The future looks fruity

Opinion

7 May

The trend towards fruit-infused brews is ripening nicely, says Michael Donaldson...

Things are about to get fruity in beer. ‘Okay’, you might say, ‘I’ve seen all those mango, blueberry and passionfruit IPAs; all those cherry and raspberry sours... what more could they possibly do?’

Well, fruit-infused lagers look like the next big thing. This past summer, we saw a slew of lime-flavoured lagers from craft breweries, all of them riffing off the popular phenomenon of Corona with a wedge of lime in the neck of the bottle.

At the same time, breweries are developing alcoholic lemonades and ginger beers to enter the market alongside popular RTDs. Then, Bach Brewing came out with a non-alcoholic Radler (very good, I might add).

Radler (the German word for ‘cyclist’) is the German variation on a shandy – that mix of beer and lemonade that so many older drinkers used as a gateway to full-strength beer – the lemonade not only diluting the alcohol but also bringing a sweetness to offset beer’s bitter finish.

For many years in New Zealand, “Radler” referred exclusively to Monteith’s Radler because DB had trademarked the term. They intentionally allowed that trademark to lapse last year, permitting other breweries to use it.

“It makes perfect sense to give people – especially younger drinkers – exactly what they want: sweet, fruity beers on a light lager base.”

Recently, 8 Wired released their Breakaway Radler, a lager with lime and lemon. Others will follow and we may see similar offerings inspired by American cult brewery Firestone Walker’s Turbo Radler, which was released last year. These 8% thunderbolts are marketed with lines like: “Is it beer? Is it lemonade?” and “WTF is Radler?”

Of course, none of this is new. English drinkers are well acquainted with ‘shandygaffs’, a mix of beer and ginger ale, as well as ‘lager tops’, which include a dash of lemon on top of their lager foam. The French have their version of shandy too, a ‘panache’, while in Spain it’s a ‘clara’.

But why stop at lemon(ade) and lime? One of the fastest-growing brands in the UK is Jubel, which makes lagers with peach, mango, blood orange, and grapefruit. It was an idea driven by a French beer served with a shot of peach syrup.

British supermarket chain Tesco said lighter-style fruit-driven lagers (4% ABV) had grown by 250% over the past year. The audience for these? You guessed it: drinkers in their 20s and early 30s.

Ben Cole, Tesco’s beer buyer, told the Sunday Times: “The demand for fruit-led brews, particularly lager, has taken the UK drinks market by storm and is the biggest trend to hit the beer scene since the craft boom started more than 15 years ago.”

And here’s the thing, this has been driven by craft beer innovations, which have primed people for more exotic mainstream drinks.

Fruited hazies and milkshake IPAs have flavours that people love, but they often come with higher ABV (around 6%), a rich malt base that some find too heavy, and that bite of bitterness that’s not everyone’s cup of tea.

So it makes perfect sense to give people – especially younger drinkers – exactly what they want: sweet, fruity beers on a light lager base.

It’s how most of us, of a certain age, started out on our beer journey and a reminder that what’s old will one day be new (but improved) again.