New genre beer shipment volume in Japan 2009-2018

In 2018, the shipment volume of 'new genre beer' in Japan amounted to around 150 million cases, up from about 139 million cases in 2009. New genre beer, also referred to as daisan beer (third beer), is a beer-like alcoholic beverage produced without malt. To avoid an increasingly standardized liquor taxation system for beverages containing malt, manufacturers substituted the ingredient with peas, wheat, or other grains and pulses in the production process. The malt content makes the difference Beer-like beverages in Japan encompasses new genre beers, happoshu as well as beverages classified as regular ‘beers’. Happoshu refers to low-malt beverages with a malt content below 67 percent and was introduced as a cheaper alternative to regular beer. However, following the increase of liquor taxes on happoshus and the introduction of new genre beer, the shipment volume of low-malt beer declined steadily in recent years. While beverages classified as ‘beer’ accounted for the highest shipment volume of the beer-like beverage market, new genre beers are growing in popularity. Non-alcoholic beer in Japan Beer has been integrated into the Japanese drinking tradition as a popular alcoholic beverage, contributing to the success of the four major breweries Asahi, Kirin, Sapporo, and Suntory. To cater to consumers who do not drink liquor, market leaders expanded their product lines to include non-alcoholic beer. However, only a minority of Japanese preferred non-alcoholic beers over the regular variant, with the taste being the main reason for rejecting the alcohol-free brewed beverage.

2018年，日本新型啤酒的出货量约为1.5亿箱，较2009年的约1.39亿箱有所增长。所谓新型啤酒，亦称第三类啤酒，是一种不含麦芽的啤酒类酒精饮料。为规避日益标准化的含麦芽饮料的酒税征收体系，制造商在生产过程中以豌豆、小麦或其他谷物和豆类替代了麦芽。麦芽含量的差异是区分啤酒类饮料的关键。在日本，啤酒类饮料包括新型啤酒、 happoshu 以及被归类为常规‘啤酒’的饮料。happoshu是指麦芽含量低于67%的低麦芽饮料，它被作为一种更经济的常规啤酒替代品而引入。然而，随着happoshu酒税的提高和新型啤酒的推出，近年来低麦芽啤酒的出货量持续下降。尽管归类为‘啤酒’的饮料占据了啤酒类饮料市场最高的出货量，但新型啤酒的受欢迎程度却在逐渐上升。在日本，啤酒作为流行酒精饮料已被融入饮酒传统，为朝日、麒麟、札幌和三得利这四家主要啤酒厂的成功做出了贡献。为了迎合不饮酒的消费者，市场领导者扩大了其产品线，包括非酒精啤酒。然而，只有少数日本人更偏爱非酒精啤酒而非常规啤酒，口感是拒绝无酒精酿造饮料的主要原因。