The Major Beer Trends for 2025: Innovation, Sustainability and Unprecedented Experiences

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Beer trends 2025
Pang Pang Brewery

The beer market is undergoing a transformation driven by consumers’ search for meaning, authenticity, and creativity. With the rising prominence of non-alcoholic beers, the growing appeal for limited-edition creations, and an imperative for sustainability, breweries must exhibit agility to respond to new expectations. What will the brewing world look like in 2025? Which key trends will shape the choices of beer lovers? This article offers a forward-looking insight into an industry in full effervescence.

To help you gain clarity and anticipate the key challenges in the coming months, you can obtain the strategic report « Consumer Trends in Beer – 2025 Season » published by Ludovic Mornand, founder of Studio Blackthorns.

The Rise of Non-Alcoholic Beers

The popularity of alcohol-free and low-alcohol beers continues to grow, fuelled by increasing demand—particularly among younger consumers. Thanks to technological progress and improved brewing processes, breweries now offer high-quality non-alcoholic beverages with rich and varied aromatic profiles.

Classic styles such as IPAs, stouts, and sours are now available in non-alcoholic versions, democratising these beers for a broader audience. Pioneers like Athletic Brewing and Heineken (with its 0.0 range) are leading the way in this “nolow” revolution.

The brewing industry faces a three-fold challenge: the non-alcoholic beer boom, consumer appetite for limited editions, and sustainability mandates - requiring unprecedented adaptability to meet market demands.

no low beer

Craft and Local Beers More Popular Than Ever

The enthusiasm for craft beers remains undiminished, with an ever-growing demand for authentic, innovative, and high-quality products. IPAs continue to reign supreme on the craft scene—especially New England IPAs (NEIPAs) with their fruity notes and subdued bitterness.

Simultaneously, consumers are looking for beers that are deeply rooted in their terroir, celebrating local ingredients and traditional craftsmanship. This renewed focus on locality is also driving interest in heritage styles like “bières de garde”, championed by breweries with strong regional ties.

Innovative Ingredients and Brewing Techniques

To stand out in today’s competitive market, breweries are investing in innovative ingredients and pioneering brewing techniques. The use of low-carbon malts and specialised yeasts pushes the boundaries of creativity.

Innovations such as employing thiols to boost passion fruit notes or adopting “True Hopping” to achieve total control over hop aromas are opening up new prospects for brewers in the quest for differentiation. Originality is more evident now than ever.

The Emergence of Hybrid Beverages

The lines between different beverage categories are blurring as breweries venture beyond their traditional boundaries. This is the rise of “Beyond Beer”, which has given birth to a multitude of original creations.

Whether it’s hard seltzers reimagined as ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktails, hopped sparkling waters known as “Hop Waters”, lemonades, or hopped iced teas, as well as radlers, grape ales, wine spritzers, or even beers enriched with functional ingredients (such as vitamins or CBD) – innovation is at the heart of this diversification. Even cider is reinventing its codes to appeal to the so-called “IPA generation”.

Grape Ales - Wild range by Brasserie Volcelest
Grape Ales - Wild range by Brasserie Volcelest Brasserie Volcelest
Radlers Loop Mission
Radlers Loop Mission
Pinter Pale Ale
Pinter Pale Ale
Dry Hop Ice Tea - Vandestreek
Dry Hop Ice Tea – Vandestreek

Breweries that succeed in engaging their communities in a quest for meaning and sustainability – while upholding authenticity and fostering creativity – will be the big winners of this brewing revolution.

The Challenge of Sustainability

In the face of growing environmental concerns, breweries are now expected to rethink their practices to minimise their impact. Eco-design has become essential—whether by creating beers with a negative carbon footprint, valorising imperfect ingredients, or deploying deposit and reuse systems for packaging.

This drive for sustainability also entails tighter control over water and energy consumption and a thoughtful approach to circularity and local integration. These are the challenges that must be overcome to forge the brewing world of tomorrow.

Conclusion

In summary, with the rise of non-alcoholic beers, innovative ingredients, a diverse range of styles, and the urgency of ecological transition, 2024-2025 promises to be an exciting period for the brewing industry.

Faced with these deep-rooted trends, breweries must be agile and bold in re-enchanting the beer experience and meeting consumer expectations. It is a stimulating challenge that calls for the release of creative energy and responsible innovation.

Rapports stratégiques boisson, bière et spiritueux 2024

Would you like to delve deeper and access a detailed analysis of the trends that will shape the beer world in 2025?

Discover our complete report "Consumer Trends in Beer – 2025 Season (French version)", a treasure trove of insights and advice to help you stay ahead.

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FAQ Beer Trends for 2025

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