My latest print article for The Bulletin is out today: The year ahead in beer. In it I offer up a short overview of the turbulent year that was 2019 in the beer industry, and then look to trends for 2020—as predicted by local brewers and industry pros. In particular, I reached out to a number of folks and asked two questions:

1. What trends do you think we’ll see in beer for 2020?
2. What trends do you want to see in beer for the next year?

In the article I summarize a number of the responses and identify some of the big trends in the answers. I had 15 respondents to my questions by deadline, and two more came in after; unfortunately due to column space constraints I couldn’t fit every answer from every brewer—so that’s what this post is for, to accompany the article.

Here are the full responses from everyone who answered my two questions, in the order that I received them.

And a big “Thank you!” to everyone who answered. This is an interesting glimpse into the brewers’ perspective on the coming year.

Zach Beckwith, Head Brewer, Bend Brewing Company

You asked about the most trend averse guy out there but I’ll give it a shot.

1. What trends do you think we’ll see in beer for 2020?
   I think we’ll see a lot of people that got into “craft beer” through some of the recent trends start to head the other direction and look towards more classic, nuanced beers and less in your face novelty beers.  Hard seltzers and FMBs are part of a large discussion right now in the industry but I don’t see those siphoning off a huge portion of dedicated BEER drinkers.  I think that past trends have mainstreamed “craft beer” and that has opened a larger group of people to the same sort of trajectory that early “craft beer” drinkers found themselves (me included) on.  Basically what I’m saying is that not everyone is going to become a beer geek but with more people overall exposed to “craft beer” you’re naturally going to create more beer geeks, and they aren’t going to switch to hard seltzers and FMBs.  From a brewer perspective I think that hazy and milkshake beers have plateaued but well crafted lagers are still ascending.
2. What trends do you want to see in beer for the next year?
   Sessionable beer flavored beers becoming viable, especially on cask.  I’d also like to see more stouts without crazy adjuncts and a wider variety of styles available in package.

Veronica Vega, R&D Brewmaster, Deschutes Brewery

1. What trends do you think we’ll see in beer for 2020?
   Crystal ball says more global lagers, cold brew beers, matte cans, still more fruited sours and hazies. Low to no alc beers and more health conscious option will continue to grow. Big flavor across the board and more cross category beers like wine/beer hybrids. Hop companies are also busy with their own innovations so we will see more unique hop products in beers in 2020.
2. What trends do you want to see in beer for the next year?
   I was recently at Brewbound and saw great presentations by the team at Crowns & Hops who for 6 years have been doing the work to make craft beer accessible the African American community. It was super inspiring.  Their mission is to preserve culture, expand the palate, and build the community. I would like to see us (myself included) putting more effort in to extend our already established value of community in craft beer, to minority groups. What barriers are we putting up that we may not see? Action and continued dialogue around how we can improve diversity and inclusion in craft beer is what I want to see.

Steven Anderson, Owner & Head Brewer, Kobold Brewing

1. Trends for 2020:

1. IPA’s will still rule all sales, hazy IPA at the forefront.
2. More people drinking lagers and more breweries making them.  Kobold just brewed an India Pale Lager that came in at 6.5 ABV with a huge citrus and passion fruit hop aroma and flavor and has been my go to lately; I love it.
3. A diverse amount of sour beers, like milkshake or smoothie sours becoming more available.  This includes easy to drink Berliner Weisse with various fruit additions.
4. More breweries doing historic styles like Braggot, Gose and Gruit.  And more breweries making beers that are replicating food items like Blueberry  Muffin or Triple Stack.
5. If you want to categorize this with beer, you will see many more breweries creating hard seltzers.  The sales of these have exploded and, because of all of the competition in the brewing world, breweries are looking for ways to increase revenues.

Creativity is the key to Craft and you will see more and more creative, unique beer as time passes.  There are a tremendous amount of craft breweries with a ton of smart creative brewers that love to express their passion with new creations and new twists on traditional brews.

