The best 10 non-alcoholic beers to try in 2019
4th January, 2019
by
Lauren Eads
Whether you have given up alcohol for January, choosing to cut down, taking on the virtuous responsibility of being the evening’s designated driver or perhaps pregnant, there’s never been a better time to be teetotal.
While we don’t advocate forgoing the real deal for any longer than is necessary, and to drink in moderation in any case, the breadth and quality of non-alcoholic drinks now hitting the market is vast, offering more choice than ever to designated drivers.
Beer is further ahead in its quest to perfect a non-alcoholic alternative than wine and spirits are, with non-alcoholic and low-strength beers now “incredibly important” to UK pubs, according to the head of the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA), Bridgid Simmonds. Simmonds’ views coincide with a report published by the Brewers of Europe, which shows that non-alcoholic beer now counts for 2% of Europe’s beer production by value. Sales of European non alcoholic beer rose to reach nearly €900 million (£800 million) in 2017.
Meanwhile a number of small and large brewers are adding low alcohol versions of their flagship beers to their portfolios, including Greene King, AB InBev, Budweiser and Peroni, while craft breweries specialising in low and no alcohol brewers are starting to emerge.
Last year global brewer AB InBev announced the creation of a new chief of non-alcoholic beverages officer as a means of boosting its footprint in the non-alcohol sector. Such brands currently account for 10% of AB InBev’s total business, and includes Beck’s Blue and Budweiser Prohibition, with the brewer predicting that 20% of the world’s beer production volume will be non-alcoholic or low alcoholic by 2025.
With that in mind, we have rounded up some of the best, and most popular, non alcoholic beers on the market.
Click on for our pick of the best low- and no-alcohol brews. Or, for more analysis on the rise of low alcohol beers, click here.