American craft sour is a post-2010 explosion. The 41 US sours on this ranking span nearly every sub-style the category contains: 5 Gueuze (American interpretations of the Belgian blended-Lambic style), 5 Belgian Sour, 5 Gose (revival of the Leipzig salt-coriander tradition), 4 Sour Ale, 3 Fruited Sour Ale, 2 Berliner Weisse, and a wide tail of Fruited Smoothie Sours, Mixed-Culture Golden Ales, Sour Witbier, Fruited Gose, Earl Grey Sour, Guava Currant Sour, Pumpkin Sour Ale (Cacao, Oak-Aged), and Flanders Red Ale. American craft brewers have adopted every established sour tradition and added several that never existed as national styles.
The hopIQ ranking has an unusual brewery-concentration pattern: **Beachwood Brewing (Long Beach, California) alone contributes 11 of the 41 beers** — 27% of the ranking — reflecting Beachwood's dedicated sour programme rather than a data artefact. The remaining 30 beers spread across 22 breweries, including Three Taverns (4), Mortalis Brewing (3), Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales (2 — the pioneering Michigan sour/wild ale brewery), Jester King (Texas — farmhouse-and-sour focus), Cascade Brewing (Portland, sour-dedicated), and dozens of single-entry producers. American sour is younger than any other sour tradition on hopIQ, but its speed of category development is unmatched.
How this ranking works
The hopIQ Score weights style authenticity (80%), user engagement (10%), notability (10%), and award history. Active, in-production beers only — non-alcoholic excluded. No paid placement — order follows the data alone. Ranking spans 41 beers from 23 breweries.
Top 5 of 41
1
GoseBest Overall#92 worldwide
Reuben's Brews · Gose · United States
A traditional German sour ale brewed with lactobacillus, salt, and coriander — refreshingly crisp with bright lemon notes and a vibrant salinity. Won back-to-back GABF gold medals in 2015 and 2016, the beer that put Reuben's on the map. Ranked here for style-fit against the Sour reference and award history in Sour-specific categories.
2
Howzit Punch#729 worldwide
Alvarado Street Brewery · Fruited Sour Ale · United States
Howzit Punch from Alvarado Street Brewery in Salinas, California pours a hazy golden-amber hue with a whisper of white foam. This Gold Medal-winning 2026 World Beer Cup fruited kettle sour opens with an inviting tropical bouquet of… Ranked here for style-fit against the Sour reference and award history in Sour-specific categories.
3
Bird of Paradise#798 worldwide
Cerebral Brewing · Fruited Sour Ale · United States
Bird of Paradise is a rotating fruited sour ale from Cerebral Brewing, based in Denver, Colorado. Part of an ever-changing series, each batch showcases a different seasonal fruit combination, making every release a distinct experience. The… Ranked here for style-fit against the Sour reference and award history in Sour-specific categories.
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STRAWBERRY PROVENCE#833 worldwide
Beachwood Brewing · Belgian Sour · United States
Strawberry Provence is a Belgian-style sour from Beachwood Brewing in Long Beach, California. It pours a radiant rose-pink with a fine, evanescent white head. The aroma is immediately inviting — ripe Provençal strawberries sweep forward… Ranked here for style-fit against the Sour reference and award history in Sour-specific categories.
5
MASK OF ETERNITYMost Distinctive#869 worldwide
Beachwood Brewing · Belgian Sour · United States
Mask of Eternity is a Belgian-style sour ale from Beachwood Brewing, the celebrated Long Beach, California craft institution. Pouring a hazy, burnished gold with a delicate white head, this barrel-aged beauty draws the eye immediately. The… Ranked here for style-fit against the Sour reference and award history in Sour-specific categories.
Ranks 6–10
6
COOLSHIP CHAOS 2018#893 worldwide
Beachwood Brewing · Belgian Sour · United States
Coolship Chaos 2018 from Beachwood Brewing in Long Beach, California is a rare testament to the Southern Californian craft scene's adventurous spirit. This spontaneously fermented Belgian-style sour pours a hazy golden-amber with a thin,… Ranked here for style-fit against the Sour reference and award history in Sour-specific categories.
7
COOLSHIP CHAOS 2017#894 worldwide
Beachwood Brewing · Belgian Sour · United States
Coolship Chaos 2017 is a spontaneously fermented sour ale from Beachwood Brewing, the celebrated Long Beach, California craft institution. This Southern Californian take on old-world lambic tradition pours a hazy golden amber with a wispy,… Ranked here for style-fit against the Sour reference and award history in Sour-specific categories.
8
DIA DE LOS MANGOS PICOSO#923 worldwide
Beachwood Brewing · Mixed Fermentation Sour · United States
Día de los Mangos Picoso is a mixed fermentation sour from Beachwood Brewing, the celebrated Long Beach, California craft institution. This sun-kissed ale pours a hazy golden-amber with a wispy white head that dissipates quickly. The aroma… Ranked here for style-fit against the Sour reference and award history in Sour-specific categories.
