MOBILE, Alabama – From Monkeynaut IPA by Huntsville's Straight to Ale LLC on tap to a cold bottle of Gadsden-based Back Forty Beer Co.'s Truck Stop Honey, Alabama-brewed craft beer is certainly no novelty in Mobile restaurants and bars.

Why, then, is the popular -- and soon-to-expand -- Fairhope Brewing Co. the only active brewery in southwest Alabama and one of only two south of Montgomery when central and northern Alabama have seen an explosion of activity in the past two years?

Dan Roberts, executive director of the Alabama Brewers Guild, confirmed there are currently 14 active manufacturing brewers in Alabama, as well as 5 active brewpubs. In addition, there are 14 planned breweries or brewpubs, four of which have been actively contract brewing their beer at another facility and already have product in the market.

The proposed Serda Brewing Co. is listed among the guild's planned breweries, and would be Mobile's first such operation since Hurricane Brewing Co. closed its doors at the corner of Dauphin and Joachim streets in January 2010.

Jason Wilson, the guild's president and Back Forty's founder, said ill-timed startups predating the state's current grassroots support system could explain the Port City's sluggish adoption of the growth industry.

"The market has definitely exploded over the last five and a half years. When Back Forty released our first bottles of Naked Pig Pale Ale in 2009, the scene was in a much different place. At that time, Hurricane Brewery in Mobile, Montgomery Brew Pub, The Auburn Ale House and Olde Town Brewery in Huntsville, had all closed their doors. They were good operations, but were a little before their time," Wilson said.

In fact by late 2009, Back Forty and Birmingham's Good People Brewing Co. were the only operations in the state, he said, but Mobile is now positioned perfectly to capitalize on a thriving statewide network.

"The downtown Mobile market has been growing steadily since we launched there in 2010, so it's always had the demand to support a brewery. Our friends at OK Bicycle Shop have been promoting Alabama beer for years. The renaissance probably started there," Wilson said.

The bottom line, he said, is that Mobile's early – and ultimately unsuccessful – entry to the brewery market no doubt left would-be entrepreneurs and investors a little skeptical, but nearby Fairhope Brewing Co. has proven the market demands more.

"From a business perspective, I think Hurricane Brewery closing its doors probably had a lasting impact on Mobile's brewing scene. Entrepreneurs were probably hesitant to give the business model another try. Likewise, I think the success of Fairhope Brewery had an impact on bringing some of those entrepreneurs back into the industry. I'm just glad someone stepped up and took advantage of a great opportunity," Wilson said.

And the payoff continues to increase.

The national Brewers Association estimates Alabama's craft beer industry generated $238 million in economic impact for 2012, trailing all its southeastern neighbors except Arkansas's nearly $212 million, Mississippi's nearly $150 million and West Virginia's anemic $118 million.

Meanwhile, the association said the U.S. craft brewing industry reached a new milestone at the close of June with more than 3,000 breweries operating for the first time since the 1870s, and small and independent breweries accounting for nearly 99 percent of those operations.

"With a strong presence across the 50 states and the District of Columbia, craft breweries are a vibrant and flourishing economic force at the local, state and national level. As consumers continue to demand a wide range of high quality, full-flavored beers, small and independent craft brewers are meeting this growing demand with innovative offerings, creating high levels of economic value in the process," Bart Watson, the association's staff economist wrote in the economic impact report.

Active Alabama Breweries*

Avondale Brewing Co., Birmingham

Back Forty Beer Co., Gadsden

Blue Pants Brewery, Madison

The Brew Stooges, Huntsville

Cahaba Brewing Co., Birmingham

Druid City Brewing Co., Tuscaloosa

Fairhope Brewing Co., Fairhope

Folklore Brewing & Meadery, Dothan

Good People Brewing Co., Birmingham

Salty Nut Brewery, Huntsville

Singin' River Brewing Co., Florence

Straight to Ale, Huntsville

Trim Tab Brewing Co., Birmingham

Yellowhammer Brewing, Huntsville

Active Alabama Brewpubs*

Black Warrior Brewing Co., Tuscaloosa

Chattahoochee Brewing Co., Phenix City

Cheaha Brewing Co., Anniston

Joe Beer, Jacksonville

Railyard Brewing Co., Montgomery

Planned Alabama Breweries and Brewpubs**

Beer Engineers, Birmingham (contract brewer)

Below the Radar, Huntsville (contract brewer)

Bluewater Brewing Co., Florence

Decatur Brewing Co., Decatur

Goat Island Brewing, Cullman

Green Bus Brewing, Huntsville

The Huntsville Brewery, Huntsville

Main Channel Brewing Co., Guntersville

Old Black Bear Brewing Co., Huntsville (contract brewer)

Red Clay Brewing Co., Opelika

Rocket Republic Brewing Co., Huntsville (contract brewer)

Sea Oats Brewing Co., Gulf Shores

Serda Brewing Co., Mobile

*Source: Alabama Brewers Guild

**Contract brewers are already actively their beer at another facility and have a product in market.