This North Carolina city is one of the best for beer drinkers, study finds
A recent study lists the best cities to grab a pint this season. In SmartAsset’s annual beer study, the company took a look at the top stops in the country for beer aficionados.
Asheville, North Carolina, takes fifth place in the 2021 study in best cities for beer fanatics. The town is about 250 miles west of Raleigh and the largest city in Western North Carolina, and it has been a top contender for several years in a row.
The beer study is based on a handful of factors:
- Total number of breweries
- Breweries per 100,000 residents
- Average number of beers per brewery
- Bars per 100,000 residents
- Average price of a pint
Asheville is known for its 25 breweries, which is the 20th-most in the ranking, and it stands second overall in number of breweries per 100,000 breweries, with 26.9. It’s also in 29th place for the average number of beers per brewery.
A cold beer is such a staple in town that Asheville even has its own ”ale trail” for people looking for a new experience.
Edging out Asheville for the top four spots were Cincinnati; Milwaukee; Bend, Oregon; and Pittsburgh first place, with the average cost of a pint at $4.
The top 10 cities listed in the competition are no strangers to the study: Many have been in the top 10 list in prior years. There’s been change in recent years, though. The pandemic turned the craft beer industry, like many other businesses, on its head.
According to national data from the Brewers Association, overall U.S. beer volume sales were down 3% in 2020, while craft brewer volume sales declined 9%.
In the past decade, the amount of craft breweries in the United States almost doubled between 2015 and 2020, according to the Brewers Association.
If you’re looking to step back into the craft beer scene and revisit your favorite pubs, check out the full list of cities and see if your local stops made the cut.
Data compiled for the beer study — now in its seventh year — originates from ratebeer.com, census data, county business patterns surveys and Numbeo.com, SmartAsset said.
