Why cask ale is targeting younger drinkers to revive sales in UK pubs

But as changing consumer habits, demographics and pub numbers have declined, it has put pressure on the category and brewers are increasingly looking to younger drinkers to help secure its future.

Cask beer, often referred to as real ale, is unpasteurised or filtered meaning it is a live product. The beer retains live yeast that continues to mature and develop the flavour after leaving the brewery, with fermentation continuing in the cask.

Brewing and serving cask beer requires skill at every stage, from the brewery through to cellar management to the pouring the perfect pint. It is also available in a wide range of styles, from pale ales, bitters and milds to rich stouts.

However, like many other alcoholic drink categories it has faced challenges.

According to the latest NIQ on-trade OPM data, published in the Morning Advertiser, total cask volumes dropped to 979,000 hectolitres over the 12 months to August 2026, down 19.7% year on year and 10.4% versus two years ago. That compares with a 3.9% year-on-year decline and 1.7% fall in two years for total draught beer.

But it is not all bad news as value sales have been more resilent, with cask worth £805m, down 7.4% year-on-year and 3.1% against two years ago, because of strong price growth.

Research by the Society of Independent Brewers & Associates also highlighted the challenges facing the sector, describing the current position for as “not a pretty picture.” The organisation found that only 27% of beer drinkers ever drink cask – down from 35% in its previous report.

However, the report also found opportunities for growth. It found that 41% of consumers said a sample of cask ale would encourage them to try it; while 28% said they would try cask if they knew more about it and interestingly 26% said they would try it on the recommendation of bar staff.

There is now a renewed focus in the UK as brewers look to the younger customer to revamp sales in the category.

You only have to look at the the massive surge in the popularity of Guinness, which was transformed it from an “old man’s drink” to a choice of Gen Z and Young adults driven trendy social media trends.

Consumer research by Racasse Audience Intelligence showed that one-third, 34%, of cask drinkers are aged between 18 to 39, with 17% of cask drinkers being under 30.

This comes as pubs in the UK celebrate Cask Ale Week, which runs from 17-27 September 2026. The initiative aims to encourage trial and awareness of Britain’s national beer style, with 10,000 participating pubs expected to offer around one million free “Try Before You Buy” samples.

The aim is to encourage younger drinkers in particular to discover cask and hopefully convert them into regular cask ale drinkers.

Research conducted in the lead up to Cask Ale Week found that younger beer drinkers are increasingly ordering the cask ales they remember their parents and grandparents drinking at the pub. Gen Z and younger millennials, broadly those aged 18-to-35, are as likely to enjoy a pint of Old Peculier as they are a trendy craft beer.

Bass owner Budweiser Brewing Group (BBG) worked with hospitality industry insight company The Oxford Partnership to track the changing age demographics of Bass drinkers.

Warren White, Bass brand manager, said: “Bass has always been a cask ale with broad appeal to beer drinkers. What this research shows is that since 2024/25 the age mix in pubs serving Bass has changed, with more under‑35s, and particularly more in the 18-to-24 and 25-to-29 age groups, drinking in Bass pubs.”

Timothy Taylor’s Landlord, famously named by pop-star Madonna as her favourite ale, is the UK’s best-selling cask ale brand by both value and volume is also seeing interest among younger drinkers.

Andy Leman, head brewer at the Yorkshire-based independent family brewery, said: “We know that there’s plenty of interest amongst 18 to 24 year-olds in trying cask beer brands that are familiar fixtures on the bar, but which they may want to know more about flavour-wise. Giving these so-called cask-curious, and price-conscious, consumers a chance to try-before-they-buy could help increase the reach to a new generation of cask converts.”

Meanwhile, Adam Russell, commercial director of Wiltshire-based brewer Wadworth, whose 6X ale is also seeing strong growth, said there is a trend amongst younger drinkers looking for cask ales with provenance and heritage.

“They know Wadworth 6X as a brand their dad - or maybe even their granddad – drank, and they want to revive and continue that family tradition,” he said.

Phillip Montgomery, business unit director, CGA by NIQ, which measures drinks sales in pubs, said that for the past five years, cask ale is a beer style that was being left behind, especially by younger drinkers.

“However, in the same way that stout has seen a revival in fortunes, we’re also starting to see an upturn in interest in cask ale amongst younger drinkers, and it’s often traditional brands and well-established regional favourites that bring them into the cask category,” he said.

The figures also show that cask ale retains a strong regional following, with Timothy Taylor Landord the top seller in Scotland and the North, Greene King IPA in East Anglia, and Fuller’s London Pride in London and the South East.