CLEVELAND, Ohio - In the 1970s there used to be a saying about the Big Ten conference when it came to football: It really was the 'big two and the little eight.' And as far as craft-beer drinkers in Northeast Ohio are concerned, the same might be said of local breweries. Great Lakes Brewing Co. edged Fat Head's Brewery to win our first NEO's Best Craft Brewery contest.

The top two positions alternated like two premier racehorses in the home stretch reaching for the finish line. Each day seemed to end with the two less than a percentage point apart. In the end, Great Lakes garnered 28.47 percent while Fat Head's had 27.63 percent.

Great Lakes is the venerable old man of Ohio's brewing scene. The six-degrees-of-Kevin Bacon theory can be applied here, in that so many of the area's brewers cut their teeth at the Ohio City brewery since it opened in 1988.

To call Fat Head's an upstart really isn't accurate. Brewmaster Matt Cole has created a dynasty of sorts, winning medals at the Great American Beer Festival for six consecutive years. His Head Hunter IPA is renowned, and he and his staff of brewers constantly create new beers.

Both breweries have a strong philanthropic streak, donating to many local causes.

1. Great Lakes Brewing Co., Cleveland, 28.47 percent.

2. Fat Head's Brewery, North Olmsted, Middleburg Heights, 27.63 percent.

3. Platform Beer Co., Cleveland, 9.26 percent.

4. The Brew Kettle, Strongsville, 8.57 percent.

5. Portside Distillery and Brewery, Cleveland, 7.83 percent.

6. Brick and Barrel, Cleveland, 4.43 percent.

7. The Cleveland Brewery, Cleveland, 4.38 percent.

8. Hoppin? Frog, Akron, 3.42 percent.

9. Thirsty Dog Brewing Co., Akron, 3.19 percent.

10. Lager Heads Brewing Co., Medina County, 2.83 percent.

About the competition:

* We started by identifying 34 craft breweries in Northeast Ohio and opened voting to narrow the number to 10 finalists.

* More than 20,000 votes came in through both rounds of voting, no surprise considering Northeast Ohioans' love affair with quality craft beer and all things local.

* Five of the finalists are in downtown Cleveland. Two are outside the city but in Cuyahoga County. Both of Akron's main breweries made the list, as did one in Medina County.

A few observations:

1. Surprises: Who made it

A lot of brewers and craft-beer aficionados asked about surprises on the list.

There were a few. The Cleveland Brewery was the big shocker at No. 7. This brewery has extremely limited distribution, it's only in a few places, and all are on the East Side. Distribution started in October. The tasting room is open only three hours per week - 6-9 p.m. Fridays. But the quality is there, and voters responded.

Of the 10 finalists, only The Cleveland Brewery and Brick and Barrel in the Flats do not distribute in bottles or cans.

2. Surprises: Who didn't make it

Willoughby Brewing Co., Market Garden Brewery, Nano Brew and Butcher and the Brewer all were on the list at one time but didn't make the final cut. All offer creative styles and draw great crowds. I can only guess many of the voters are going by what they buy in stores, and Great Lakes and Fat Head's have extensive distribution systems.

3. On the level

Our NEO's Best crew kept an eye on voting trends the way Wall Street builds in safeguards on roller-coaster stock movements. We tracked IP addresses to keep it on the up and up. Duplicate votes were thrown out. (To the person or persons who voted 1,500 times for Portside - sorry, we tossed 1,499 of those. But nice try! You must really like Portside's beer...)

4. My experiences

It's obvious the common denominator between all the finalists is quality beer. But each is putting creative touches on the local brewing industry, and that's exactly what beer in Northeast Ohio is - an industry. About a fourth of the state's breweries are in Northeast Ohio.

Platform's incubator-business approach is still young, but appears to be working smoothly. The Brew Kettle's brew-on-premise option offers a chance to brew yourself. Portside is making rum as well as beer. Brick and Barrel and The Cleveland Brewery are incorporating wine and beer. Hoppin' Frog's belief is that beer is a communal thing, and offers three sample sizes as well as multiple entertainment options in its tasting room. Thirsty Dog is quietly expanding, recently adding a state-of-the-art bottling line. And Lager Heads in Medina has moved its brewing operation closer to the heart of the downtown area.

Meeting brewers is the highlight of my job. It is not a cutthroat business, and they all are extremely supportive of each other. They are creative types who also must be sharp business people, have more than a basic understanding of chemistry and learn to love janitorial work. What they create is a product that - at least in this part of the country - is sought after and talked about. Craft beer is a testament to supply and demand.

5. Other polls

During the early part of the voting, we also asked beer lovers about their favorite out-of-area breweries and whether there is a stigma with canned beer now.

Any stigma associated with canned beers appears to be nominal at best. When asked, "Do you like beer in cans?" 81 percent voted for "If it's good beer, I don't care what it comes in." Only 19 percent checked "I avoid beer in cans."

When it came to favorite out-of-state craft brewery, a Michigan brewery was the clear favorite. We offered the top 15 by sales volume according to the Brewers Association. All are distributed in Ohio. Here's the vote totals, including the national ranking (NR) by sales volume:

1 - Bell's Brewery, Comstock, Michigan (24.7 percent) - NR: 8.

2 - Stone Brewing Co., Escondido, California (17.4 percent) - NR: 9.

3 - Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, Milton, Delaware (13.1 percent) - NR: 13.

4 - New Belgium Brewing Co., Fort Collins, Colorado (7.7 percent) - NR: 4.

5 - Boston Beer Co., Boston (6.2 percent) - NR: 2.

6 - Lagunitas Brewing Co., Petaluma, California (5.8 percent) - NR: 6.

7 - D.G. Yuengling and Son Inc., Pottsville Pennsylvania (5.4 percent) - NR: 1.

(tie) - Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Chico, California (5.4 percent) - NR: 3.

9 - Deschutes Brewery, Bend, Oregon (4.2 percent) - NR: 7.

10 - Duvel Moortgat USA, Kansas City, Missouri, and Cooperstown, New York (3.5 percent) - NR: 12.

11 - Brooklyn Brewery, Brooklyn, New York (2.7 percent) - NR: 11.

12 - Harpoon Brewery, Boston (2.3 percent) - NR: 15.

13 - Minhas Craft Brewery, Monroe, Wisconsin (0.8 percent) - NR: 10.

14 - Gambrinus, Texas (0.4 percent) - NR: 5.

(tie) - Matt Brewing, Utica, New York (0.4 percent) - NR: 14

I did not vote in the local competition, but I did vote for Duvel Moortgat in the out-of-state breweries poll.