In 2020, the future of cask ale looked bleak. The pandemic had closed pubs for months at a time, and the structural challenges facing the on-trade — rising costs, shifting drinking habits, competition from retail — showed no signs of easing.
Five years on, the picture is more complex and considerably more hopeful.
"We're selling more cask than we were in 2019," said James Crawford, licensee of The Lamb in Burford, Oxfordshire. "Not by a massive margin, but the trajectory has reversed. The drinkers we're seeing now are younger, they're curious, and they're willing to try something different."
A New Generation of Drinkers
CAMRA's most recent Beer Report suggests that while overall cask volumes remain below pre-pandemic highs, the demographic profile of cask drinkers is shifting. Under-35s now account for a meaningfully larger share of cask consumption than five years ago — a trend attributed partly to the influence of the craft beer movement.
"Craft beer taught people to think about what they're drinking," said Lucy Forsyth, head brewer at Thornbridge. "Once you start paying attention to flavour, cask is an obvious next step. The complexity, the living nature of the product — it's fascinating once you understand it."
The Dispense Problem
For all the optimism, the industry still faces a fundamental challenge: poorly kept cask ale can be actively off-putting, and too many pubs still serve it below standard.
"There's nothing worse than a well-regarded beer served badly," said Crawford. "It puts people off for years. The investment in staff training and cellar equipment is the difference between turning someone into a lifer and losing them to keg forever."
CAMRA's Cask Report identifies dispense quality as the single biggest barrier to growth. The organisation has invested significantly in its Cask Marque scheme over the past two years, and has seen the number of accredited pubs rise by 8% since 2023.
Brewery Innovation
The new wave of cask is also benefiting from genuine product innovation. A number of small to medium-sized breweries — Cloudwater, Verdant, Burning Sky and others — have begun producing cask versions of styles previously associated only with keg, including hazy IPAs, pastry stouts and sour ales.
"We resisted cask for a long time because we couldn't guarantee the quality at the bar," said Adam Robertson of Burning Sky. "Now we work directly with a small number of pubs we trust completely. The control is better, and the feedback has been incredible."
The Independent Pub Advantage
Large pub companies have been slower to invest in cask quality, partly due to the management overhead of running diverse estates. Independent operators, by contrast, can move quickly — and many are using cask ale as a point of genuine differentiation.
"We've built our entire identity around it," said Crawford. "People come from Birmingham, from London, specifically for our cask range. That's not something a managed house can easily replicate."
The pub's current range runs to eight cask lines, sourced entirely from independent UK breweries. Turnover is the priority — Crawford turns each line within three to four days — and the results speak for themselves.
"If you keep it right," he said, "cask sells itself."