4 beer trends on tap in 2026

January is a great time to take stock of what happened in the beer world the previous year and explore how the beer scene changed, assess current trends and predict where it might actually go in the coming year. Sometimes, the predictions are almost too easy: IPAs will continue to be popular. Other times, they’re less obvious. Recent trends that mostly fizzled out include brut IPAs, sour beers and pastry stouts.

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A lot of these shifts are driven by changing tastes, younger generations coming of age and the fact that most of us are drinking less than we used to — a phenomenon that’s been happening for decades. A recent Gallup poll regarding drinking patterns in the U.S. shows that we’re imbibing at the lowest level in 90 years. Given that people are not drinking as much and that most breweries have not fully recovered from COVID-related economic impacts, these remain challenging times for U.S. breweries.

Taking that all into account, here are a few of my observations, musings and predictions for beer in 2026.

Whales have been beached

Once upon a time, whales were the darlings of the beer scene. What’s a whale? It’s loosely defined as a beer that’s hard to find, very limited in production and/or availability and only available for a short window of time, often only in a single place or a small number of spots. Whales are often also high in alcohol, and some special process has been used to make them, such aging in special wooden barrels. A whole subculture of beer aficionados chasing whales was created, trying to get as many as possible. It wasn’t easy to do, and it wasn’t cheap, either. Many breweries hopped on this bandwagon and held their own special release dates throughout the year.

For several years, beer geeks got excited for beers like 3 Floyds’ Dark Lord Imperial Stout, the former Portsmouth Brewery’s Kate the Great, The Bruery’s Black Tuesday and Goose Island’s Bourbon County Brand Original Stout. There have been many others locally available all around the country that none of us heard of because they sold out so quickly that few outsiders had much of a chance to try one. And while many of these still are being made, the allure and hype surrounding them has largely died down.

Happily, one local exception to this is Russian River’s Pliny the Younger. Brewmaster Vinnie Cilurzo never set out to make it such a sensation. Organically, more and more people are finding out about it and showing up every year, and it has just kept growing. I’m confident that when it’s released again this year, on March 20, it will continue to be as big or bigger than previous years.

But generally, fewer people are seeking out these whales, so fewer are being made, partly because people are not drinking as many high-octane, high alcohol beers.

Lower- and no-alcohol beers are the new normal

As whales and high-alcohol beers decline, they’re being replaced by lower-alcohol beers and, in some cases, no alcohol beers, which have surged in popularity for several years. Likewise, session beers in concept and reality are growing as many more people are choosing to drink less.

Lower-alcohol beer can mean longer sessions in bars, deep in conversation with friends and yield the best of pub culture. It’s probably no coincidence that Great Britain, which boasts a vibrant, community-like pub scene, also serves beers that are typically lower in alcohol than American beers. Expect more bars to round out their selections, offering not just IPAs and higher-ABV beers but also more pilsners and other lagers and offering generally more diversity in beer styles.

Malt will make a comeback

This is more of a fervent desire than a prediction, but as people look beyond hoppy beers and craft lagers continue their meteoric rise, I hope people rediscover the wide range of beer styles craft brewers create and look for more malt-forward beers for a change of pace.

Malt is often referred to as the soul of beer and is as essential to beer as grapes are for wine. Malt has almost as much variation in its varieties and flavors as hops, and there’s an entire world of different beer flavors waiting to be found all over again by beer drinkers looking for something beyond another IPA.

Anchor seems poised to return