8 Pennsylvania breweries that make a difference

These Pennsylvania breweries not only craft great beer but also promote social and environmental change.

Pennsylvania’s growing craft beer industry has not only brought quality beer to the commonwealth but also ushered in community institutions dedicated to giving back. All across the state, Pennsylvania breweries are crafting unique beers while supporting the surrounding community through imaginative brews, local events, and donations to area charities.

We’ve highlighted the efforts of eight of our favorite breweries, representing every corner of the state. But with more than 500 craft breweries in Pennsylvania, just imagine the collective impact all of these local businesses have created.

1. New Trail Brewing Company – Williamsport

In 2022, north-central Pennsylvania’s New Trail Brewing Company launched a special beer series to support Pennsylvania’s beautiful state parks through a partnership with the Pennsylvania Parks and Forests Foundation.

New Trail, which specializes in lagers and IPAs, donates a portion of the New Trail State Park Series to the beer’s named park or its “friends” group to support improving the park and its wildlife habitats. The limited release beers in the series include those honoring Keystone State Park, Cherry Springs State Park, Worlds End State Park, Cook Forest State Park, Presque Isle State Park, and more. Plus, New Trail’s Replenish IPA isn’t a limited edition beer—and sales of the year-round IPA support the Pennsylvania Parks and Forests Foundation in planting native trees across the commonwealth.

2. Attic Brewing Co. – Philadelphia

Germantown’s Attic Brewing Co. has a creative and diverse beer menu, and this spirit of creativity extends to how the brewery works with local organizations. Attic collaborates with nonprofits through its Give Back Beer Series, launching a special beer for each partnership.

For example, there was the Tits Out Hoppy Lager in support of the PA Breast Cancer Coalition and the Breath of Change Hazy IPA backing Philly organizations supporting the Black community. Currently available in summer 2025, the Six Degrees of Fermentation dry-hopped Kölsch, a collaboration brew by six Pennsylvania breweries, supports the Philly nonprofit founded by actor Kevin Bacon to champion grassroots work in the city. As of last year, the beer series has raised more than $50,000 for local initiatives.

3. East End Brewing – Pittsburgh

East End Brewing may be located in Pittsburgh’s East End, but the brewery has spent several years demonstrating its commitment to the city and its 90 neighborhoods.

The “You Are Here” series began in 2019, and through 2024, East End released a different beer dedicated to each Pittsburgh neighborhood. And the 90 brews weren’t just available in the East End—the brewery held pop-up releases in each neighborhood to support that community and raise awareness about the special diversity of Pittsburgh and its neighborhoods. You can still find some on tap in local businesses!

In addition to the neighborhood brews, East End donates funds to a charity of the month every month. Recent nonprofits that East End has supported include SisTers PGH, Tree Pittsburgh, and Giving2Grow.

4. Erie Ale Works – Erie

Erie Ale Works hosts near-weekly events known as “Benevolent Beers,” during which the brewery partners with a local nonprofit, spreading the group’s message and donating a portion of profits to the cause. The event isn’t just a “mention the group to donate” type of evening—representatives from the organization set up at the bar to talk about their work, and a portion of every sale during the evening goes to the group.

In July 2025, purchases of Erie Ale Works’ craft beers and other drinks will go to WQLN, Therapy Dogs United, L’Arche Erie Inc., and the Performing Artists Collective Alliance.

5. Blind Cat Beer Co. – Pittston

Blind Cat Beer Co. describes itself as an “earth-friendly brewery,” and it aims to protect the environment and also support animals in need. Blind Cat sources local ingredients from Pennsylvania farmers, donates spent grain to local farms to use as feed and compost, and utilizes sustainable packaging. Plus, it’s named after the owners’ two blind cats, Cricket and Weezy, in the hopes that “the brewery will serve as a reminder that [special needs] pets deserve a good home too,” according to the beer co.’s website.

Beyond the name, the brewery donates a portion of the quarterly sales of its flagship beer (Cricket Pilsner) to a local animal rescue. And during spring 2025, $1 from every draft pour of the beer Grass Puppy—named after an adorable cow at Indraloka Animal Sanctuary in Dalton—was set aside for the sanctuary.

6. Triple Bottom Brewing – Philadelphia

Triple Bottom Brewing in Philadelphia implies its commitment to good in its name. “Triple Bottom” refers to a “triple bottom line: beer, people, and planet,” according to the brewery. The business makes creative craft brews (beer), uses renewable energy to do so (planet), and is a “fair chance brewery,” as it actively works to hire people who may have difficulty finding typical employment, like those who were previously incarcerated, and offer a living wage for their work (people). In fact, Triple Bottom has formalized its focus on social and environmental justice, becoming a Certified B Corporation, meaning that it prioritizes social good in addition to profit.

7. Wolf Brewing Co. – Mechanicsburg

Mechanicsburg brewpub Wolf Brewing Co. focuses on the local in whatever it does, whether that’s using local ingredients in its beers, tapping local farms for the menu of its scratch kitchen, or supporting local advocacy efforts. The brewing company works with area nonprofits via its Flight for a Cause program: Each month, a different nonprofit organization receives $1 from the purchase of every beer flight. Since starting the program, Wolf Brewing Co. has donated thousands of dollars to community organizations.

8. Great Barn Brewery – Doylestown

Great Barn Brewery is a microbrewery in Bucks County structured to limit the business’s impact on the environment. With a commitment to “farm to glass” brewing, the farm brewery grows its own barley for beer. The grain is malted just 25 miles away, with the leftovers refused to feed farm animals or to compost the soil. Water for irrigation—the greatest resource used on farms—comes from a spring-fed well on site. In addition, the brewhouse runs on renewable energy from wind.

You can try the beers at Great Barn’s bar, Puck Live, which hosts live music.

This article first appeared on Good Info News Wire and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

Related: Your guide to 13 of Pennsylvania’s best wineries and vineyards