Today, the Brewers Association released its annual list of the top 50 craft and overall brewing companies in the U.S. based on 2012 beer sales volumes.  Big Sky Brewing Co., Montana’s largest, again makes the top 50 craft brewery list  – checking in at No. 47.

The top tier of the list stayed the same with Boston Beer Co., Sierra Nevada, New Belgium, The Gambrinus Co. (Bridgeport, Shiner and Trumer brands), and Deschutes holding the top five spots.

Like last year, the list shows some significant shuffling in the lower half of the list due to expansions and increased production by several of the breweries.  (Last year also reflected changes due to some consolidations within the industry.) 

For example, Big Sky dropped from No. 37 down to No. 47 despite selling more beer in 2012 than in 2011.  On the other hand, Founders Brewing Co., based in Grand Rapids, MI, jumped from 42nd to 30th. But Founders is in the midst of a $26 million expansion that will add 50 jobs to the brewery and increase capacity to 340k barrels.

We checked in with Neal Leathers, co-owner of Big Sky Brewing Co., to find out what the numbers mean for Big Sky.  Neal says they like their current size and are quite happy they can run the entire brewing operation from one location in Missoula, MT.  Big Sky’s distribution (24 states) has remained the same the past two years and the brewery has no plans to expand geographically any time soon. (Which may disappoint their fans on the east coast.) The brewery has begun looking at bringing in a bigger brew house, but Neal says that is related more to improving efficiency that any expectations for big growth over the next few years.

Personally, I’d settle for having more Ivan the Terrible Imperial Stout to enjoy in Missoula next year. That stuff disappeared far too fast.

To see the entire list, head here.