2. Trends I want to see in 2020:

1. Creativity is a great thing; I love that brewers are willing to try just about anything to find the next great beer.
2. Keep rocking the lagers.
3. I am a huge fan of barrel-aged beer including Pfriem Flanders Red and my own Lawful Evil R.I.S., keep the barrel-aged brews coming.
4. I am not a fan of sweet beer but they are selling like mad and defining some breweries brands; I’d like to see it go away, even though I know it won’t.

So I think in 2020 we will find many more beer styles and creations at all craft breweries that hopefully will include various lagers, barrel-aged brews and unique spins on traditional beers.

Ty Barnett, Co-Owner & Managing Partner, GoodLife Brewing

• What trends do you think we’ll see in beer for 2020?
  I think we are going to see a lot more low-calorie beers in 2020. With the increase of hard seltzer products on the market over the last few years like White Claw, Truly and Wild Basin. Craft beer is going to have to provide a beer to try and compete with these Better-for-You type products that offer less than 100 calories. Which we are already starting to see from breweries like Dog Fish Head, Sierra Nevada, and Deschutes.
• What trends do you want to see in beer for the next year?
  I mean I am all for Pilsners but what I would love to see in 2020 is a return to traditional styles lagers of all kinds on tap that we just haven’t seen in a while. Lagers like Helles, Mazen, or Dortmunder would be great to see more of.

Ryan Schmiege, Brewmaster, Cascade Lakes Brewing

1. I don’t think the haze craze is going anywhere, yet. Lower ABV offerings may also begin to trend up.
2. I get heckled a fair amount for my love of smoked beers. But I think there are lots of great uses for smoked malts in several styles of beer. Combine a smoked beer with grilled or smoked foods in the summer sun and you’ve got yourself a great backyard afternoon!

Nate Doss, Owner & Head Brewer, Bevel Craft Brewing

I must first state that when it comes to trends I have never considered myself an expert. I have always lived off the idea that a great product will be universally loved by many. With all that said, the following is my best guess.

1. What trends do you think we’ll see in beer for 2020?
   I would say that we will continue to see a trend towards hyper local beer. In my travels I have seen upwards of 5 small craft breweries on the same street. Each brewery providing its own atmosphere and beer culture. I believe this trend will continue with a heavy emphasis on innovation and experimentation.
2. What trends do you want to see in beer for the next year?
   I personally want to see the aforementioned innovation to continue. As a brewer I try to find interesting ways to use hops as that is my preferred ingredient but this can and should be said for each of the four main beer ingredients; grain, hops, yeast and water. To be honest this is not really a trend as brewers have been finding interesting ways to use the ingredients for as long as beer has been made, I just enjoy the fruits of their labor.

Paul Arney, Owner & Brewmaster, The Ale Apothecary

1. I think we’ll see more homogenization of both beer styles and brewery ownership…consolidation and buy-outs/mergers/acquisitions are going to keep happening for a while as well as the slow death of beer styles save the ever-expanding IPA. Unfortunately, I find the current trends a bit depressing, BUT I do like the trend of small breweries serving their local markets; this seems the perfect place for the small brewer to survive and thrive. Now if they would do a bit more to push our consumer to explore beer flavors instead of imitation pastry ones…?
2. The trend that I would like to see, primarily, is that of an aware consumer that understands where their dollar goes in the end. My questions about Local, Craft, and ownership won’t get answered definitively in 2020, but I’d sure like to see beer drinkers using their minds and voting with their wallets on these issues that are important for a variety of reasons. These consumers won’t shop at Wal-Mart, but at least Wal-Mart is an American company. So many beer brands that are favored without question are foreign-owned gigantic corporations (as you know). I’m hoping the beer drinker will catch up to the foodies a bit in this coming year!

Tyler West, Head Brewer, GoodLife Brewing

1. What trends do you think we’ll see in beer for 2020?
   I guess if I could predict the next trends, I would be a retired man! haha, I do however think beer is going to be challenged by the healthier Culture Craze. People will continue to reach for a healthier alternative to beer, or even a healthier beer itself. There is a trend approaching in the “Micro IPA” category, which is lower ABV, but still Hop forward and satisfying to drink!
2. What trends do you want to see in beer for the next year?
   What I would like to see, is for breweries to continue to push the bounds on quality. In the several years I have been brewing, beer quality has taken a serious priority over Volume, and that is what is driving Great, Consistently produced beer! I would like to see an upward growth pattern in Craft Lager consumption, Pilsner, Helles, and other European Lager Styles.

