THIRSTY South Africans are increasingly quenching their craving on
craft beers.
So much so that by 2017 predictions are that 18 million litres will
be lapped up by consumers, as microbreweries malt and mash their way to
increased market share.
The United States market is often used as a benchmark for the local
beer industry, although South Africa’s craft beer boom experienced a decade lag.
Noteworthy is the decrease in the U.S. mass beer market, while craft brew shows
no sign of slowing sales.
The proliferation of microbreweries in South Africa, many Cape
Town-based, now number around 150, as the craze for quaffing custom-made,
uniquely styled ales and pales using quality ingredients, minus the
preservatives, catch on.
In KwaZulu-Natal, brewers like MoGravity’s Travis Boast in
Pietermaritzburg are leading the way to expose tipplers to the richer tastes and
subtler flavours of artisan beers, like those crafted be his fellow Willowton
Tea Factory brewers — Clockwork Brewhouse’s Megan Gemmel and Deon van Huyssteen
of Doctrine brewing.
Like the beers brewed by the student chefs at John Little’s Quills
Restaurant on Botha’s Hill or Eshowe’s Zululand Brewery further up the north
coast, the flavours and quantities of these smaller brewers vary from week to
week, but larger breweries like Nottingham Road in the Midlands and the Old Main
Brewery in Hilton can meet most beer connoisseurs' bigger thirsts on a regular
basis.
Zululand’s Zulu Blond is of course now famous for leaving in its
suds 45 other brews in the 19-day Wetherspoon Real Ale festival in London to win
the first prize. Another winner is brewed near Penington on the south coast,
where the rustic Basset Breweries was been shortlisted as one of the Top 10
finalists at this years SA National Craft Brewer Championships.
“We were the only KZN craft brewery to make the Top 10, along with
one Gauteng brewery and 8 breweries from the Western Cape. With such stiff
competition in the craft beer industry, it is a great pleasure to put Pennington
on the map as an award winning craft beer destination,” said brewer Andy
Turner.
Like many of the South Coast brewers Basset Breweries has been in
operation for less than two years, but produce a range of fine ales that are
available throughout KZN and distribution has recently begun to selected outlets
to grow craft beers’ 30% market share against mass produced lagers.
Predictions for 2016 are even higher at 35%. Explaining the rise in
the ranks of craft beer, Tops at Spar Bierfest organiser, Andrew Douglas, said:
“I think the variety and diversity of new beers on offer has disrupted behaviour
with regards to beer consumption.
“Most traditional beer drinkers will always have a staple brew but
I think, just like wine, increased variety and the romantic notions of craft or
batch brewing entices consumers to try something new. “We have noticed larger
numbers of non-traditional beer drinkers drinking more beer. Craft beer
festivals (of which there are now many to choose from) should take the credit,”
said Douglas. — Supplied-WR.
