European-style fruit-led beer has become Britain’s fastest growing beer trend, with sales volumes growing by 250% last year at Tesco.

The fruity beer styles, which have a typical strength of around 4% ABV, have long been popular in western European countries such as France, Germany Belgium, Spain and Italy.

Over the last 15 years, popularity has also grown in the UK for products such as Belgian strawberry brews Fruli and Bacchus Kriek, and more recently Radler, a shandy style beer from Germany and Damm Lemon from Spain.

Subscribe to Grocery Gazette for free

Sign up here to get the latest grocery and food news each morning

Tesco beer buyer Ben Cole said: “The soaring demand for fruit-led brews, particularly lager, has taken the UK drinks market by storm and is the biggest trend to hit the beer scene since the craft boom started more than 15 years ago.

“The trend actually has its roots in the craft beer movement because it introduced beers with tropical fruit profiles to more drinkers than ever before.

“For many people the craft movement changed the perception of what a beer could taste like and opened many drinkers’ palates to a wider range of styles.”

Seven years ago, dedicated UK fruit lager brand Jubel was launched and now has five different varieties – peach, mango, blood orange, lemon and grapefruit – of its 4% strength lager. It has seen volume grow in Tesco of more than 300%.

The company, which according to Tesco, was the first in the UK to exclusively take note of the fruit-led side of the beer market, was first thought up when founder Jesse Wilson was on a ski trip to France and was inspired by Bière Pêche – a pint of lager with a peach top.

Wilson said: “I thought that style of lager could be the perfectly refreshing pint in pubs and that’s where our business grew, with word of mouth spreading rapidly, to the point where it seems our flagship peach lager is now the fifth biggest craft beer in the on-trade based on CGA reported volumes.

“We are incredibly excited that retailers like Tesco see this as the biggest trend to hit beer since the craft beer movement, and we’re pumped to be pioneering it.”