As demand for craft beer continues to grow, Seattle's Elysian Brewing has expanded by opening a 35,000 square foot production facility in south Seattle. I had the opportunity to stop by the new space, located in Georgetown, on the day they were brewing their first batch. More

Hale's Brewery in Seattle, Washington has been in the craft beer scene since the early 80s. Inspired by the ales that founder and president Mike Hale tasted during a year long bicycling trip in southern England, Hale's produces their lineup of beers using traditional English brewing methods. Key to this method is employing a yeast specially adapted to open-topped fermenters. Housed in a 17,000 square foot building, formerly an industrial hose manufacturing plant, is a 30 barrel, gravity-fed, all steam-heated brewing system plus a 125 seat pub. The open floor plan, which shows off the fermenting room behind panes of glass with mirrors on the ceiling, allows pub visitors to take in the sights and smells of the brewing process. We stepped behind the scenes for a closer look. More

"We never set out to have our beers become cult favorites among beer enthusiasts—it's just something that sort of happened." Vinnie Cilurzo and his wife Natalie. [Photographs: Russian River Brewing Company] [Flickr: freeloosedirt] The beers from Russian River Brewing Company... More

Small-scale distilleries are on the upswing nationwide, as consumers take greater interest in locally sourced products and states reassess the tax revenue such operations can generate. And while many distilleries are truly independent startups, many talented brewers who have learned the business from making quality beer are either adding distilleries to existing operations, or working in tandem with like-minded distillers. More