Move over pale ales and IPAs, there’s a quirky new beer trend in town, and it’s making even the most die-hard hop heads raise an eyebrow.
In the U.S., breweries are increasingly offering so-called smoothie beers — fruity, juicy brews that almost taste like a blended fruit drink rather than a classic beer. These smoothie-style beers have helped some brewers boost overall sales by attracting curious drinkers who might normally avoid anything that doesn’t taste like bitter hops and cold steel.
The trend has proven divisive: traditional beer lovers scoff at the idea of a beer that tastes like a smoothie and question whether sipping something that looks like dessert still counts as drinking beer — or if it’s just a prank on their taste buds. Meanwhile, the breweries pushing these fruity concoctions argue they’re bringing in a whole new audience and keeping the beer world interesting with bold flavors and creative twists. Whether you salute this evolution or joke that ordering a smoothie beer is an insult to every lager-downing legend, there’s no denying it’s stirring up conversation in bars across the country.