The Brewers Association, a trade group representing the nation’s craft brewers, holds bi-monthly Power Hour online teleconferences for its membership. Yesterday Ray Daniels, founder of the Cicerone Certification Program, sent out a series of tweets detailing the news from the latest edition. These new numbers provide another shot in the arm for the American craft beer industry. A couple of things stand out to me here. Firstly, our own Great Lakes region is a leader in the growth of the industry. Let’s keep it up Upper Midwest beer drinkers! Secondly, there are a lot of new Pale Ale and IPA brands coming out. I know they are popular, especially here in Minnesota, but let’s keep expanding our selection. After a while the IPAs all begin to taste the same.

Here are Ray’s tweets.

Listening to BA Powerhour on first hald of 2010 sales data. Craft volume up 11.9%! #powerhour

Sadly, Progressive Adult Beverages seem to be the one other sector of the beer business that is growing (other than craft).

Symphony IRI Group shows craft beer being 8.7% of the total beer market in H1 2010. #powerhour

Sales of craft beer 22 oz bottles up 28% in 2010 vs. 2009 in supermarkets. #powerhour

Bad news: progressive adult bev sales in 24-oz can sales are exploding, esp in convenience stores. #powerhour

Blue Moon $ sales up 27% vs 2009, and is SIG’s #1 “momentum” brand. Amazing. Shocktop up 34%. #powerhour

Newcastle Brown up 10% this year: I’d say that’s good for craft as it helps to create craft drinkers. #Powerhour

3 of top 10 new brands are IPAs … the rest are Progressive Adult Beverages like Smirnoff Blueberry & Limonade. Sad. #powerhour

What recession? First half craft sales showing best growth of any year since 2007. #Powerhour

Stone & Alaskan Brewing are #9 and #10 of the top ten craft brewers in US with folks like Sam Adams, Sierra Nevada, New Belgium at top.

New Belgium is growth leader among top craft brewers, up 28% in dollars year to date. That’s amazing for a brewery that size. #powerhour

SN Torpedo is fastest growing of the top 15 craft brands: up more than 200% versus last year. #powerhour

Top 10 major brewer brands DOWN more than 5 million cases so far this year. #powerhour

Good news is that craft lead brands continue to grow–a good sign of vitality for the sector. Way to go craft brewers! #powerhour

Craft sales growing in all regions of the US, but Southeast is #1 and Great Lakes is #2. Cool! #Powerhour

8 of the top 15 new craft brands this year are IPAs. #powerhour

Craft sales account for more than 20% of all beer sold in supermarkets in Portland, OR and other PNW markets. #powerhour

511 craft beer UPCs (products) being sold in California.

Great Lakes is leading region for case and dollar craft sales growth in the US. Time to hire more people! #powerhour

More households in the US now purchasing craft beer versus a year ago–better than any other segment. #powerhour

Dan Wandel from SIG says craft beer the “shining star” of US beer market, on track for 6th (I think he said) year of >10% growth. #powerhour