Fusing two booming Colorado industries, Mason “Dude” Hembree plans to launch a line of cannabis-infused beers – yes, cannabis-infused beers. The brews, coined George Washington’s Secret Stash will launch early next year. Under his brewery Dad and Dudes Breweria, he’ll untap the beer, made with extract from cannabis sativa stalk and stem, at the Great American Beer Festival in October.

“The excitement we received last year was proof the country is not only ready for cannabis reform, but for cannabis infused beer,” Hembree said.

Hembree’s among many brew-masters on the forefront of the flourishing craft beer industry in Colorado, which made a $1.7 billion economic impact in the state in 2015 and emerged near the top of the country for number of breweries, according to a study recently released.  

The survey, conducted by the University of Colorado Boulder’s Leeds School of Business and commissioned by the Colorado Brewers Guild, quantified the craft beer industry’s economic impact detailing craft beer’s $882 million in sales and 7,776 jobs provided in 94 cities last year.

Those numbers are an increase from 2014’s economic impact of $1.15 million. Colorado has also tripled its brewery count, rising to 350, over just short of a decade. It ranks third for number of breweries in the country, behind California and Washington, according to data from the Boulder-based Brewers Association.

“It’s about steady strong growth,” said Steve Kurowski, marketing director with the Colorado Brewers Guild. “The $1.7 billion impact means we’re a very legitimate industry that has captured the attention of the state.”

Those inside the industry project growth of 20 percent in 2016 and envision exceeding that in 2017.

Praising craft beer’s growth, State Sen. Laura Woods, R-Arvada, said she’s concerned about the potential impact on the industry when grocery stores begin selling hard alcohol, referencing a new liquor law passed in June, because most won’t have shelf space to showcase the wide selection of craft beers.

“If we experience the closing of our neighborhood liquor stores, we will miss their ability to stock the wide variety of craft beer products,” said Woods, who co-chairs the Legislature’s Business Labor and Technology Committee.

“We have had a booming craft beer industry here in Colorado over the past several years, which has brought to our state a wide variety of tastes for beer lovers, and also a lot of jobs for Colorado’s residents.”

Nationwide, craft beer makes up 12 percent of the overall beer industry, with a total of 4,269 breweries aiding in bringing in $22.3 billion in retail dollars – a 16 percent growth from 2014, according to the Brewers Association.

Kurowski said with 350 breweries in the state, there simply isn’t enough room in liquor stores for beer-makers to showcase their brews. That has given rise to the neighborhood brewery or brewpub which have become popular.

Established breweries in the state are enjoying growth, and the craft beer industry is garnering attention, Kurowski said, citing the purchase of Breckenridge Brewery by Anheuser Busch late last year.

“The craft beer industry is going mainstream in places it never got noticed,” he said.

The study detailed challenges in the industry, among them challenges including lack of brewing and storage space, insufficient capital and cash, issues with source materials and equipment and government regulations and taxes.

What wasn’t quantified in the study was the impact of manufacturing the craft beer industry has in the state, Kurowski said. There are Colorado companies supporting the industry by making beer cans and other equipment and grain and hops are grown in the state as well.