Thirty-five brand guides to beer — craft pioneers, historic breweries and the can-art breweries of the hazy-IPA era.
Craft beer is a category where independence is part of the pitch, and many well-known breweries have since been sold. These guides set out who owns each one.
Sold and independent
Lagunitas is wholly owned by Heineken; Bell’s and New Belgium belong to Kirin’s Lion; Firestone Walker is owned by Duvel Moortgat; Oskar Blues is under Monster; and Dogfish Head is a brand under Boston Beer, maker of Samuel Adams. Sierra Nevada, Northern Monk and Cloudwater remain independent, and Coopers, an 1862 Adelaide family brewery, stayed independent. Anchor Brewing closed in 2023 and is now in revival.
Can art
Design is central to several: Brooklyn Brewery’s logo was designed by Milton Glaser, Omnipollo’s surreal cans are by Karl Grandin, and Beavertown’s sci-fi cans by Nick Dwyer.
How to use these guides
Each guide covers who owns the name today, where the products are made — by the maker’s own account and, where it differs, by other sources — and the brand’s visual identity. A company’s description of itself is attributed to the company, and where a business has closed we say so plainly. The table at the end gathers the essentials.
Craft pioneers and can art
Sierra Nevada, Brooklyn Brewery, Dogfish Head, Stone, Omnipollo, Beavertown and Northern Monk.
- Sierra Nevada — The independent California pioneer whose Pale Ale helped define American craft beer.
- Brooklyn Brewery — The NYC craft brewery whose logo was designed by Milton Glaser, creator of I♥NY.
- Dogfish Head — The Delaware brewery of “off-centered ales,” now a founder-led brand under Boston Beer.
- Stone Brewing — The San Diego brewery of bold branding and big IPAs, through a turbulent ownership arc.
- Omnipollo — The Stockholm brewery whose surreal can artwork by Karl Grandin defines it.
- Beavertown — The London brewery whose psychedelic sci-fi can art by Nick Dwyer became a design landmark.
- Northern Monk — The independent Leeds brewery whose Patrons Project turns cans into artist collaborations.
Historic breweries
Weihenstephan, Pilsner Urquell, Chimay, Coopers, Duvel, Sapporo and Garage Project.
- Weihenstephan — The Bavarian state brewery that claims to be the world’s oldest, traditionally dated to 1040.
- Pilsner Urquell — The Czech brewery that made the world’s first pale lager in 1842, the original pilsner.
- Chimay — The Belgian Trappist brewery whose Red, Blue and White colour-coded caps name the beers.
- Coopers — The 1862 Adelaide family brewery of bottle-conditioned ales that stayed independent.
- Duvel — The iconic Belgian golden strong ale of family brewer Duvel Moortgat, a craft consolidator.
- Sapporo — Japan’s oldest beer brand, carrying a North Star from Hokkaido’s development era.
- Garage Project — The Wellington craft brewery of prolific experimental beer and bold illustrated cans.
Hazy IPA
The Alchemist, Tree House, Monkish, Trillium, Other Half, Verdant and Cloudwater.
- The Alchemist — The Vermont brewery of Heady Topper, the beer widely credited with sparking the hazy IPA.
- Tree House — The Massachusetts hazy-IPA brewery of Julius, sold fresh, direct, at the source.
- Monkish — The LA brewery that went from Belgian ales to cult hazy IPAs with bold, culture-forward cans.
- Trillium — The Boston hazy-IPA brewery with a refined, botanical wildflower design language.
- Other Half — The Brooklyn hazy-IPA brewery whose loud, stacked typographic cans became a signature.
- Verdant — The Cornwall hazy brewery whose whimsical, colourful illustrated cans built a cult following.
- Cloudwater — The independent Manchester brewery whose clean, minimalist design led modern UK craft.
Who owns craft beer
Anchor, Samuel Adams, Bell’s, New Belgium, Lagunitas, Firestone Walker and Oskar Blues.
- Anchor Brewing — America’s oldest craft brewery and Anchor Steam, closed in 2023 and now in revival.
- Samuel Adams — Boston Beer’s founding craft-revival brand, home of Boston Lager and owner of Dogfish Head.
- Bell’s — The Michigan craft icon of Two Hearted Ale and Oberon, now owned by Kirin’s Lion.
- New Belgium — The Fort Collins brewery of Fat Tire, once employee-owned, now part of Kirin’s Lion.
- Lagunitas — The Petaluma IPA brewery of wordy, storytelling labels, now wholly owned by Heineken.
- Firestone Walker — The Paso Robles brewery of 805 and the oak-barrel Firestone Union, owned by Duvel Moortgat.
- Oskar Blues — The Colorado brewery of Dale’s Pale Ale that pioneered craft beer in a can, now under Monster.
