The 30 Most Popular Beers in America

Whether you're at a baseball game or hanging out in the backyard with friends for a BBQ, a tasty beer is nice to have in hand. There are moments for light beers, with their crisp and refreshing flavor, and there are moments for more complex brews that surprise you with the range of flavors that flow throughout. With these beer styles, you know you're not just chugging. You're sipping and enjoying, especially since the alcohol by volume (ABV) in these more complex creations is higher than your typical light beer.

Americans love a good ale, a solid IPA, and a delicious stout. Even lagers and hefeweizen made the list. These beers have distinct flavors, though IPAs generally have a hoppy, citrusy, and floral appeal. Other beer flavors are more concentrated, incorporating chocolate, coffee, and cinnamon in their brews. Each company has its own process, often aging its brews in specific barrels to infuse a one-of-a-kind flavor into each new blend.

To put this list together of the most popular beers in America, 247 Tempo reviewed the data provided by Beer Advocate, the ultimate go-to for all things beer-related. The list is sorted by the number of ratings (not shown). (Also See Avoid All Light Beer Brands, Except These 7)

• Average Rating: 4.35
• Company: Founders Brewing Company
• Beer Type: Scotch Ale / Wee Heavy
• ABV: 11.20%

This beer has a warmth to it. You pick up on several flavors, including sweet caramel, single malt scotch, earthy spice, and fruit.

• Average Rating: 4.27
• Company: Cigar City Brewing
• Beer Type: American IPA
• ABV: 7.50%

Named after a Spaniard sport, this IPA serves as a tribute to the game and pairs well with spicy foods.

• Average Rating: 4.41
• Company: Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan
• Beer Type: Hefeweizen
• ABV: 5.40%

This wheat beer has a golden-yellow hue and a scent of cloves that emanates from it. The flavor is described as banana-like and refreshing.

• Average Rating: 4.2
• Company: Lagunitas Brewing Company
• Beer Type: American IPA
• ABV: 7.50%

This American IPA is brewed with 50% wheat malt. It's exceptionally hoppy and has a dry finish.

• Average Rating: 3.89
• Company: Lagunitas Brewing Company
• Beer Type: American IPA
• ABV: 6.20%

Another hoppy beer, this is an ancient style revived by the Lagunitas Brewing Company.

• Average Rating: 3.73
• Company: Boston Beer Company (Samuel Adams)
• Beer Type: Vienna Lager
• ABV: 5.00%

This beer is made up of four special ingredients, including barley from the high American plains and hops from Bavaria.

• Average Rating: 4.5
• Company: Brasserie de Rochefort
• Beer Type: Quadrupel (Quad)
• ABV: 11.30%

Out of all the Rochefort beers, this one is the heaviest.

• Average Rating: 4.38
• Company: Oskar Blues Grill & Brew
• Beer Type: American Imperial Stout
• ABV: 10.50%

This is a thick stout with tons of flavor that includes coffee and chocolate-covered caramel.

• Average Rating: 4.47
• Company: Brouwerij St. Bernardus NV
• Beer Type: Quadrupel (Quad)
• ABV: 10.00%

This beer isn't just popular among Americans, it's a favorite throughout the world. The original 1946 recipe hasn't changed.

• Average Rating: 4.32
• Company: Lagunitas Brewing Company
• Beer Type: Imperial IPA
• ABV: 7.85%

This beer was created because the company was unable to brew their usual seasonal beer. They screwed up, but they made up for it.

• Average Rating: 4.32
• Company: Unibroue
• Beer Type: Tripel
• ABV: 9.00%

The development of this beer took 18 months of research. It's a triple-style golden ale influenced by a rich history.

• Average Rating: 4.15
• Company: Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.
• Beer Type: American IPA
• ABV: 6.80%

This American IPA is hoppy with bursts of citrus and pine. A rich caramel malt balances it all out.

• Average Rating: 4.29
• Company: Stone Brewing
• Beer Type: Imperial IPA
• ABV: 8.20%

Stone Brewing doesn't mess around with their hoppy IPAs. This is the "first year-round, brewed-and-bottled west coast double IPA on the planet."

