This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
The biggest beer trends to watch in 2025
The top five leading beer trends have been outlined in a series of new reports showcasing the potential growth of the brewing industry.
Fruit-flavoured beers
Fruit-flavoured beers have been forecast to be at the heart of boosting sales in the sector over the next five years, with cherry-flavoured brews leading as the fastest-growing style and raspberry-flavour accounting for the largest revenue share.
In new data from global drinks analysts at Research & Markets, the findings showed that the global fruit beer category size is estimated to reach US$433.2 million by 2030, expanding at a CAGR of 4.7% from 2025 to 2030.
The report outlined how “in terms of flavour, the market is bifurcated into peach, raspberry, cherry, apricot, and others” but identified that, looking back, “raspberry-flavoured beer accounted for the largest share of 29.9% in 2019 owing to high popularity of this fruit flavour among young consumers” and “the raspberry segment dominated the industry with the largest revenue share of 29.3% in 2024”. As such, “it is expected to witness significant growth in the coming years”.
Additionally, within the fruit-flavoured beer sector, “cherry-flavoured beer is expected to expand at the fastest CAGR of 5.1% over the forecast period owing to high popularity of this fruit flavour among female consumers”.
Real lager instead of ersatz lager
Also turning heads in the US, reports are also identifying how “you’d be hard-pressed to find a brewery that does not make at least one lager, and most offer a variety”.
But, it was also observed how despite Pilsners being considered to be the most popular, Helles, Vienna lager, Mexican lager and amber lager are also becoming more common, beer styles like Kölsch are also helping to bridge the gap between ale and lager for drinkers trying different styles for the first time and migrating across to something crisper before moving fully into lagers.
Added to this, despite lager being a well known trend among big beer companies, the trend for real lager or world lager over ersatz lager or macro lager was becoming more prevalent as consumers sought quality and authenticity over brand appeal.
One prime example of this can be seen in a recent report via The New York Times which also identified the growing interest in Czech beer pours and styles among consumers with many traditionally presented Czech brews finding fans across the pond in what is becoming a sweeping trend for the category’s popularity in America.
Local brews
Breweries looking to find ways to stay afloat have primarily started to focus more solidly on their consumer base closer to their site and concern themselves less with expansion on a national and international scale. As such, one of the beer trends identified via reports has been that “beers just for locals” has now become something of a thing.
According to sources, “one way many smaller breweries may be able to keep the lights on and the beer flowing is by focusing on their local market” and this “allows them to keep expenses down [and] remain profitable”.
Partner Content
The trend, which is anticipated to lead to smaller breweries offering a beer that you can only get in one place, which is a clever way of creating a buzz and demand among micros offerings and also generating a nice bit of marketing for any small brewery too.
Confectionery-flavoured beers
The novelty style of confectionery is growing in parts of the US with local reports such as Mercury News revealing how brewers are “infusing their beer with flavours like cotton candy, gummy bears and saltwater taffy”.
In a deeper look into the trend, it was noted by trendwatchers that the trend is actually “the logical progression from fruited sours and the numerous sherbet, pastry and slushy beers that many newer breweries have been experimenting with lately, not to mention chocolate and peanut butter beers”.
The potential this offers globally is for confectionery brand owners to begin to collaborate with brewers to bring back nostalgic flavours that would appeal to an legal drinking age (LDA) and upwards demographic in the form of throwback flavours from the eighties and nineties that offer retro appeal.
Light and functional beer
With a gentle flavour, these beers would have typically been considered to be an amber ale or a wheat beer in times gone by, but now, lots of people are said to be seeking lighter tasting ales. Now, lighter styles are being brewed to fit this niche and breweries who offer them are revealing how they’ve become incredibly popular in a short time.
On the ale side, cream ales have recently started growing again in popularity, according to locals and because of the way they are brewed, their taste profile has been described as light and clean. For all of the beer styles that true beer fans adore, “functional beer” as opposed to beer being sold on flavour and quality is also being identified as an emerging sub-category alomngside light beer.
Essentially, the demographic is the same consumer who’s looking for session, low-alcohol or non-alcoholic beer and wants to drink a beer, but is seeking a somewhat healthier version.
Functional beers are also considered, in reports on the topic, to “go a step further, adding things like electrolytes, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and even spirulina”.
But there are setbacks to this category expansion, with brewers having to showcase their beers but without calling their beer “healthy” or make any moves to advertise many of its positive qualities based on it still being considered an alcoholic beverage that should be consumed in moderation.
Even with this consideration, it has been identified that consumers are becoming more well-informed about ingredients in general and are starting to seek out beers that have some of the lifestyle cues they seek in other products, which is a step forwards for “functional beer” but also all good quality beers available across all styles.
Related news
Heineken named ‘best supplier’ in on-trade report
How to update a beer brand without alienating core consumers