What beer styles trended this summer? Four bar managers tell us

Bottleneck Management is a company dedicated to providing customers a wide selection of hyper local, regional and national craft beers (each Bottleneck restaurant houses 90+ beers on draft). With summer winding down, we wondered what trends they noticed at their 15 locations around the country. The overall standouts on tap this year, (perhaps obviously) were hazy IPAs, sessions and rosés, but each location was a little bit different.

1. Hazy IPAs took over summer

Paul Williams, general manager, Old Town Pour House in Naperville, Ill.: “There have been a lot of breweries offering this style. One of our more popular ones and a local Naperville has been the Solemn Oath End All. We have placed anywhere from eight to 10 on our lineup. Guests are specifically requesting these to servers when they come in.”

Brandon Basalone, general manager, City Works in Doral, Fla.: “We’ve had about eight of these styles come through our rotators in the past few months. What’s been the best sellers — Miami Haze from MIA brewery, IPAnema Double IPA from Novo Brewing and DirtWolf Double IPA from Victory Brewing have moved through our lines the quickest.”

Ryan Steen, at City Works in King of Prussia, Pa.: “Once we saw the customer preference shift towards these, we brought in a good bit of these beers. They sold very quickly every time we put them on. We have carried about 10 varieties since June. Grist House Hazedelic was our best seller. It is a fantastic local brewery with a super juicy New England IPA. They do unfiltered styles very well, but are well rounded in all styles. The NEIPA trend is something we don’t see slowing down anytime soon. This trend combines the best of both worlds between a wheat and IPA — still get nice hop kick with citrusy and fruity tones.”

2. Rosés find a niche

Crystal Austra, front of house manager, Old Town Pour House in Naperville, Ill.: “Our rosé all day menu has been extremely popular. Over the summer we have seen a huge surge in the marketplace for all things rosé. While it’s been so hot our guests are really enjoying cooling down with a frozen cocktail like our Strawberry frosé. There is a nostalgia towards things we had when we were young, like a slushie, which now include spirits. I believe that’s what makes people more excited to purchase and try it. 2 Fools Rose Cider has been one of our most popular which is also based here in Naperville. We always run with our local favorite 2 Fools Rose cider, which is a sweet cider, but recently we brought in a dry Rose Cider from Wollfer Estates Vineyard in New York.”

Basalone: “The rose trend here in Miami has not taken off quite like it has in some of our other markets. We’ve only had the one rose flavored beer, and it has sold decently, but not great.”

Steen: “We have not seen the rose trend kick into full gear locally, but we carry Rhinegeist Bubbles which is a rose cider, does very well for us and is something we have moved to carry year-round.”

3. Session excitement varied by region

Basalone: “People in Miami love the bang for their buck, so they usually tend to gravitate towards those beers that are higher in ABV, but also still clean and refreshing. Not too many people want something too heavy, so generally a nice clean double IPA like Manta Ray from Ballast Point or Panic Attack from Holy Mackerel. It’s all about beers people can have several of and get a nice ABV from.”

Williams: “We have a few on our permanent list, and have placed three to five on the limited list as it is summer and guests want an easy sipping beer in the heat.”

Steen: “We have had about four of these throughout the summer. Not a huge mover for us, as guests don’t see the bang for their buck.”