Gary Fish, Founder & Owner, Deschutes Brewery

It seems to get harder and harder to look forward in this industry. However, my big prediction is IPA’s will remain strong. How’s that!?

Actually, I am waiting for the next wave of “new-age” hops to arrive. Remember Citra and Mosaic? We have had a few since then, but nothing that changed the beer-flavor landscape like those did.

Another easy one…..Beyond Beer-type beers will continue to stretch our definition. Sure, seltzer will continue to rock. It’s success will lead to more innovation as brewers finally begin to actually listen to their consumers instead of the mantra “we drink what we want and sell the rest”. Many breweries are already producing across categories, like cider, spirits, seltzers, RTD’s, etc.

“Better for You” category will continue to grow with low alcohol, low carb, low cal beers being regularly produced. Yes, even Non-alc beers will see their way into portfolios of craft breweries is larger and larger quantities.

Personally, I want to see all these things. We need to expand the consumer base for craft beer, at least enough to keep up with the increase in the number of breweries. It’s too much to continue to wait for consumers to find us, or behave rationally. We need to find out how to interest them in what we are doing. Everyone knows craft beer now, and are making their own choices of what to drink. The idea that everyone will drink only IPA’s because that’s all we drink is unreasonable and unsustainable. We have reached effective saturation, yet breweries continue to open and bring more unfilled capacity. If we are to survive, we need to be more creative and innovative.

Brett Thomas, Directory of Brewery Operations, Sunriver Brewing

1. What trends do you think we’ll see in beer for 2020?
   I think we’ll see a hint of renewed interest in pale colored beer flavored beer, maybe with a focus on well-made traditional styles like West Coast IPA, Pilsner and Saison. Beyond that, lots of hazy IPA, pastry/flavored stouts and an increasing number of cocktail/botanical inspired beers. Collaboration brews will continue to be hot. I think kettle sours are on the decline, along with non-Saison Belgian styles and most US and UK classic styles.
2. What trends do you want to see in beer for the next year?
   A focus on beer quality would be nice. So many brewers are focusing exclusively on flavor development that beer quality is often an afterthought, and unfortunately, it reflects in their products. Brewers that don’t know about things like oxidation, diacetyl or CO2 volumes are doing themselves, the industry and their customers a great disservice.

Brian Mitchell, Owner, Wild Ride Brewing

As much as I wish I had that crystal ball to predict the future, the craft beer industry continues to keep us on our toes within our brewery operation. We have always been believers of variety … a style for any craft beer drinker … and that has served as well as the industry has become more of the “what’s new?; what’s next?” over the past couple of years. We work hard to be forward thinking and less reactionary, although there are certainly times where a beer style that may not be on our radar initially gains a lot of popularity and we’re essentially forced to take a closer look at that. We’re willing to adjust and adapt, but we like to think we do a good job planning for what’s to come and are prepared for the industry trends.

In any case, as to your questions . . .

1. Trends that I think we’ll see in 2020: More of the same? While we expect to see the ‘haze craze’ lose a bit of steam, we certainly don’t expect it’s a style that will be going away anytime soon. Too many people are enjoying those beers! We expect it’ll continue to be an IPA dominant industry, with perhaps a shift or correction back to west-coast style IPAs versus all the attention on Hazy IPAs. I believe we’ll see a continuing growth in lighter/lower-ABV beers gaining traction in the industry … lagers, pilsners, etc … but we don’t think that’ll overtake the popularity of hoppy, flavorful IPAs. Beyond that, I’m sure we’ll continue to see breweries push the envelope a bit on new styles with the search to find the next beer style that takes off.
2. Trends that I want to see in 2020: I personally enjoy seeing the variety and experimentation within our industry. New beers are fun to try and it constantly forces you to test your palate and keep an open-mind to what’s out there. I do hope there is an increased value and attention being given to quality though. Consumers should demand great beer, and breweries should work extremely hard to put out the best product possible.

