New Year New Beer – Beer Trends You’ll See in 2023
Beer-aisle topography shifts yearly as the booming craft beer industry continues to shake the tastes of consumers and disrupt the notion of commonplace in beer.
Some trends pass through as a minor tremor, while others change the consumer landscape in a way we could never predict (looking at you, Hazy IPA).
In 2023, what beers can we expect to make waves on our local beer shelves, or give us something new to try?
As the new year approaches, it’s a great time to explore and try something new. Trying out different beers is a great way to expand your palate and discover something you may have never tried before. With so many craft breweries popping up all over the Northwest, there are endless possibilities of unique flavors and styles of beer to explore. Whether you’re a fan of light lagers, dark stouts , or fruity sours, there’s sure to be something for everyone in the new year. Below is a list of beers I think you should try in 2023!
New Beers to Try in 2023
Craft Lagers
In the mid-90s, Keystone launched a series of commercials targeted against the craft beer industry, claiming that domestic lagers’ hoppier, boozier brethren left consumers with a “bitter beer face.”
Well, a few decades later, it seems consumer palates are finally tiring out as we see craft lagers become more commonplace.
Many breweries are putting pilsners and other traditional, light lagers on as mainstays, and new variants are popping up which involve late-hop infusions to build flavor.
Look for Italian or New Zealand pilsners in the stores to try these variants. It looks like the craft beer scene is shifting.
Cold IPA
Will the Cold IPA boom or bust in 2023?
Many people still don’t know that this new style popped up in 2022.
A Cold IPA is a hybrid of sorts – hopping and subtle fruitiness from warm fermented lager yeast that still finishes crisp from prolonged cold-aging.
My bet is that we will see more IPAs like this in the new year, but I’m not sure the name/branding will stick around.
In general, the Cold IPA fills a hole we’ve had for a long time – We want complex, juicy flavors in a beer suitable for day-drinking. The Cold IPA checks all these boxes, so if you haven’t tried one yet, consider this your sign to do so!
Non-Alcoholic Beer
Non-alcoholic beer is nothing new as a consumer product, but the popularity of non-alcoholic craft beer has EXPLODED in the last few years, in part from the marketing efforts of Athletic Brewing Co.
The success of Athletic Brewing has revealed an under-tapped market, and in the last few years, we have seen several other large-scale non-alcoholic-exclusive brands such as Drop Bear Beer Co. pop up.
Recently, there’s been a general trend in the US pushing back against some of the less healthy habits we see, but consumers seem to be enjoying craft flavors more and more.
Fruited Sours
Although Sour Beers are responsible for this trend being acceptable in the minds of craft-beer snobs, in general, fruited and flavored beers are rising in popularity.
Long past is the stigma that beer needs just four ingredients, and if you can’t see your hand through the glass, the beer doesn’t pass.
Breweries are finally leaning into their ability to explore a world of flavors beyond Reinheitsgebot, and we are seeing much bolder options as a result.
Sours themselves are becoming more and more mainstream though, so don’t count out something like a mixed-berry cobbler sour that may or may not happen to be named after a penguin (definitely not a shameless Genus Brewing plug…).
One of my favorite fruited sours you can find on store shelves is Sipping Pretty by Odell Brewing (although you may have to hop over to the Idaho side to find that).
As you wander down that famed aisle in the grocery store, what fresh drink will you try? Don’t rush and try all the new drinks, of course, you have all of 2023 to do that! With so many new beers to try in the new year, you’ll be sure to find something that fits your taste. Whether it’s a cold IPA, non-alcoholic beer, or fruited sour, there is something for everyone. So cheers to 2023 and all the delicious drinks it has to offer!
Let us know what new beverages you sip this year by following @trendingnorthwestmag.
Peter McArthur
An industry professional of twelve years, Peter McArthur owns Genus Brewing, a brewery and brewing supply store in the Spokane Valley. Talking with home and professional brewers daily puts him in a unique position to translate and transmit the happenings in the beer world, a reason why Genus Brewing started a YouTube channel about four years ago, which now holds weekly livestreams and produces videos teaching about beer and the beer-making process.
