Better make it beer

Opinion

4 Mar

Michael Donaldson examines the growing popularity of
“better for you” brews...

My last column of last year briefly touched on the strong demand for “better for you” beers and since then it’s been a drum that’s beating louder.

Now that we’re firmly into the second quarter of the 21st century and with “wellness” having become an entire industry unto itself, beer is not immune from this push.

When a chunk of the world is thinking about getting fitter, living longer, measuring their protein intake, counting their reps in the gym, and limiting their sugar consumption, it’s as certain as taxes that they’re monitoring their alcohol intake as well.

To that end, a corner of the beer market continues to grow and grow, defying the (slight) downturn in the wider industry. It’s a no-brainer that no-alcohol is the biggest winner in the wellness era, but also doing very well is low carb.

Let’s look at non-alcohol first. This segment now makes up 5% of all beer sold in New Zealand, which is about where “craft” was 10 years ago. What’s driving the non-alcohol segment is an increasing number of people going sober – whether permanently, or engaging in “zebra striping” where non-alcs are alternated with alcoholic beverages across an evening or a week. But what’s really boosting non-alc beer is the way it tastes.

“As people embrace low carb in other formats, such as tortillas, protein snacks and bread, it’s only natural they’ll seek out low carb beer.”

These days I won’t entertain anyone who tries to tell me non-alc beer tastes rubbish. There’s been an unbelievable leap forward in the technological side of brewing non-alcoholic beers. In the past two years alone, new speciality yeasts have allowed small scale (craft) brewers to create flavour profiles similar to normally fermented full alcohol beers.

What many people don’t appreciate is just how important yeast is to the taste of a beer. And I’ll admit early non-alcs had an identifiable worty (unfermented) taste. The flavour was muddied in all the senses of the word. But that’s a thing of the past because modern yeasts help create the impression of a fermented beer. Combine that with new hop products, especially liquid and cryo hops, and better use of adjuncts such as oats or rice and we’ve seen the creation of some very tasty beers.

In a market where people both want and enjoy non-alcoholic beer it’s an easy win. The biggest problem for on-premise sales of non-alcs used to be the lack of draught options because of the risk of infection in a keg, but there are even natural preservatives now available that can ensure the health of unpasteurised, non-alc beer. The vast majority are available in cans or bottles and there’s no excuse not to have a wide and interesting selection of zero options.

Then there’s low carb, which is a fascinating study in marketing. By that I mean beer is relatively low in carbs to start with – a pint of beer doesn’t get anywhere near a bowl of fries in that regard. And yet… demand continues to grow. As people embrace low carb in other formats, such as tortillas, protein snacks and bread, it’s only natural they’ll seek out low carb beer.

A great example of this is Urbanaut in Auckland who now have four low carb beers in their range. It started with their Copacabana Brut IPA. When they droppedthe “brut” and rebranded it as low carb sales went up.

Low carb is now responsible for about 20% of the entire beer market in New Zealand. Admittedly it’s a segment dominated by the mega-brand that is Speight’s Summit Ultra but there are some incredibly great tasting craft options as well. And just like non-alcs, the combination of great taste and a consumer belief it’s “better for you” is hard to fault.