Warm beer: eccentric taste or heritage of humanity?

The news that the UK is attempting to gain UNESCO intangible heritage of humanity status for cask beer (yes, the warm stuff from the pub) might be a surprise for some. But recently a petition was launched to protect the “historic and traditional serving method” that was “unique to the UK”, the Guardian reports.

A drop of the warm stuff

Lager-style beers dominate the global market, and these are invariably served cold - even ice-cold. In fact the trend in recent rears has been for more extra cold beers to be developed. This seems perfectly logical when you're in a hot country in search of thirst-quenching coolness. This has also stimulated the use of beer coolers to make sure your bottle of beer stays cool to the last drop. Even in the UK, home of warm beer, the best selling alcoholic drinks is Stella Artois lager, accounting for sales worth £661.8m in 2024, a growth of 6.3% year-on-year. Of course, the Belgians have much better beers, but they don't bother sending those to the UK.

Most like it ice-cold

In cool, rain-soaked Britain, warm beer is just what you need to combat the weather, and to ensure your beer actually has some taste. The problem is, as the Guardian newspaper notes:

"Besides suffering from a reputation as an “old man’s drink” and the divisive debate over the “cellar temperature” at which it is served, the number of establishments selling it, and the volume and value of sales, have all dropped dramatically in recent years."

Many people who have tried a pint of warm bitter might agree that the temperature is not optimal. But it is hoped that a UNESCO listing will stimulate a recovery for traditional cask beers, and help to generate media attention and tourism. Many countries have been chasing intangible heritage designation for their food and drink products in recent years, as our summary in the annual Tourism and Gastronomy report showed. With so many different gastronomic products around, watch out for even more listed foods in future.

Of course, with global warming, warm beer might struggle even more to gain popularity....