The Craft Beer Revolution in China

In the country of light lager, a new generation of brewers is making IPAs, stouts, sours and beers with Sichuan pepper and tea. China's craft scene is young, but it is already inventing a Chinese way to brew.

From expat bars to the mainstream

China's craft beer scene was born in the 2000s in the big cities, first among foreign residents and homebrewers who struggled to find the right hops and yeast. In Beijing, breweries like Great Leap, Jing-A, Slow Boat and Panda Brew opened taprooms in old courtyards and nightlife districts and became staples of the city. In Shanghai, brewpubs and bottle shops followed.

Then young Chinese drinkers arrived, curious about new flavours and tired of watery lager. Today Chinese brewers and entrepreneurs lead the scene, and craft breweries have opened in Chengdu, Hangzhou, Guangzhou, Wuhan, Changsha and many other cities.

Festivals

Craft beer festivals took off in the early 2010s. In Shanghai, Shanghai Beer Week and the Shanghai International Beer Festival both started in 2012. Today festivals and beer weeks are held in many Chinese cities.

A Chinese taste

The most exciting brewers use Chinese ingredients:

• **Tea:** jasmine, Longjing green tea and oolong in pale ales and lagers.
• **Spices:** Sichuan pepper, which leaves a tingling, citrusy sensation on the tongue.
• **Flowers and fruit:** osmanthus, lychee, hawthorn, green plum.
• **Grains:** rice and sorghum, in a nod to China's older brewing traditions.

The result is beer that could only come from China.

The giants join in

The big brewers have noticed. Tsingtao, Snow and others now sell IPAs, stouts, wheat beers and fruit beers, and supermarket chains have launched their own ranges with tea and fruit flavours. Craft styles are no longer a niche: they are reaching ordinary shops.

Ups and downs

It has not been easy. High costs, imported ingredients and the pandemic years forced some well-known breweries and bars to close, while others grew into national brands. The scene keeps changing, which is part of its energy.

Where to taste it

In China, look for taprooms in Beijing's hutongs, Shanghai's former French Concession and Chengdu's nightlife districts. In Europe, Chinese craft beer is still rare: specialist beer shops and festivals are the best places to look.

In one sentence

In the land of light lager, a young craft scene is inventing a Chinese way to brew, with tea, Sichuan pepper and flowers.