Global beer brands
Budweiser, Corona, Stella Artois, Carlsberg, Coors, Peroni and Asahi.
- Budweiser — The bowtie device, the custom white script, the red-and-white palette, the Clydesdales, and the 1876 St. Louis founding.
- Corona — The crowned crest and custom lettering, the blue-and-gold palette, the clear painted-label bottle, and the 1925 Mexican launch.
- Stella Artois — The red-and-gold cartouche, the Den Hoorn horn, the chalice ritual, and the 1366/1717/1926 heritage dates.
- Carlsberg — The Bindesbøll script, the crown and hop-leaf, the 2019 Taxi Studio rebrand, the green palette, and the 1847 Copenhagen founding.
- Coors — The custom script, the Rocky Mountains device, the Silver Bullet can, the gold-and-red Banquet palette, and the 1873 Golden, Colorado founding.
- Peroni — The Nastro Azzurro “blue ribbon,” the heritage crest, the blue-and-gold palette, the SS Rex naming, and the 1846 founding.
- Asahi — The Super Dry silver-and-black can, the bold custom logotype, the Sunrise Arc, the Starck flame, and the 1889 Osaka roots.
At a glance: founding, owner and signature
Taken from each guide’s fact panel, as of October 2026. Ownership and production change; follow the link for sources and detail.
| Brand | Founded | Owner | Signature |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anchor Brewing | 1896 (San Francisco) | Ulukaya (2024) | Anchor Steam beer |
| Asahi | 1889 (Osaka) | Asahi Group | See guide |
| Beavertown | 2011 (London) | Heineken | Craft beer |
| Bell’s | 1985 (Kalamazoo, MI) | Kirin / Lion | Two Hearted & Oberon |
| Brooklyn Brewery | 1988 (Brooklyn, NY) | Majority-indep. | Craft beer |
| Budweiser | 1876 (St. Louis) | AB InBev | See guide |
| Carlsberg | 1847 (Copenhagen) | Carlsberg Foundation | See guide |
| Chimay | 1862 (Scourmont Abbey) | Abbey / Trappist | Trappist ales & cheese |
| Cloudwater | 2014 (Manchester) | Independent | Modern craft beer |
| Coopers | 1862 (Adelaide) | Family (indep.) | Bottle-conditioned ales |
| Coors | 1873 (Golden, CO) | Molson Coors | See guide |
| Corona | 1925 (Mexico) | See guide | See guide |
| Dogfish Head | 1995 (Milton, DE) | Boston Beer | Craft beer & spirits |
| Duvel | 1871 (Puurs) | Family group | Belgian golden ale |
| Firestone Walker | 1996 (Paso Robles) | Duvel Moortgat | 805 & Union Jack |
| Garage Project | 2011 (Wellington) | Independent | Experimental craft beer |
| Lagunitas | 1993 (Petaluma, CA) | Heineken | Lagunitas IPA |
| Monkish | 2012 (California) | Independent | Belgian & hazy beer |
| New Belgium | 1991 (Fort Collins) | Kirin / Lion | Fat Tire & Voodoo Ranger |
| Northern Monk | 2013 (Leeds) | Independent | Craft beer |
| Omnipollo | ~2010 (Stockholm) | Independent | Craft beer |
| Oskar Blues | 1997 (Colorado) | Monster (2022) | Dale’s Pale Ale |
| Other Half | 2014 (Brooklyn) | Independent | Hazy IPA & DIPA |
| Peroni | 1846 (Vigevano) | Asahi | See guide |
| Pilsner Urquell | 1842 (Plzeň) | Asahi | The original pilsner |
| Samuel Adams | 1984 (Boston) | Public (NYSE:SAM) | Boston Lager & more |
| Sapporo | 1876 (Hokkaido) | Sapporo Holdings | Japanese beer |
| Sierra Nevada | 1980 (Chico, CA) | Independent | Craft beer |
| Stella Artois | 1926 (beer launched) | See guide | See guide |
| Stone Brewing | 1996 (San Diego) | Duvel Moortgat | Craft beer |
| The Alchemist | 2003 (Vermont) | Independent | Heady Topper DIPA |
| Tree House | 2011 (Massachusetts) | Independent | Hazy IPA (Julius) |
| Trillium | 2013 (Boston) | Independent | Hazy IPA & more |
| Verdant | 2014 (Cornwall) | Independent | Cornish hazy IPA |
| Weihenstephan | 1040 (claimed) | Bavaria (state) | Bavarian beer |
Frequently asked questions
Who owns Lagunitas?
Heineken, according to our guide.
Who designed the Brooklyn Brewery logo?
Milton Glaser, creator of I♥NY, according to our guide.
Part of our Food & Beverage brand guidelines. See also all collections.