Unfortunately, San Francisco's influence on craft beer culture is anchored in the past. Stories abound of Fritz Maytag, who most would agree revived the craft industry in California and possibly the U.S., and indeed the history of Anchor Brewing is quite well known by craft brewing enthusiasts. But past achievements are just that, past achievements, and most of San Francisco's influence on the industry has been eclipsed by Portland, San Diego, and even Los Angeles and Seattle. A quick look at craft beer discussion boards, Yelp and other beer review sites reveals that even San Franciscans are dismissive of or reluctant to praise the craft scene in the city. I'll admit that when prepping for for a weekend trip to The City I didn't think much about beer; maybe a trip to Anchor for a tour of the brewery and a bit of nostalgia*, but I was looking forward drinking wine and exploring the craft cocktail scene. Don't get me wrong, I was familiar with Speakeasy, 21st Amendment, and Almanac all of whom are bottling or canning and have a distribution to Southern California, but I was unprepared and ultimately quite excited by the quiet boom in craft beer that is spreading across the city.

San Francisco is currently home to 19 breweries and brew pubs and according to the San Francisco Brewers Guild; six more will open in 2014 and another dozen or so are in the late planning stages. Along with this explosion of breweries is a recognition by many restauranteurs of the importance of craft beer to their menus. Several new craft centric restaurants and cafes have opened in the past few years, and if the lines and difficulties getting a table is any indicator these new restaurants are quite popular. Obviously, it's a good time to be a craft beer enthusiast in San Francisco.