer a day to one batch of beer every other day. Several micro-breweries still produce beers on a 15barrel system at the rate of one batch every other day for a total of 3,000 barrels a year. This is 3,000 barrel output is close to the output of a nano-brewery. A nano-brewery usually uses a 7.5barrel systems (1/3 to 1/10th the size of a microbrewery) and produces beer at the rate of a few batches a week. This puts the total output of a nano-brewery at 1,000 barrels per year.

How does this compare to a brew pub? A brew-pub typically produces 15,000 or less barrel of beer each year and 75% or more of the beer is consumed at the pub (not sold to other pubs). A typical brew pub produces beer on a 3-7.5 barrel system at the rate of one batch every few days. This means a brew pub and nano-brewery produce about the same volume of beer each year.

What is a pico brewery? A pico-brewery is smaller than a nano-brewery. The common definition for pico-brewery is a brewery that uses a 1-3bbl system. If a pico brewery produces beer every other day (which is considered very high output for a pico-brewery) they will produce just over 500barrels a year. By comparison this is the 2 day output of breweries like Magic Hat and Long Trail.

How does this compare with a home brewer? First off, the above are licensed breweries. Second, a home brewer is legally allowed to make UP TO 200 gallons of beer each year for personal consumption without acquiring state and federal licensing. At roughly 30 gallons to the barrel, the home brewer can only produce 6.6 barrels of beer each year (a fraction of what Long Trail produces in just 1 batch). Most home brewers produces beer in 5 gallon batches also refereed to as a sixth (1/6) barrel. In addition, most home brewers do not run their brewing equipment every day. Instead a home brewer will make a batch at a rate of every other week or less.

What is a femto-brewery? This is a term coined by North Williston Brewing to define the home brewer who hits the 200gallon mark annually. This is not a licensed brewery. The beer produced by North Williston Brewing is for personal consumption only. Well, family and friends are always welcome to stop by to share in some great, usually high quality, but always hand crafted home-brew.

Contact us to discuss your requirements of nano brewhouse. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.