List of breweries in Scotland


This is a list of breweries in Scotland. Beer has been produced in Scotland for approximately 5,000 years. The Celtic tradition of using bittering herbs remained in Scotland longer than in the rest of Europe. Most breweries developed in the Central Lowlands, which also contained the main centres of population. Scottish brewing reached a peak of 280 breweries in 1840. The merger of breweries led to changes; the higher hop content of some of the beers allowed them to travel better than previous products, thus creating a higher quality product for export. Edinburgh and Alloa in particular became noted centres for the export of beer around the world. By 1920, there were only 62 brewers left. The decline continued, and by 1960 there were only 26, and by 1970 they had dropped to just 11.
At the end of the 20th century, small breweries had begun to spring up all over Scotland, and the decline was reversed. The CAMRA Good Beer Guide 2015 states that Scotland is home to 80 breweries; this has since grown to over 100.

Operational breweries

A–C

D–I

J–Q

R–Z

Defunct breweries

The Champion Beer of Scotland is an award for Scottish beers presented by the Campaign for Real Ale, at their annual Scottish Traditional Beer Festival in Edinburgh.