How to get ahead of beer trends

We recently talked with Josh Hurst of Pies & Pints about how he knows what beer trends are coming before they arrive.

Here's how he figures it out:

Input 1: beer trends follow a predictable pattern. Learn it.

• For the most part (we know there are exceptions!) beer trends start on the west coast and move eastward.
• They'll pop up in Chicago, NY, Vermont, etc. after that.
• Then smaller, tip-of-the-spear breweries and bars here and there across the country (mostly in cities) will pick up on the trend as well.
• At that point the methodical march across the country begins. Eventually, years later, every brewery, bar, and restaurant will be participating in the trend.

Input 2: Now that you know the pattern, look where the pattern tells you to look based on who you are and where you're located. In other words, do some research.

Here's what to do:

• Think through: where are you located? Is your city ready for the next trend yet?
• Identify markets where the trend has already hit, then identify places that look like you in those markets.
• Now that you know where to look, start researching online and off. Visit the websites and social media of those places you identified. Talk to friends who live in or visit the place you're looking. Take a visit yourself. Talk with breweries, wineries, and importers about what you see and whether they think it's a trend coming your way.

Do that and you'll know what beer trends are coming for you next. You can even be the local spot that embraces the trend first.

👉 And though the goal of this interview was much more "teach a man to fish," we might as well give away some fish too. Here are the trends Josh sees coming next:

• Throwback styles. As Josh said, "there comes a point where you just want to sit down and drink a beer or two," which is exactly what you can't do with a lot of the crazy sours, high-abv stouts, and fruited up IPAs.
• Lagers and pilsners have already been coming back for a couple years, so Josh thinks things like west coast IPAs and pale ales are the next styles poised for a big come back.
• He also thinks there's some latent nostalgia for styles like Black IPAs. Styles like that evaporated over the last decade or so, but breweries have started releasing them again and Josh thinks that movement will be successful.

Check out the full interview for more from Josh:

❓ Why?

Because prospective customers often check out your website to decide whether or not to come in.

They'll click the "see website" link on their maps app, they'll click the link in your social media bio, or maybe they'll just run a google search for "bars near me."

Regardless, they're getting to your website, and if all they see on your website drink menu is "we have specialty cocktails and craft beer," it's easy for those folks to say "uh, no thanks."

And to be clear: you should keep all your menus—including your rotating beer list—up-to-date on your website.

Even if just a couple people each month are drawn into your place because you're website menu hygiene is on-point, that's totally worth it.

❓ How to do it?

Manually is an option (though not a great one—see below). Here's how the manual flow could work for your team:

1. Create a menu page (or different menu pages for your different items) on your website. Most website builders offer an easy-to-use and professional-looking menu template that allows you to avoid using a PDF, meaning your menu will be mobile-friendly.
2. Add your menu content. Be sure to include all your menu items and descriptions.
3. Include an "Updated on" timestamp so that visitors can trust what's up there (sooo many places have out-of-date menus on their website).
4. Make sure everybody who needs it has access and the know-how to update the menu when items change.
5. Every time your menu changes, go to your website and make the updates. Don't forget to change the "Updated on" timestamp.

• The Brewer's Association released its year-end report this week. Big takehomes: craft beer saw its first volume decline outside of COVID years and brewery closures edged upward. The trend lines aren't looking great.
• The first brewery in the United Arab Emirates is set to open in Abu Dhabi. It'll be the first company to legally make alcohol in the region.
• For our Ohio readers, there's still time to enter the state's Winter bottle lottery for a chance to purchase some very rare liquors.
• And finally, Doritos created a nacho cheese flavored liquor. According to them, it was made using real Doritos. Yikes.