The Cask Report: The main findings

• Cask ale is in volume growth, outperforming the on-trade beer market by 4.5%. The UK now drinks 634m pints of cask ale every year.
• Cask ale is increasing its rate of sale — more pubs are stocking more cask ales, and selling more as a result.
• Cask ale is increasing its market share. One in six pints of beer served in pubs is cask ale. Almost 60% of total on-trade ale is now cask, with keg share declining sharply.
• Three new breweries open every morningadvertiser.co.uk week in the UK, where there are now more than 1,470, the vast majority brewing mainly cask ale.
• Cask ale is recruiting new drinkers. In most parts of the country and most styles of outlet, old stereotypes are fading. Women and younger drinkers continue to convert to cask — though some licensees are failing to recognise the opportunities this presents.
• There’s a great deal of excitement around the concept of ‘craft beer’ — which most drinkers define as beer from a small brewer or beer brewed in small batches or limited editions rather than by particular styles or formats. Most craft beer is cask ale — and most cask ale is craft beer.
• Pubs are not taking advantage of the improvement in perceptions of cask ale, and growing understanding of it as a crafted product, to position it as a genuinely premium product.
• Despite increased interest, drinkers don’t fully appreciate the complexity of cask ale and the breadth of care and attention that goes into serving the perfect pint. This presents an opportunity to educate drinkers on the craftsmanship, further improving cask’s premium, quality image.
• The price differential between cask ale and ‘craft keg’ beers — not to mention standard lagers — is too wide and limits the income pubs can make from interesting, flavourful beer.
• High price brings higher expectations of quality and these must be fulfilled. It’s vital that publicans train staff in appreciation of cask ale so they can, in turn, educate drinkers.
• The perfect cask ale range is an equal balance between familiar and unfamiliar, local and exotic, permanent and guest. Publicans are currently rotating guest beers far more often than drinkers would like.

The above is an extract from the Cask Report​