Non-alcoholic beer trend: How Upper Franconian brewers react

Hardly any other region has as many small breweries as the Bamberg district. The beer garden of the Drei Kronen brewery restaurant in Memmelsdorf is very popular when the weather is sunny. Some guests enjoy the classic after-work beer – some even without alcohol.

Less alcohol, shorter stay

The boss of the small brewery restaurant Drei Kronen has also noticed that guests are now ordering a lot more non-alcoholic beer. Hans-Ludwig Straub has been a brewer for 50 years and pulls beer from the bar in his restaurant. “On Sunday afternoons I often need just as much non-alcoholic beer as our 'real' beer,” he says. The guests also sit together for less time than they used to, says Straub.

Sales of non-alcoholic beer have doubled

Non-alcoholic beer is a growth market. According to the Federal Statistical Office, sales of non-alcoholic beer have more than doubled in the past ten years. In 2023, the market share of non-alcoholic beer was around seven percent of the entire German beer market, according to the Association of Private Breweries Bavaria.

According to the association, the market for non-alcoholic beer is becoming increasingly attractive for small and medium-sized breweries, so that some small breweries – including in Upper Franconia – have started product development and are bringing non-alcoholic beer onto the market.

Non-alcoholic beer brewing: technology has evolved

Like the Rittmayer brewery in Hallerndorf: Different types of beer are brewed and bottled in a large hall. For around four years now, the Kellerbier has also been available here without any alcohol.

A few years ago he noticed that non-alcoholic beers were slowly becoming hip, says the head of the brewery, Georg Rittmayer. “We are also seeing a change in our population. Young people are doing more sport, they are moving around. Some say that alcohol makes them tired.” And yet people still want to try the beer in Franconia. That is why the technology for brewing non-alcoholic beers has developed significantly in recent years. Many young brewers are also contributing their know-how, says Rittmayer.

Brewing non-alcoholic beer takes longer

At the Rittmayer brewery, around ten percent of sales are now made from non-alcoholic shandy and beer. Brewing takes around one and a half days longer, explains Rittmayer. The brewer also needs more material. Georg Rittmayer shows a centrifuge that he has purchased for the production of non-alcoholic beers. Newly developed yeasts that would further improve the taste are also used.

For small breweries, the extra effort is often not worth it

At the Drei Kronen brewery restaurant in Memmelsdorf, guests enjoy the non-alcoholic beer. “You don't always have to drink alcohol. You can have fun like that. And if it tastes just as good without alcohol, why not,” said a visitor from Lower Bavaria.

Even though the demand for non-alcoholic beer in pubs is increasing, Hans-Ludwig Straub does not yet think it is worth brewing non-alcoholic beer in his small brewery. He is currently still selling it in bottles from other manufacturers. He has thought about purchasing a so-called alcoholization system, but: “It is too expensive for my small brewery. If I were 50 again, I would buy a truck with a stainless steel system and drive from brewery to brewery and dealcoholize the alcohol,” says Straub.

Brewing and sharing a machine together – that could work. The increasing demand for non-alcoholic beer promises good business for the many small brewers in Upper Franconia in the future.