7 brands shaping the future of craft beer in India

While microbreweries began cropping up in India during the mid-2010s, the focus wasn’t on the process of making craft beer. Of late, this is changing, with technique-driven methods that practise restrain, not just a higher ABV

India didn't always drink beer

Small, independent breweries focusing on brewing techniques, ingredient quality, and fermentation processes rather than just novelty has made craft beer more popular among Indian consumers, traditionally known for their preference for whiskey and rum.

Fort City Brewing

In 2025, this brand decided to address a misconception in North Indian markets—that beer is exclusively a summer drink—with their Pawtagonist beer, a Braggot beer with bits replaced by organic wildflower honey, besides adding spices like cinnamon, pepper, nutmeg and fennel.

Simba

This brand offers a full-bodied beer with a higher ABV like Simba Strong, a light-bodied wheat beer variant with notes of banana and clove like The Simba Jungle Wheat, and The Simba Roar Light, a crisp and clean light-bodied lager.

BeeYoung

This brand’s USP is a citrusy brew with a subtle bitterness, thanks to their usage of two-row barley and 100% Sortex rice (rice processed through an optical sorting machine to remove defective grains, discoloration, and other objects), besides water from the Bhakra Dam.

Kati Patang

This Indian craft beer brewed in Bhutan, offers a Zesty Amber Ale, a golden ale, Snappy Wheat, a wheat beer, Saffron Lager, a light-bodied, crisp beer, Bareilly Bold, a strong craft beer with higher ABV, and the Freedom Lager, a light-bodied lager.

White Rhino Brewing Co

This Indian craft beer's brand has multiple variants like Pale Ale, which is low on bitterness and has tropical fruit notes, a Munich-style lager made using 100% Pilsner malt, and Tettnanger, that's matured over a month. Their IPA with 5.5% ABV is made using four varieties of hops—Ahtahnum, Cascade, Mosaic, and Styrian Goldings.

Bira 91

Besides Belgian-style wheat beer and lagers, this Indian brand also has limited range of beers like the Malabar Stout, a coffee stout made with roasted rye, oats, and coffee sourced from the Malabar region, the Bollywood IPA and The Brown Ale.

Conan Beer

The Indian craft brand makes a flagship 8% ABV Premium Strong Lager crafted using a blend of German malt and American hops, offering strength without any harsh or sudden bitterness, giving it a smooth, refined finish.

Breweries to stay small scale in India?

Despite rapid growth, Indian craft breweries remain structurally small in terms of scale. Expansion is less a question of demand than of regulation.