In the past year, the sales of beer with an alcohol content of 7% or above in South Korea have surged by 14%, and the demand for women in their 20s has also significantly increased, leading to a large influx of affordable and high-quality beer.
Despite the overall contraction of the domestic beer market in South Korea, high alcohol beer has shown a clear growth trend. This may be due to the dispersed demand for non-alcoholic beverages and highball cocktails among consumers, while high alcohol beer, which can bring enough satisfaction with just one glass, is gradually becoming a more cost-effective alcoholic beverage.
According to a purchasing trend analysis released by market research firm Embrace Deep Data on November 14th, as of September 2025, the total sales revenue of the Korean beer market in the past year was approximately KRW 2.1655 trillion, a decrease of 7.0% compared to the same period last year (KRW 2.3292 trillion). The diversification of consumer demand towards non-alcoholic beverages and highball cocktails, as well as the pressure brought by the rising prices of major eoe beer products, are considered to be the reasons for this phenomenon.
Although the overall growth of the beer market has slowed down, high alcohol beer has rapidly emerged. The estimated sales of high alcohol beer during the same period reached 39.1 billion Korean won, an increase of 13.5% compared to the same period last year (34.5 billion Korean won). Affected by the economic downturn, overall alcohol consumption has declined. High alcohol beer, with its lower price than high-end spirits and higher alcohol content than regular beer, has become a more cost-effective choice that can bring alcohol satisfaction faster.
High alcohol beer usually refers to beer with an alcohol content of 7% or more. Although there is currently no clear legal standard in South Korea to classify high alcohol content beer, the market practice is to classify beer with an alcohol content of 6-7% as "strong beer", which has a higher alcohol content than low alcohol IPA. Beer with an alcohol content of 8-12% is considered a high alcohol beer, such as Empire IPA, Double IPA, and Empire Shitao.
This change is particularly evident among the younger generation in their twenties. From the purchase data divided by age, the main driving force of the high alcohol beer market is men in their 50s and 60s, with estimated annual purchase growth rates of 40.1% and 43.2%, respectively. However, there has also been a significant increase in demand for women in their 20s, with a growth rate of 35.5%, while the demand for men in the same age group has decreased by 21.9%. Although the market size is not large, it is worth noting that the culture of enjoying high alcohol beverages is spreading among the younger generation.
The growth of the high alcohol beer market is interpreted as a result of the diversification of consumer tastes, as at the same time, the demand for low alcohol and non-alcoholic beverages is also increasing due to the rise of the "healthy pleasure" trend. The increase in consumption among women in their 20s may also be due to the fact that although it has a higher alcohol content than regular beer, it is not as strong as shochu and is cheaper than whiskey.
Industry insiders predict that the industry will continue to grow driven by consumers' preference for rich flavors and high-end products. An industry insider explained, "The sales of bottled beer in bars and pubs are on the rise. We believe that consumer demand for highball cocktails and whiskey has partially shifted towards high alcohol beer." However, he also said, "But since the prices of these products are mostly two to three times that of regular lager beer, this may become their weakness
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