Robin Johnson, Assistant Brewmater – Bend Pub, Deschutes Brewery

1. What trends do you think we’ll see in beer for 2020?
   We’ve seen a lot of movement towards “lifestyle” beers in 2019. I think we’ll see more of this low ABV trend in 2020 but with a focus on flavor and quality. There’s been a lot of extreme flavored beers out there as well, pastry beers and crazy milkshake-monkeyhair IPA’s, which I think we’ll see even more of as brewers try to differentiate from the packed crowd.
2. What trends do you want to see in beer for the next year?
   I want to see more craft lagers! Really good ones that are super clean and use amazing ingredients. Brewers can really show off their technical skill with these types of beers. Great lagers are easy for everyone to appreciate and you can really feel love and care expressed in them.

Tonya Cornett, Innovation Brewmaster, 10 Barrel Brewing

1. What trends do you think we’ll see in beer for 2020?
   We will definitely see a continuation of Hazy IPAs in the form of fruited versions and Mountain IPAs, which is an old school meets new school IPA. Pastry styles have not made a big impression in Oregon so we may see those pop up. Given our health conscious culture I doubt they are as big a hit as they are in Chicago and New York. I am also seeing Brut IPAs making a small resurgence lately.
2. What trends do you want to see in beer for the next year?
   In Oregon we have certainly seen more lagers popping up in the market over the last few years. We have been diligently working on a handful of offerings so I hope this trend continues.

I also forgot to mention that we will see tons of under 100 calorie beer options as well as craft versions of no alcohol beer coming to market.

Bryon Pyka, Innovation Brewer, 10 Barrel Brewing

1) As much the as Hazy IPA trend shows no slowing down, there definitely seems to be a growing appreciation for craft lagers, particularly Czech/German-style Pilsner and Japanese rice lagers. Lagers have certainly picked up as far as sales on draft in our pubs. Some new “styles” seem to have some momentum – Italian-style Pilsner, Rosé inspired beers, and dessert inspired sour beers. In general, people seem to be reaching more for lower alcohol beers.

2) Every brewer wants to see lagers catch some more steam, and I’m totally behind that. Hopefully 2020 is the year of the crispy boi! Bend is so saturated with IPAs that it’d be nice to see people locally expanding their palates further beyond hops – whether that’s through lagers, Belgian-styles, sours, barrel aged beers, or whatever else. From a national perspective, lactose has its place in beer, but it’s becoming a bit absurd in its overuse. Between that and the Hazy IPAs tasting like juice, we’re going after consumers that don’t even like the taste of beer. I can absolutely enjoy some of these kinds of beers, but it’d be nice to get people back to enjoying some classic styles!

Todd Clement, Owner & Head Brewer, Monkless Belgian Ales

Here are some quick thoughts:

1) What trends do you think we’ll see in beer for 2020?

• Haze for days – Hazy IPAs will continue to dominate cooler shelves and tap handles.
• Everything old is new again – “old world” beers will re-emerge as tried and true favorites capturing more market share.
• Light crushable lagers like Italian Pilsners, Japanese Rice Lagers & Kölsch

2) What trends do you want to see in beer for the next year?

• Brewing with more focus on yeast-driven flavor profiles versus hopping aboard the hop train to Hopville. I would love to see more breweries brew styles that showcase the nuances captured in regional and even native yeasts.
  • Belgian Abbey/Monastery Strains
  • Nordic Strains
  • Farmhouse Strains
  • Asian Rice Strains

Dustin Kellner, Brewmaster, Worthy Brewing

1. I think we will continue to see the hazy segement grow, and no style will be off limits. Hazy everything!
2. I would like to see the lager resurgence continue. It is probably the best answer we have to the low cal appeal of seltzers and equaly as much room to be creative.

Jimmy Seifrit, Brewmaster, 10 Barrel Brewing

1. What trends do you think we’ll see in beer for 2020?
   I believe you will see the Mountain IPA style take off. This movement is starting to take hold in Colorado which I see then transitioning to the west coast before it moves to the other side of the country.
2. What trends do you want to see in beer for the next year?
   I would like to see the industry move away from overly sweet and fruity IPA’s and back to a more aggressive bitter brighter IPA.