Danish brewer Carlsberg is deepening its push into China’s digital dining economy through a new partnership with Meituan, linking premium restaurants, on-demand delivery and beer-led dining experiences in a move that reflects the industry’s broader shift toward premiumisation and data-driven retail.
Carlsberg Asia said the collaboration marks the brewer’s first partnership with Meituan’s influential Black Pearl Restaurant Guide, often described as China’s answer to Michelin. The tie-up also extends to Dianping’s Must-Eat List 2025, allowing Carlsberg beers to be ordered both in restaurants and through instant delivery, blending fine dining with everyday consumption.
Under the arrangement, Carlsberg and Meituan will roll out what they call a “Drinking Roadmap” – a curated selection of restaurants where Carlsberg’s portfolio is paired with food on-site and made available for delivery via Meituan’s platform. The initiative is designed to connect premium dining occasions with the convenience of quick commerce, a fast-growing segment in China’s retail landscape.
“Our collaboration with Black Pearl and Meituan is more than a campaign,” Arindam Varanasi, commercial vice president of Carlsberg Asia. “It is a clear statement of building unique bonds that draw on each other’s brand values and ethos. It showcases the power of partnership – where our brewing heritage and R&D excellence meets China’s most prestigious dining guides and its largest lifestyle platform. Together, we are setting a new premium standard and creating unmatched value for consumers across the ecosystem.”
The initial rollout covers major mainland cities including Beijing, Shenzhen and Guangzhou, with plans to expand the programme to Hong Kong, Singapore, Macau and Malaysia. Carlsberg said the partnership allows it to leverage Meituan’s technology, consumer data and rapid delivery network to offer real-time, occasion-based food-and-beer pairings, personalised promotions and curated product selections.
To mark the launch, Carlsberg’s master brewer, Zoran Gojkovic, travelled to China to host a series of invitation-only pairing events with prominent chefs at Black Pearl–listed restaurants. Venues included Yun Jing at Raffles Shenzhen, known for modern Cantonese cuisine, and 1996 Sichuan Cuisine in Beijing. The events aimed to showcase beer as a versatile pairing option beyond casual dining.
At the centre of these experiences is Carlsberg’s premium Alchemy range, developed at the Carlsberg Research Laboratory. The line includes a wheat lager, a wine-inspired “vinous” beer and Rubedo, a speciality brew designed to highlight beer’s stylistic diversity. Carlsberg says the portfolio reflects its broader push up the value chain in Asia, where premium beer remains a key growth focus despite softer overall alcohol consumption.
Beyond fine dining, the partnership extends into Dianping’s Must-Eat List 2025, which highlights popular and affordable eateries in cities such as Foshan and Beijing. By integrating its full range – from mainstream lagers to premium and speciality beers – into these venues, Carlsberg is aiming to normalise beer across a wider range of dining occasions, from casual meals to celebrations.
Meituan, best known as China’s largest food delivery and local services platform, has increasingly positioned itself as a gateway between restaurants, brands and consumers. Dianping, its restaurant review and discovery app, plays a central role in shaping dining choices, with billions of searches and hundreds of millions of user reviews each year.
Carlsberg said the expanded partnership is a cornerstone of its digital acceleration strategy in Asia, allowing the brewer to test new models of online-to-offline engagement while tapping into Meituan’s behavioural insights. For Meituan, the collaboration adds premium beverage content to its lifestyle ecosystem, enhancing its appeal to both restaurants and consumers.
As competition intensifies across China’s alcohol market and instant retail platforms battle for user attention, the partnership underscores how global brewers are increasingly turning to technology platforms – not just distributors – to shape consumption, pricing and brand perception in the world’s largest beer market.
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