Synergy Flavors talks advancing flavored beer stability amid formulation challenges

The flavored beer segment is experiencing a “generational shift,” with younger consumers driving demand and innovation in the space. Bitter, citrus flavors, and tropical flavors are gaining ground, with taste preferences also branching out beyond fruit flavors toward unconventional flavors such as spice and seed-flavored beers.

Beer trends tracked by Innova Market Insights indicate that flavored beers showed a 7% growth in launches over the past five years. Fruit flavors, including red raspberry, mango, fruit, and orange, continued to lead flavored beers with 17% of launches. 

Food Ingredients First speaks with Tom Cleghorn, European category development manager, and Matthew Hoyland, R&D manager, at Synergy Flavours, to understand the consumer trends, formulation challenges, and the role of technology in preserving delicate botanical notes in flavored beer.

“Research by Synergy Flavours in partnership with VYPR showed that consumers aged 25–34 are purchasing flavored beer at a higher rate than other age groups across the UK, France, and Germany, which corroborates data from Innova that younger consumers (Gen Z and Millennials) are more likely to opt for flavored beers than their older counterparts,” says Cleghorn.

“We’re also seeing a push toward bitter flavors specifically in beers. When asked whether they enjoyed a bitter taste profile in beer, 67% of respondents in the UK and Germany aged 25–34 said yes, while 81% of the same demographic in France also agreed.”

The company also observes a shift toward bitter notes in beers such as citrus flavors like lemon, lime, and grapefruit, as well as tropical ones like mango and coconut.

“However, some indulgent flavors such as chocolate and caramel continue to appear, indicating there is still space for these flavors in flavored beer NPD,” Cleghorn adds.

Consumers are leaning toward bitter notes in beers, with lemon and grapefruit frequently emerging in European launches, says Cleghorn.

Preserving beer flavors

As consumer demands for flavor in beers escalate, preserving the aroma compounds responsible for flavors is essential. The formulation process presents challenges to formulators, including flavor loss during fermentation and pasteurization, interactions between flavor components and the base beer matrix, and maintaining consistency at scale, Hoyland tells us.

“Volatile aroma compounds are particularly sensitive to heat and CO2 stripping, making it difficult to preserve delicate fruit or botanical notes throughout production. Furthermore, the bitterness, acidity, or yeast character of the base beer can clash with certain flavors if not carefully balanced,” he explains.

“Accurate dosing, flavor stability, and cleanability also add complexity. To overcome these challenges, flavoring solutions are typically added post-fermentation, using heat-stable, fermentation-tolerant systems designed specifically for brewing applications.”

Synergy’s beer portfolio ensures that flavors remain bright and fresh even after pasteurization and can be customized for lagers, ales, wheat beers, sours, and Radlers.

“Our newest innovation is a taste modulator, which can introduce the flavor perception of alcohol, even in a non-alcoholic beverage. This has been especially useful in application development for non-alcoholic beers, alongside our portfolio of hop essences.”

Hop essences are water-based hop extracts which capture the complex hop aromas without introducing bitterness.

Capturing hop aromas

Hoyland continues that Synergy invests in modern techniques and technologies such as steam distillation for its range of hop essences.

“Hop essences are highly concentrated, halal-suitable, water-based hop extracts, which capture the complex aroma of hops without introducing bitterness or off-notes. This makes them ideal for dry-hop style beers or to enhance hop-forward profiles in non-alcoholic formats.”

“Unlike traditional hop pellets or oils, this essence delivers consistent sensory results and is easy to dose, clean, and validate — all especially important in brewhouses handling multiple flavor variants.”

Tapping the unconventional

While Cleghorn acknowledges the popularity of fruit-flavored beer, he also notes a shift toward “unconventional” flavors.

“Spice and seed flavored beers grew at a 12% CAGR according to Innova, and these flavors have increasingly emerged in launches such as Dugges Saffron Imperial Stout, which launched in August 2024 in Sweden.”

“Spiced flavors such as ginger or cinnamon pair well with fresh fruit flavors such as apple, so manufacturers could consider embracing the growth of spice flavored beers with innovative spiced fruit combinations.”

He also emphasizes the emergence of cake, cookie, and pie flavors in beer launches, such as Great Notion Key Lime Pie Tart Ale, which launched in the US in July 2024. 

“While fruit flavors continue to dominate, manufacturers could consider adding indulgent appeal with fruit and baked-good flavor beers.”

Heat-stable, fermentation-tolerant systems can help brewers ensure flavor stability, according to Hoyland.

What’s next?

Cleghorn anticipates that the low- and no-alcohol trend in beers will continue in the coming years, with brands tapping new flavored varieties to stand out.

He also expects the growing popularity of sour beer to influence fruit flavor trends. “The sour beer subcategory has shown the fastest growth in recent years, doubling in market share with a 20% CAGR in launches.”

“With a clear increase in demand for this category, we could expect to see some manufacturers leveraging the sour beer trend by incorporating sour fruit flavors into beers, continuing the popularity of citrus flavors such as lemon, lime, or grapefruit,” he concludes.