• Average Rating: 4.14
• Company: Arrogant Consortia
• Beer Type: American Strong Ale
• ABV: 7.20%

This ale was created in 1997. It's an intense beer often called "liquid arrogance."

• Average Rating: 4.41
• Company: Stone Brewing
• Beer Type: Imperial IPA
• ABV: 9.40%

This is a fresh double IPA with your typical citrusy and floral flavor. But this brew takes it to a new level of freshness and must be consumed right away.

• Average Rating: 4.57
• Company: 3 Floyds Brewing Co.
• Beer Type: American Pale Ale
• ABV: 6.50%

This is another intensely hoppy beer (formerly known as Cenotaph).

• Average Rating: 4.15
• Company: Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.
• Beer Type: American IPA
• ABV: 7.20%

This beer has a complex flavor but it's balanced. You pick up on notes of pine and citrus within this hoppy brew.

• Average Rating: 4.2
• Company: Stone Brewing
• Beer Type: American IPA
• ABV: 6.90%

This is one of the best-selling beers that incorporates a hoppy aroma, citrusy flavor and is balanced out by a subtle malt flavor.

• Average Rating: 4.08
• Company: Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
• Beer Type: American IPA
• ABV: 6.00%

It's all in the name of this brew. This IPA is continuously hopped ("60 hop additions over a 60-minute boil" to be exact).

• Average Rating: 4.03
• Company: Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.
• Beer Type: American Pale Ale
• ABV: 5.60%

This is the company's most popular beer and boasts a full-bodied, complex flavor.

• Average Rating: 4.3
• Company: North Coast Brewing Co.
• Beer Type: Russian Imperial Stout
• ABV: 9.00%

The finish of this stout is warm. With a sip, you pick up on its complexity and intensity, made in the tradition of 18th Century English brewers.

• Average Rating: 4.6
• Company: Goose Island Beer Co.
• Beer Type: American Imperial Stout
• ABV: 14.30%

This stout is aged in bourbon whiskey barrels to ensure its complexity.

• Average Rating: 4.45
• Company: Bell's Brewery – Eccentric Cafe & General Store
• Beer Type: Imperial IPA
• ABV: 10.00%

This IPA has the most complex hopping schedule of Bell's Brewery. The aroma alone is impressive, hitting you with concentrated notes of grapefruit and stone fruit alongside floral notes.

• Average Rating: 4.6
• Company: Founders Brewing Company
• Beer Type: American Imperial Stout
• ABV: 12.00%

This imperial stout is brewed with tons of chocolate and coffee and aged in oak bourbon barrels.

• Average Rating: 4.38
• Company: Ballast Point Brewing Company
• Beer Type: American IPA
• ABV: 7.00%

This IPA, originally known as Northstar IPA, debuted in 2005.

• Average Rating: 4.71
• Company: The Alchemist
• Beer Type: Imperial IPA
• ABV: 8.00%

This beer packs American hops that dance on your palate from sip to swallow.

• Average Rating: 4.64
• Company: Russian River Brewing Company
• Beer Type: Imperial IPA
• ABV: 8.00%

The hops in this beer include Amarillo, CTZ, Centennial, and Simcoe. The aroma is floral with notes of pine and citrus and the flavor is well-balanced and only slightly bitter.

• Average Rating: 4.27
• Company: Bell's Brewery – Eccentric Cafe & General Store
• Beer Type: American IPA
• ABV: 7.00%

The hop aromas in this IPA include pine and grapefruit.

• Average Rating: 4.27
• Company: Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
• Beer Type: Imperial IPA
• ABV: 9.00%

According to Esquire Magazine, this is "perhaps the best IPA in America." Close, as it comes in at the 2. spot.

• Average Rating: 4.51
• Company: Founders Brewing Company
• Beer Type: Oatmeal Stout
• ABV: 8.30%

This breakfast stout is the top, most popular beer in America. It's made for coffee lovers and incorporates a range of flavors, including chocolate, Sumatra and Kona coffee, and cinnamon.