Craft Brewers Predict 2017 Beer Trends
Photo by LuvLens Photography
Okay, if we’re gonna post some 2017 predictions, we might as well post more as we find them. Here’s what some of the top brewers in the country think will happen this year. Thanks to Tasting Table for sharing their “Hopstradamus’s” predictions.
Culinary Crossover
Adam Beauchamp, cofounder and brewmaster of Creature Comforts Brewing Co. in Athens, Georgia, thinks there’ll be more synergy between beer and food worlds. “I think brewers will likely borrow processes and techniques from chefs, including the molecular gastronomist types.”
Style Watch
Brooklyn Brewery’s Garrett Oliver thinks the ascendant sour market will continue to grow. He sees sour beers in 2017, “going from perhaps 2 percent of overall craft beer sales . . . to more like 5 percent, and then up from there.”
However, Jeffrey Stuffings, founder of Jester King Brewery in Austin, Texas, sees “simple, clean lager styles” like pilsner receiving more attention in 2017.
Reigning (and Raining) Hops
IPAs comprised roughly a quarter of the country’s craft beer sales in 2016, and will continue to dominate and diversify. According to Henry Nguyen, co-owner and brewmaster of California’s Monkish Brewing Co., new-wave brews will reinvigorate the IPA category.
The More You Grow
As the craft beer industry expands, navigating its crowded space requires increased savvy from everyone involved – especially drinkers.
Chris Boggess, head brewer at 3 Floyds Brewing Co., foresees more buyouts by global giants like Anheuser-Busch InBev. “Hopefully, the beer out of ‘bought breweries’ will improve and not get watered down for more profit.”
Get the full story at TastingTable.com.
