We’re a few sips into American Craft Beer Week, which runs until Sunday.

As part of the annual event, bars and restaurants in Westerly, New London and elsewhere are celebrating by focusing on some outstanding craft brews.

Nationwide, one brewery in all 50 states has made a beer in honor of American Craft Beer Week using the same ingredients. In our area, Willimantic Brewing was part of #MakeSmallBeerBig. In Rhode Island, it was Revival Brewing Co. in Cranston.

“Each participating brewery was invited to brew the beer with the understanding that even with the same recipe, no beer could be exactly the same,” according to craftbeer.com.

You can try the special beer at the Willimantic brewpub this week.

This year there’s a lot to celebrate, as the local beer scene keeps expanding. Fans of full-flavored brews can pick between Cottrell, Beer’d, Outer Light, Safe Harbor and Grey Sail, or stop in at brewpubs in Norwich and Willimantic.

To do our part, the beer geeks here at The Day have listed a few of their favorite craft beers:

Captain’s Daughter

Grey Sail Brewing, Westerly

Steve Greenlee, a former colleague at The Day who later wrote a beer column for the Boston Globe and now works in Maine, sent me a message one day wondering if I had tried Captain’s Daughter. Of course, I had, I told him.

“It's freaking awesome. Tastes exactly like Heady Topper,” he replied.

High praise from a guy who knows his beer.

After Heady Topper was rated the fifth best beer in the world by Beer Advocate, grabbing a few cans has been extremely difficult. Beer freaks travel from all over to Vermont to stake out deliveries at small convenience stores.

Another colleague, Gavin Keefe, grew up in Vermont so I’m lucky enough to get occasional deliveries.

Like Heady Topper, Captain’s Daughter is a double IPA, the hottest craft style of the moment, and thus has a pleasing grapefruity flavor. At 8.5 percent ABV, it has a kick, too. Package store owners have gotten used to calls about whether they have any Captain's Daughter in stock.

Beer Advocate gave Heady Topper a perfect score of 100, while Captain’s Daughter came in at 95, which makes it a world-class beer. Right here in our back yard. Happy hunting.

— Tim Cotter

Big Cranky

Stony Creek Brewery, Branford

Up until 2015, Stony Creek produced contract craft beers through Thomas Hooker Brewery. In 2015, they rebranded and opened their state-of-the-art brewery and tasting room in Branford.

Among their offerings is a line of IPAs: Little Cranky (a session IPA), Cranky (IPA) and Big Cranky (double IPA).

Big Cranky, which claims to be an “aggressive laid-back beer,” has a 9.5 percent ABV and 95 IBU (International Bitterness Units). According to its orange pint can decorated with Stony Creek’s great blue heron logo, seven varieties of hops solidify the beer’s IPA credentials.

Pour a pint-ful and you'll see its medium amber color and catch a whiff of its slightly sweet and citrusy aroma. Big Cranky offers up a moderate amount of carbonation with a malty citrus taste upfront that settles into a mild floral bitterness.

While most double IPAs hit you with their booziness and bitterness, this one instead lives up to its label as a “laid-back” beer that would pair well with anything coming off an outdoor grill. Beer Advocate gives Big Cranky a score of 89 (very good) while beer aficionados on Untappd give it a 3.85 (out of 5) rating.

— Carlos Virgen

The Crisp

Sixpoint Brewery, Brooklyn

In a world of beer parvenus — or parvenue, or both — it’s not easy being someone who enthusiastically enjoys a water-flavored beer or nine. And yet, that’s me. From the glory-remember’d days of my beer-drinking youth, where such obsolete brands such as Falstaff, Dixie, Jax and Schlitz fueled my dreams on a sweet tide of cheap lager, I continue to champion this noble beer style. Consider, for example The Crisp, a stunningly great offering from the Sixpoint folks in Brooklyn. With a lacy foam head atop a glass of October gold, the German-style pilsner is sharply crisp, infused with tiny bubbles that tease the tongue, and boasts slight but quenching tones of citrus, hops and pine.

— Rick Koster

American Ale

Thimble Island Brewing Company, Branford

The first beer made by the first dedicated brewery in what’s become beer mecca, Branford, American Ale is a clean, straightforward amber-red ale that’s angling in on Bass to become my go-to beer. Sturdy enough to pair with food and easy enough to drink on a hot day, it has a steady, mildly citrusy hop that doesn’t overpower the underlying malt. It’s a craft beer that doesn’t require an explanation to your beer drinking friends who like both types of beer: regular and light.

— Brian Boyd

Purple Haze

Abita Brewing Company, Covington, Louisiana

As a hop-phobic beer drinker, my options when my thirst demands a brew are limited. Still, in this Great Age of Craft Brewing, I suspect there’s a beer out there for every palate. Mine prefers wheat beers. With their soft touch and zero bitterness wheat beers are, for me, the most quaffable base; one that goes very well with a responsible touch of fruit flavor. Even better than a hefeweizen with a wedge of lemon dropped in is Abita’s Purple Haze, a lager I was thrilled to find on tap at the Black Sheep Pub in Niantic last summer. (More and more package stores are carrying it, too.) No syrup-y sweet flavors here, Purple Haze is a beer first, not some booze-candy “hard” soda concoction. Brewed with (real) raspberries, pilsner and wheat malts and Vanguard hops, Purple Haze is a cloudy, golden amber mixture that goes down all too easily thanks to a perfect raspberry-to-beer ratio. It’s a bit like a (good) raspberry scone: the berries merely brighten up the mix with a quick bolt of tanginess, which happily gives way to the smooth, smooth sailing of the bread-y base. Try one that’s nice and cold in the summer sunshine and see if you don’t mind sacrificing some hop-age for a refreshing berry burst.

— Marisa Nadolny

Safe Harbor American Blonde Ale

The Great New London Brewing Company, New London

Remember Rheingold, the “dry” beer? I first heard about it upon moving to New England and, intrigued because a liquid is, well, liquid and not dry, sought it out. I liked it a lot — so naturally they went immediately out of business. Safe Harbor has a dry quality that resonates with me in big fashion. I think “dry” has something to do with minimal sugars, but that’s Brewing Dude talk. All I know is this is an eminently drinkable, pale butterscotch-colored blonde ale with whispers of grapefruit and a slight, pleasing peppery aftertaste. Proud of this hometown beer!

— Rick Koster

THROUGH SUNDAY

Firestone Walker Week-Long Tap Takeover, The Oasis Pub, New London

#BiggestSmallBeerEver, Willimantic Brewing Co and Main Street Cafe, Willimantic

WEDNESDAY

Two Roads Comes To New London, The Oasis Pub

Founders Tap Takeover & KBS Keg Tapping, The Malted Barley, Westerly

Long Trail Beer and Cheese Tasting, 84 Tavern on Canal, Westerly

THURSDAY

The New Face Of City Steam, The Oasis Pub, New London

Narragansett Beer Event, Upper Deck, Westbrook

ACBW Nationwide Toast, 84 Tavern on Canal, Westerly

Revival Tap Takeover, 84 Tavern on Canal, Westerly

FRIDAY

Connecticut Beer Night, The Oasis Pub, New London

Grey Sail Brewery Night, Cleats, Westerly

A Flock of Geese and a Barrel of BCS, The Malted Barley, Westerly

Cottrell Brewing Tap Takeover, 84 Tavern on Canal, Westerly

SATURDAY

The “Maine” Event, The Oasis Pub, New London

21st Amendment Beer Brunch, 84 Tavern on Canal, Westerly

Nose to Tail Swine and Dine, 84 Tavern on Canal, Westerly