The Second Wave of Craft Beers in India: Shift towards the sale of Packaged Craft Beer
- Published | 05 September 2018
Customised Beer is the latest addition in the Liquor market
India: The rise in the use of high-quality fruits in funky or barrel-aged beers is currently an emerging trend in the beer market and will have a positive impact on the future liquor market. The production of small amounts of beer within the brewery that can emphasize on quality, brewing trend and flavour is considered to suit the customer requirements. These small breweries or craft breweries which were set up in India due to the increasing demand for craft beers has now shifted to selling these beers in packaged bottles. Geist, a small craft brewery in Bengaluru, which is been set up as a full-fledged brewery in 2017, in Karnataka, were selling as well as distributing small batches of craft beer within 55 locations in the state. Geist is now planning to bottle these beers and sell it in the market, like the other craft breweries across the country.
The craft beer market in India is still in its nascent stage and has an estimated consumption of around 47 million litres in 2017, which is further expected to increase significantly in the upcoming years. However, the US market, where the craft beers is expected to have originated, have more than 6,000 craft breweries and the expected sale from the craft beers is around 12% within the overall beer market in US. Since last five years, the market has witnessed an increase in the number of microbreweries in India. As per the Craft Brewers Association of India (CBAI), the number has accelerated from 20 to 120 microbreweries. It is further anticipated to grow over 40% a year due to increase in disposable income and globalisation among young crowd.
The first wave of craft beers in India was related to the set-up of microbreweries and brewpubs. According to the market reports, the brewpub model has worked in the metro cities of the country, thus the market players are thinking to pack their produces of craft beers for the people across the country. The trend of producing beer within the small breweries and then selling them in the packaged bottle within the market has already been established in US, that is impacting the Indian market as well.
According to BlueWeave Consulting, there is a growing demand for craft beer in the U.S., Germany, Belgium, UK, Japan, India and China, owing to increase in the number of small brewers in the market who produce customized beers according to consumer demand. The U.S. market experienced sluggish growth post-introduction period of the product, owing to the consumer preference for mainstream beer over craft beer. However, advancement in the brewing process and the use of premium quality raw materials has improved the overall characteristics of the product, which has intrigued the attention of the consumers. In addition to this, the increasing demand for beer, produced with local, cultural and sustainable ingredients, are contributing significantly for the growth of craft beers that has flavours which are often exclusively available at the location of the production.