9
DIA DE LOS MANGOS#924 worldwide
Beachwood Brewing · Belgian Sour · United States
Dia de Los Mangos is a Belgian-style mixed fermentation sour from Beachwood Brewing in Long Beach, California. This Southern Californian celebration of tropical fruit pours a hazy golden-amber with a soft, quickly fading white head. The… Ranked here for style-fit against the Sour reference and award history in Sour-specific categories.
10
OUDE GREGG
Beachwood Brewing · Gueuze · United States
Oude Gregg is a Belgian-style gueuze from Beachwood Brewing in Long Beach, California — a Southern Californian craft house applying Old World spontaneous-fermentation tradition to sun-baked West Coast character. It pours a hazy golden… Ranked here for style-fit against the Sour reference and award history in Sour-specific categories.
Show all 41 ▾Show fewer ▴
11
WE ARE WHO WE PRETEND TO BE
Beachwood Brewing·Gueuze · 6.4%·Mild·golden 6
12
FUNK YEAH SANTA ROSA PLUM
Beachwood Brewing·Gueuze · 6.5%·Mild·golden 6
13
FUNK YEAH
Beachwood Brewing·Gueuze · 6.5%·Mild·golden 6
14
FUNK YEAH NECTARINE
Beachwood Brewing·Gueuze · 6.5%·Mild·golden 6
15
Jolly Pumpkin Calabaza Blanca
Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales·Sour Witbier · 4.8%·Mild·pale gold 4
16
Destihl Wild Sour Series Fleur
Destihl Brewery·Sour Ale · 5.5%·Mild·golden 5
17
Three Taverns Enchantress
Three Taverns Brewery·Cranberry Sour · 5%·Mild·golden 8
18
Cerberus
Mortalis Brewing Co.·Fruited Smoothie Sour · 5.5%·Mild·golden 8
19
Black & Blue Tart
Boxing Bear Brewing Co.·Berry Sour · 5.6%·Mild·golden 8
20
Anderson Valley Blood Orange Gose
Anderson Valley Brewing Company·Gose · 4.2%·Mild·golden 6
21
SeaQuench Ale
Dogfish Head Craft Brewery·Session Sour · 4.9%·Mild·pale gold 3
22
Jester King Atrial Rubicite
Jester King Brewery·Fruited Sour Ale · 5.6%·Mild·golden 6
23
Alice - Blend 5
Green Bench Brewing Co.·Mixed-Culture Golden Ale · 5.9%·Mild·golden 5
24
Destihl Here Gose Nothin'
Destihl Brewery·Gose · 4.5%·Mild·pale gold 4
25
Three Taverns La Madrina
Three Taverns Brewery·Guava Currant Sour · 5%·Mild·golden 5
26
Three Taverns Lord Grey
Three Taverns Brewery·Earl Grey Sour · 5%·Mild·golden 5
27
Hydra
Mortalis Brewing Co.·Fruited Sour · 7%·Mild·golden 8
28
Three Taverns Rapturous
Three Taverns Brewery·Sour Ale · 5%·Mild·pale gold 4
29
Pink Limo Dads
Alvarado Street Brewery·Imperial Sour · 8%·Mild·amber 10
30
Lil' Miss Sour
Chandeleur Island Brewing Company·Fruited Sour (Tangerine) · 6%·Mild·golden 6
31
Fiddlehead To Lay Me Down
Fiddlehead Brewing Company·Sour Ale · 5.9%·Mild·golden 6
32
Medusa
Mortalis Brewing Co.·Fruited Smoothie Sour (Passion + Dragon Fruit) · 5%·Mild·golden 6
33
Gose
Westbrook Brewing Co.·Gose · 4%·Mild·pale gold 2
34
West Sixth Berliner
West Sixth Brewing·Berliner Weisse · 3.8%·Mild·pale gold 3
35
SingleSpeed Ring Around the Gose
SingleSpeed Brewing Company·Fruited Gose · 4.1%·Mild·pale gold 4
36
Techno Viking
Drekker Brewing Company·Berliner Weisse · 4.2%·Mild·pale gold 2
37
Old Pro
Union Craft Brewing·Gose · 4.2%·Mild·pale gold 2
38
Creature Comforts Athena Berliner Weisse
Creature Comforts Brewing Company·Sour Ale · 4%·Mild·pale gold 2
39
Real Ale Vámonos
Real Ale Brewing Company·Lime Gose · 4%·Mild·pale gold 3
40
Jolly Pumpkin La Parcela
Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales·Pumpkin Sour Ale (Cacao, Oak-Aged) · 6.2%·Mild·amber 14
41
New Belgium La Folie
New Belgium Brewing Company·Flanders Red Ale · 7%·Mild·deep amber 20
The taste landscape
Of the 41 top beers, 2 lean malt-forward and 33 lean hop-forward.