Microbrew vs. craft brew - what's the diff?

Friends & Beer Lovers,

Recently a friend asked me an interesting question... "What's the difference between Microbrew and Craft Brew?"

The question came up from the name we've chosen for our new Beer Festival... the West Coast Invitational, A Craft Brew Experience.

I thought it was a great question and lets see if I can answer it here.

Officially, the term Micro-Brewery is a classification defined by the number of barrels it produces in a year - 15,000 or less - approximately 460,000 gallons. But, informally, it was the term we all applied to the independant beer revolution. From Sam Adams to Sierra Nevada to every cool and unique brewery that sprang up over the last 30 + years. But something has changed. Those breweries are not so "micro" any more. 

Officially, the term Craft-Brewery is a classification defined by brewing no more then 2 million gallons a year and has some set limitations on how it brews it's beer. However, informally it has become the preferred term to describe beer brewed with incredible craftsmanship. Beers we could only dream of, using unique combinations, amazing ingredients and sometimes long lost recipes from the golden, pre-prohibition, era.

If that is all a little confusing, let me keep it simple.

Craft Beer is how I personally describe the product of every brewery that has been hand-selected to participate in the First Annual West Coast Invitational on May 16 at Miller Park. 

This is going to be an incredible experience for you, your friends, and your taste buds. Get tickets and information at WestCoastInvitational.beer

We look forward to seeing you there!

BTW, there is a great article at CraftBeer.com by Charlie Papazian, founder of the Great American Beer Festival, called The Revival. 

Cheers, 

Matson "Matsonian" Breakey

EDIT: After this was published it was pointed out to me that the information here was old... Craft Brew is now defined as 6,000,000 barrells a year. WOW. See the full definition here.