The Brewers Association just announced the top 50 breweries in the U.S. based on sales, by volume, for 2009, which is listed below here. For the third time, they’ve also released a list of the top 50 craft breweries based on the new definition adopted by the Brewers Association a few years ago. Here is the new craft brewery list:

1. Boston Beer Co.; Boston MA
2. Sierra Nevada Brewing; Chico CA
3. New Belgium Brewing; Fort Collins CO
4. Spoetzl Brewery (Gambrinus); Spoetzl TX
5. Pyramid Breweries; Seattle WA
6. Deschutes Brewery; Bend OR
7. Matt Brewing; Utica NY
8. Magic Hat Brewing Company; Burlington VT
9. Boulevard Brewing; Kansas City MO
10. Harpoon Brewery; Boston, MA
11. Alaskan Brewing; Juneau AK
12. Bell’s Brewery; Galesburg MI
13. Kona Brewing; Kailua-Kona HI
14. Full Sail Brewing; Hood River OR
15. Stone Brewing; Escondido CA
16. Dogfish Head Craft Brewery; Lewes DE
17. Brooklyn Brewery; Brooklyn NY
18. Abita Brewing; New Orleans LA
19. Summit Brewing; Saint Paul MN
20. Anchor Brewing; San Francisco CA
21. Shipyard Brewing; Portland ME
22. New Glarus Brewing; New Glarus WI
23. Great Lakes Brewing; Cleveland OH
24. Rogue Ales/Oregon Brewing; Newport OR
25. Long Trail Brewing; Bridgewater Corners VT
26. Lagunitas Brewing; Petaluma CA
27. Gordon Biersch Brewing; San Jose CA
28. Sweetwater Brewing; Atlanta GA
29. Firestone Walker Brewing; Paso Robles CA
30. Victory Brewing; Downingtown PA
31. Flying Dog Brewery; Frederick MD
32. BJs Restaurant & Brewery; Huntington Beach CA
33. Odell Brewing; Fort Collins CO
34. Rock Bottom Brewery Restaurants; Louisville CO
35. Bridgeport Brewing; Portland OR
36. Lost Coast Brewery; Eureka CA
37. Big Sky Brewing; Missoula MT
38. Stevens Point Brewing; Stevens Point WI
39. Mac and Jack’s Brewery; Redmond WA
40. Karl Strauss Breweries; San Diego CA
41. The Saint Louis Brewery; St Louis MO
42. Blue Point Brewing; Patchogue NY
43. Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurants; Chattanooga TN
44. Oskar Blues Brewery; Longmont CO
45. North Coast Brewing; Fort Bragg CA
46. Breckenridge Brewery; Denver CO
47. Utah Brewers Cooperative; Salt Lake City UT
48. Saint Arnold Brewing; Houston TX
49. Boulder Beer; Boulder CO
50. Bear Republic Brewing; Cloverdale CA

Four breweries are new to the Top 50 Craft Breweries list; Bear Republic Brewing, Oskar Blues Brewery, Saint Arnold Brewing and Stevens Point. In addition, four dropped off the list; Otter Creek Brewing, Pete’s Brewing, McMenamins and Anderson Valley Brewing. Here is this year’s press release.

I’ll have my annual annotated list shortly.