Beer drinkers eagerly await them each year. Release festivities dial up the excitement. And seasonal beers—even if they’re available for only a short window or time—represent a beloved craft tradition that often moves the needle on sales. For many small breweries, they’re just as important as core IPAs or lagers.
Yet there have been changes within the seasonal category, and it’s worth checking in to better understand how to approach seasonals today. Consumer preferences shift, and so do the seasons themselves. Climate change impacts ingredient availability—not to mention the actual weather—making it harder to predict the exact window of cool fall weather that makes American drinkers hanker for a pumpkin beer.
In relatively temperate parts of the world, including the United States and Europe, much of the year looks more like summer than it used to, and less like four proper seasons. Trying to time a beer release for every quarter, if you’re hoping for a certain type of weather, could be a fool’s errand.
So, how are breweries responding to these changes and charting their seasonal courses today?