Farm Type Guide

Farm Breweries and Cideries in New York

Farm breweries and cideries that make beer and cider from New York ingredients, and the hops, malting barley, and apples behind them. The licenses you need, what the crops take to grow, and the help available to veterans.

The Industry at a Glance

New York was once a major hop state. In 1880, New York produced 21 million pounds of dried hops. Disease and then Prohibition wiped out the industry, and by 2011 the state had only about 50 acres of hops.
Farm breweries have grown fast since the Farm Brewery Law took effect in January 2013. New York had 14 licensed farm breweries in October 2013 and 338 by late 2023, out of 535 breweries in the state.
Cider has grown too. By 2022, New York had 78 cideries, the most of any state. A farm cidery has to make its cider entirely from New York apples or other pome fruits.
The apples are already here. New York is the second-largest apple state. Apple orchards grew from 50,450 acres on 1,365 farms in 2017 to 62,521 acres on 1,686 farms in 2022, according to the USDA Census of Agriculture.
Malting barley is coming back slowly. Prohibition shut down New York's malt barley industry, and western growers took over the market. Cornell counted about a dozen new malt houses opened in New York after the Farm Brewery Law passed.

Farm breweries are required to use New York hops and grain, and the farms that grow those crops are still catching up. If you’re a veteran interested in growing hops, barley, or cider apples, or opening a farm brewery or cidery, talk to us about joining the effort to bring these crops back to New York.

Farm Brewery and Farm Cidery Licenses

A Farm Brewery license from the NY State Liquor Authority requires your beer to be made with New York ingredients. Right now that means at least 60% New York hops and 60% of all other ingredients (not counting water), by weight. On January 1, 2029, it rises to 90%.
The Farm Brewer license costs $320 a year plus a $400 filing fee, or $960 for three years plus the filing fee. The SLA lists the initial cost of a 12-month license at $884. You must make at least 50 barrels a year and no more than 75,000.
Farm breweries can hold tastings, sell by the glass or bottle at the brewery, and sell to go. You can open up to five branch tasting rooms with no added permit fee, and a marketing permit lets you hold tastings and sell at farmers markets, fairs, and liquor stores.
A Farm Cidery license requires 100% New York apples or other pome fruits. It costs $225 for three years plus a $400 filing fee, and a farm cidery can make up to 250,000 gallons a year. Farm cideries can hold tastings and sell their cider for on- or off-premises drinking, including at the State Fair, county fairs, and some farmers markets.
You also need federal approval before you brew. A brewery files a Brewer's Notice with the TTB through Permits Online, and there is no federal fee. Brewers must also have bond coverage before they start brewing for sale.
Federal rules treat cider as apple wine, so a cidery qualifies with TTB as a bonded winery rather than a brewery. Get both your federal and state approvals lined up before you buy equipment.

Growing Hops

Cornell estimates it costs about $12,000 to $15,000 per acre to start a hop yard, including labor, plants, trellises, irrigation, and equipment. The best yields come from full-size plants on trellises 16 to 20 feet high.
Hops take time. You may get a few hops the first year, but a full crop usually comes in the third and fourth years.
Harvest is the hard part. Hand picking takes about one person-hour per mature plant, so most growers need a harvester, which Cornell puts at about $30,000 to $35,000. You will also need a small tractor, a trailer, a sprayer, and a way to dry the hops.
Disease is a real challenge in New York. Downy mildew and halo blight are the main concerns, and Cornell is breeding a disease-resistant hop with the Hop Growers of New York.

Malting Barley and Cider Apples

Malting barley has some of the strictest quality standards of any grain market. Cornell warns that a common mistake for New York growers is underestimating the management it takes. Disease, especially Fusarium head blight, is one of the main things to manage.
Before planting barley, line up a buyer. Cornell keeps a list of active purchasers of New York grain for malting, along with variety reports and cost of production budgets.
Most New York cider is still made from dessert apples, partly because there are few tested cider apple varieties for the state. Cornell's CiderBase database covers 375 cider apple varieties to help growers choose.
An orchard is a long-term investment. If you are starting a cidery, buying apples from an established New York orchard can get you started while your own trees grow.

