FLAVOUR
THE PROS & CONS OF ADDING LIQUID FLAVOUR TO BEER AS CRAFT BREWERS EXPLORE AND EXPAND THE BOUNDARIES OF FLAVOUR IN BEER, MANY TURN TO US WITH QUESTIONS ABOUT USING LIQUID FLAVOURS FOR THEIR BRANDS. IN THIS ARTICLE, FLAVORSUM SPEAK WITH STEPHEN RICH, A BREWER, CERTIFIED CICERONE, PRUD’HOMME BEER SOMMELIER, AND BJCP CERTIFIED BEER JUDGE, TO GET HIS PERSPECTIVES.
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ccording to Mintel, more than 100 new flavoured beers landed on North American retail and grocery shelves in 2020, representing more than 40% of total new product activity. With many breweries selling innovative new flavours directly to customers (and never hitting retail shelves), the actual number of new flavoured beers is likely much higher. Breweries add value to their products, delight customers, and increase market share with flavoured beer offerings, but face a myriad of technical considerations when adding flavour to beer. Is it better to use raw ingredients or a liquid flavour? What
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sanitary and safety concerns should be addressed? When is the best time to add flavour to achieve the desired result? To understand trends in the flavoured beer market and the nuanced pros and cons of adding liquid flavour to beer, the FlavourSum team spoke with Stephen Rich, Brewmaster, Certified Cicerone, Prud’homme Beer Sommelier, and BJCP Certified Beer Judge. Where Are Craft Beers Headed in The Flavour Space? Stephen Rich: Short answer? Some brewers are becoming increasingly interested in flavour, and others are not. Between 25,000 and 30,000 breweries operate globally and 12,000 in North America. And all of them, even in the craft beer market, have a wide range of values, goals, and purposes. What might make a brewery of any size or experience choose to consider adding flavours, or any other new ingredient, process, or technology? Generally, craft breweries are driven by market strategies involving tradition, innovation, or local trends and influence. Tradition-Centered: To my delight, more and more breweries are opening that focus on making classic beer styles—like English, German, Belgian, or otherwise. Because most of these brewers focus on traditional styles, ingredients, and techniques, they are unlikely to incorporate flavours into their beers. Innovation-Focused: Many brewers are always interested and excited to learn about ways to create new, better, more efficient, or lower-cost beers. These brewers will see flavour as an opportunity to innovate to achieve their purpose—better, faster, safer, more efficient, etc. They are looking for new ideas and are more likely to consider flavour a way to reach their goals and build their brand.
Trend-Influenced: Other brewers (both large and small enterprises) want to capture the momentum and opportunity found in current or unexpected trends. These breweries will make a strong play for flavoured beer. With the relative ease of adding a liquid flavour, brewers can rapidly trial new flavour additions to existing beers and find a solution to quickly get to market. And in some cases, using flavour helps them hit critical capacity and distribution targets. Competitive-Response: It’s no secret that hard seltzer and the broader ready-todrink (RTD) market are roaring through the packaged beverage alcohol market and stealing plenty of volume from beer along the way. This competition is predominantly on the backs of larger industrial beers, but craft beer is feeling the pressure. Not only are craft brewers working on creating beers that compete with the easy-drinking and simple nature of hard seltzer, but they are also making their own hard seltzer. Some of these brewers use whole ingredients such as fruit juice, honey, spices, etc., to create hard seltzers that emulate the general process and value set they apply to beer. Other brewers use flavour to create seltzers that might look and feel like the big brands’ versions but have more interesting flavours or profiles. The general influx of new beverages to the market is forcing many brewers to think about their products, ingredients, and processes more strategically. FAST-GROWING TRENDS: FRUIT BEERS Across many of the brewery strategies, the growth and relative success of fruit beers is a burgeoning trend that I think bodes well for flavour use in craft beer. These could include wheat beers with delicate fruit, sour beers with significant fruit, or generic ales built to represent the character
BREWERS JOURNAL CANADA
