New "style", I suppose that's at least debatable, then, and a not outrageous claim. I think there are plenty of categories in the BJCP guidelines made of beers utilising only malt, hops, yeast, and water that weren't around a century ago, though, so I'd still say it is probably false.
More than likely, a non-beer-savvy journalist for the Herald slightly misinterpreted or misrecorded their claim, is my thinking.