28 September 2022

Revealed: Why Young People Don’t Drink Cask Ale. 3 Key Reasons + 5 Ways to #StandUpForCask

In the second of our cask articles, we consider how to sell more beer by engaging younger drinkers.

It’s a perpetual problem for the beer and pub industry: how to get more people to drink cask ale.

It matters not just for the beer style itself or its role in British culture and heritage.

Younger people are an under-tapped market when it comes to cask beer, so what’s putting them off?

It matters for the licensees who serve it, because for each different cask ale on their bar, they need to sell around seventy pints every 3 days.

If they can’t do that, it’s destined for the drain.

Younger people are an under-tapped market when it comes to cask beer, so what’s putting them off?

We spoke to ten young professionals from London and the South of England ranging in age from early to late twenties.

Why Young People Don’t Drink Cask Ale: 3 Key Reasons

Spoiler alert, the answer isn’t earth shattering, it broadly comes down to three things:

1. Young people don’t know what cask ale is – nor what a wide range of beers it encompasses.
2. Young people try cask and receive poor quality beer which puts them off it for good.
3. Younger drinkers aren’t being offered the chance to sample cask beer – without the need to buy whole pints they might not like or want to finish.

Real Ale is Misunderstood by Young People

Most of those we asked felt they didn’t know what real ale, or cask ale was.

(We gave them both terms and explained they were different names for the same thing).

This was even the case for one man who said the drink he chose most often was Doom Bar.

Some knew it was something different from lager but couldn’t explain how it differed.

Some said they’d tried it but disliked it because it was ‘too fizzy’ and among female drinkers’ real ale being ‘filling’ or making them bloated was often mentioned.

This begs the question was it actually real ale they tried – given that its natural carbonation is usually quite far from fizzy and that others complain that it’s flat?

It also suggests the flat complaint can be traced back to poor quality.

young drinkers are unaware of the broad range of flavours cask ale offers and that not all of it is bitter.

A further theme was ‘too bitter’ or preferring sweeter drinks.

Perception of taste and levels of bitterness (and fizziness) is of course down to personal taste and subjective, but it also highlights that these young drinkers are unaware of the broad range of flavours cask ale offers and that not all of it is bitter.

“I would try real ale again if it was in my niche and was specifically flavoured with something I like, for instance chocolate or cherry,” Izzy a 20-year-old Forensics student told us. Her usual is tequila, ‘with salt and lime because it makes drinking fun’ or wine in the £5 – £7 bottle range.

“I would try [more] real ale if there was a flavour I had not heard of, like marshmallow or toffee IPA!”

Another female drinker, 24-year-old Katie a policy officer from London usually opts for flavoured gin, particularly if served in big gin balloons with fruit or peppercorns and lots of ice’ but said she could be tempted to try real ale if it had a ‘unique flavour’ such as it being fruity or herby.

Her views are echoed by marketing officer Tula, aged 22 and from London. “I would try [more] real ale if there was a flavour I had not heard of, like marshmallow or toffee IPA!”

Yet Tula is already a regular real ale drinker who enjoys IPAs but says she wouldn’t have more than two pints in a session and more often opts for lagers such as Amstel or Heineken ‘because they are consistent’ and she knows they will taste nice.

Beth, who is 23 and a data analyst from London told us she is a Brothers cider fan because ‘they have every flavour imaginable’. Beth thinks a free sample of real ale could tempt her, but it would likely need to be fruity and sweet to make her spend money on it.

All this puts me in mind of being in a pub in Burton-upon-Trent some years back when two young women came in.

They were in search of Blue Moon, the American wheat beer often served with a slice of orange and were about to walk out when they didn’t find it.

I talked them into trying a locally brewed golden ale, as the landlady was a proponent of try before you buy and told them she’d serve it with orange slices if they wanted.

It was odd watching someone drink a pint of ale with a slice of orange, but I think it was that which swung it.

Beer purists may baulk, but if it helps licensees sell through those seventy-odd pints more swiftly and keeps pubs in business, then it’s worth looking into at least.

It will seem like sacrilege to some, but just as Guinness and blackcurrant are how some like the black stuff served, perhaps there’s mileage in golden ale and orange – be it a slice of fruit or a slug of squash.

A step further would be to experiment with something like the syrups popular in coffee shops.

Beer purists may baulk, but if it helps licensees sell through those seventy-odd pints more swiftly and keeps pubs in business, then it’s worth looking into at least.

Price Matters

Almost everyone we spoke to for this piece made a reference to price affecting their choice of drink. Katie commented: “I really love rhubarb gin and Sipsmith is my favourite, but I don’t drink it most often as it is pricey!”

While Matt from Bristol, who’s 22 and studying for his Physics PhD, said keg pale ales were his favourite but that he was more likely to drink Guinness or lager if he was planning to have a few pints ‘as they’re cheaper’.

While there’s an argument for charging more for cask because of brewing costs and perceptions of quality its currently cheaper price point could be something that makes it more attractive to younger drinkers.

Where Do Young People Drink?

Some good news is that although they have limited funds, nearly everyone we asked mentioned that they liked to drink down the pub.

This suggests another opportunity to get younger drinkers into cask ale – especially as another theme was social drinking with friends.

Persuading Younger Drinkers to Try Cask Ale

When asked what would persuade them to try cask ale, some were not sure, and others were unconvinced they’d ever like it – a prospect that can’t be ignored.

Yet most said being offered it in the first place or being given a free sample, as well as discovering sweeter beers and specific flavours they already liked could sway them.

Tula perhaps nails things when she says she’d like real ale tasting sessions. “I could try and see what I like without having to drink a whole pint of it!”

But the perception – or effect – of beer causing bloat or being very filling was clearly a barrier for some too.

Even though she is already a real ale drinker Tula perhaps nails things when she says she’d like real ale tasting sessions. “I could try and see what I like without having to drink a whole pint of it!”

Her wish sounds very much like the concept of ‘flights’ whereby three-thirds of beer are served, often on a special tray or paddle, allowing for sampling.

Flights of beer for sampling is a tactic that was imported from craft beer bars in the U.S.

The answer to why younger drinkers aren’t into real ale seems to come down to quality and marketing.

Serve them a perfect glass of beer, with a flavour they enjoy, and providing the price is right they’ll be back for more.

🍺 Beer Takeaway

5 ways to get younger drinkers into cask ale and #StandUpForCask

1. Make sure it’s fresh and perfectly served.
2. Do things by halves – that is promote the half pint and even the third if you can manage the glassware.
3. Do some research, especially if you’re a free house. There’s more to cask ale than the bestselling brands, some of which hark back to pre-craft days when there was less variety and flavour.
4. Consider holding a real ale event aimed at those new to the drink. Think ‘tasting’ rather than beer festival. See if you can source polypins or bag-in-box beers so that you can showcase a good selection of speciality and less hoppy brews, without having to risk a whole cask of each.
5. If you need it, draft in expert advice from a brewer, beer sommelier or real ale aficionado, especially when it comes to selecting beers to tempt palates unfamiliar with real ale.

Sophie Atherton is a freelance writer & journalist. Her work has appeared everywhere from specialist beer and pub magazines to the broadsheet press. She’s also an accredited beer sommelier and an experienced beer judge.