cheap, malt-free beer-like alcoholic beverage
Refers to a category of low-malt or malt-free beer-flavored alcoholic drinks in Japan, often called 'third-category beer' (第三のビール). Common in tax and beverage contexts.
See also: 第三のビール
New-genre drinks are popular because they are cheaper than beer.
From 新 (new) + ジャンル (genre), a marketing term for a new category of beer-like beverages introduced in Japan.