For craft breweries, size is relative. With 19,700 barrels of production in 2021, Chicago’s Maplewood Brewery & Distillery estimates it is the third or fourth largest craft brewery in Illinois. With that status comes pride but also slight discomfort, like a teenage boy growing into his father’s jacket.
Growth can fund a more stable business that produces better beer. However, if it’s not managed properly, it can also alienate the brewery from local drinkers and constrain experimentation. For eight years, Maplewood has successfully threaded the needle.
“People are always surprised when we tell them how big we are,” says Adam Smith, Maplewood’s special projects lead. “We try to keep that neighborhood vibe.”