Every month, the federal government approves a massive wave of new craft beer labels. We do the heavy lifting – digging through the dry, clunky database of the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) – to pull out the art, the data, and the trends actually worth looking at. While we have focused exclusively on Illinois for years, this inaugural post marks the launch of a new spin on things: exploring a random state. For our very first draw, Massachusetts emerged as the “winner,” and its latest label approvals did not disappoint.
Label of the Month
With Massachusetts on the radar, the hunt was on. Each month, I pick a single piece of artwork to stand at the front of the pack. Sometimes a design grabs me immediately; other months, it’s a battle between a few brilliant standouts (or a struggle through a sea of mediocrity). Before we crown our very first out-of-state winner, check out the top Massachusetts candidates fighting for the spot:
May 2026 Winner: Juice Project Green Tree House Brewing
Why it won: The color palette is great, but what really sold me is how it channels a full-on Bruce Banner transformation. You can practically feel the Hulk bursting out, completely surrounded by gamma rays.
The May Numbers at a Glance
| Metric | May 2026 Stats |
| Total MA Approvals | 35 |
| Labels Curated Below | 30 |
| The VIP (Most Submissions) | Tree House Brewing (19 labels) |
Tree House Brewing absolutely dominated the compliance queues this month, accounting for nearly a quarter of all curated visual approvals. Dropping 19 labels in a single month might just be the highest volume from a single brewery that I’ve ever tracked.
A Quick Note on the Curation: You won’t find keg collars or generic text-only labels here. In fact, we skip the boring industrial stuff and double-ups to focus strictly on the bottles and cans you’ll actually see in your hand or on the shelves.
The Lineup: New Approvals