Organizations

The New York State Brewers Association represents breweries across the state. It works on legislation, offers member benefits like a health care marketplace and festival pouring, and has a membership option for breweries still in planning.
The New York State Horticultural Society represents the state's fruit growers on public policy. Membership includes the Fruit Quarterly magazine, with a lower rate for growers with fewer than 50 acres.
The New York Apple Association promotes New York apples under the Apple Country brand and is a good place to learn about the state's orchards and growers.
Brewers Association is the national trade group for small and independent craft brewers, with more than 4,000 U.S. brewery members. It offers a resource hub on production, ingredients, safety, and regulations, along with industry data, financial benchmarking, and the Craft Brewers Conference.
American Cider Association is the national association of cider and perry producers in the United States. It hosts the annual CiderCon conference, runs the Certified Cider Guide and Certified Pommelier programs, and offers monthly webinars on production, sales, and compliance.
Hop Growers of America is a national trade organization for American hop growers, focused on technical and scientific support. It hosts the American Hop Growers Convention, has a Small Grower Council, and publishes an annual statistical packet, a Hop IPM Field Guide, and food safety resources.
Craft Maltsters Guild is a trade group of small, independent malt houses across North America. It runs the Craft Malt Certified seal, the Malt Cup competition, and classes and workshops, and its Craft Malt Finder can help barley and grain growers find malt houses that may buy their crop.

Training and Help

Cornell's hops program at Cornell AgriTech in Geneva runs hop breeding and pest management research, holds summer twilight meetings for growers, and publishes the Cornell Integrated Hops Production Guide.
Cornell's malting barley program has growing guides, harvest and storage advice, variety disease reports, and the Empire State Barley and Malt Summit.
SUNY Cobleskill offers a four-year Applied Fermentation degree with courses in brewing science, cider, and winemaking, and SUNY Schenectady offers a Craft Beer Brewing certificate and associate degree. SUNY Reconnect may cover the tuition.
Cornell Small Farms runs Farm Ops for veterans, and your county's Cornell Cooperative Extension office can help with soil tests and planning a hop yard or orchard.
Put your numbers on paper before you invest. Our business plan page can help, and grants and Northeast SARE fund some farm projects.

Benefits for Veterans

Veterans get extra savings on crop insurance on any insured crop, including no administrative fee for catastrophic coverage and extra premium subsidy.
Where crop insurance isn't available for your crop, NAP can cover it. Veterans pay no service fee and get 50% off buy-up premiums.
EQIP and CSP give veterans priority and higher cost-share on conservation practices for fields and orchards.
FSA microloans up to $50,000 can help pay for plants, trellis, or equipment.
File form CCC-860 (veteran certification) with FSA to get these benefits, and label your hops, beer, or cider with Homegrown By Heroes.

How to Get Started

Learn hands-on first. Work a hop harvest, a season at an orchard, or a shift at a farm brewery or cidery, and go to a Cornell grower meeting.
Decide whether you want to grow, make, or both. Many farm breweries buy New York hops and grain from other farms, and many growers sell to breweries without making beer themselves.
Get a USDA farm number, file form CCC-860, and set up crop insurance or NAP before you plant.
If you plan to make beer or cider, apply to TTB and the State Liquor Authority early, and check local zoning for a tasting room.
Join a grower or brewer group to meet people already doing the work.

Key Links

Sources: NYS Liquor Authority; NYS Alcoholic Beverage Control Law; Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau; Cornell Small Farms Program; Cornell CALS hops and malting barley programs; Office of the Governor; New York Apple Association; USDA NASS Census of Agriculture; USDA FSA, RMA, and NRCS.