Kim and I are on a sober curious journey this summer. Being ‘sober curious’ is all about questioning why drinking has become practically a social necessity in some situations. It allows you to opt out of drinking, without swearing off alcohol altogether. As much as Kim and I like to drink socially, we noticed recently that it’s not always serving us. Sober curiosity is about being intentional versus drinking alcohol mindlessly.
Up until recently, it was pretty typical of me to have a beer or two every day in the evening to unwind, but after a while, I noticed I didn’t like the way it made me feel the next day. The problem is that… I love the taste of beer.
Luckily for me, brewers are starting to make high-quality non-alcoholic beers. Specifically in the last year, they have really upped their game. It’s perfect because I can enjoy the taste of a beer at the beach or the end of the day, without the alcohol that comes with it. (There are a ton of non-alcoholic mocktail options too! We tried 10 of them here.) There are still days when I am drinking a “real” beer, but when I am not, I’ve got options.
Which Non-Alcoholic Beer Is Best?
If you’ve been in a similar boat and you are unsure where to start, I tried 16 different non-alcoholic beers so you don’t have to. You can watch the video of my review or keep scrolling to see how each beer measured up. Note: I rated the beers on a scale of 1 to 10, but the rating isn’t entirely how much I like the taste, it’s mainly about how much I think they tasted like the alcoholic version of what they were going for.
Let’s crack a cold one and get into it.
Light to Heavy Non-Alcoholic Beer (Non-IPA)
Typically, I am an IPAhole (more on that below) but there are some great non-IPA options that I tried too. If I missed any please let me know:
This is not a beer, it’s more like a hop-infused bubbly water, so it tasted like a club soda with a little bit of hops in it. It’s a good option for a different taste, and even Kim liked it. Perfect for a summer day.
Penn’s Best Non-Alcoholic Lager 8/10
I had the lowest expectations for this one (I really only got it because it had my name.) It was a big surprise! Solid lager, and what you would expect from a lighter beer, with a nice taste!
It tastes exactly like Heineken, which I think is fantastic. You don’t even know you’re drinking a non-alcoholic beer. However, if you don’t like Heineken, don’t buy it.
Brooklyn Brewery Pilsner 7.5/10
This beer has a bitter kick to it, which I liked. Not as good as Partake Blonde or Penn’s Best, but very, very close. It’s a good option.
I’ve driven to multiple stores to try to find this one because it’s so good. I don’t normally like blonde beer, but this is so refreshing. This is my favorite non-IPA NA beer.
Goldens are not my favorite type of beer, but if you like goldens it profiles well. It tastes like a golden is supposed to. It’s a solid choice.
Brooklyn Brewery Hoppy Amber 5/10
This beer is not bad, but if you are going into it wanting an amber, this is not it. Maybe if they renamed it I would give it a higher rating, but this was my least favorite non-IPA NA beer.
IPA Non-Alcoholic Beer
IPA beers are my favorite, especially the hazy/juicy ones. But they are pretty complex, so making a good NA IPA is challenging, thus some of the lower reviews. See what I thought of these and which was my favorite:
So here’s what I meant earlier about my ratings system. This was actually very tasty beer. But like I said, I am an IPA snob and this just doesn’t taste, or look, like a Hazy IPA. I loved Partake Blonde from above, but this one was not my favorite.
UPDATE AFTER THE TASTE TEST!! Ok friends, I had this one again last night. It’s honestly one of the better beers in the collection, just misnamed. If they renamed this “IPA” instead of “Hazy IPA” I think it’s like a 7 or 8.
This one is really good, and similar in taste profile to the Athletic Brewing IPA with a really good bite. My only nit to pick is that the color of the beer doesn’t look like a true IPA.
Really similar feedback on this one as the Gruvi Juicy IPA. It has too much fruit and not enough hops. I really wanted to like this one, but it didn’t do it for me.
Brooklyn Brewery Hazy IPA 8/10
Good, hazy, decent hops, and not too bitter. This would be a 9, but it needed a little more hops on it. Really liked this one!
Untitled Art Juicy IPA 10/10
This is the best NA IPA beer ever. When I drink it, I forget it doesn’t even have alcohol. Amazing flavor, excellent presentation, and tastes like the real thing.
Final Thoughts
I am so fortunate to be on this journey with so many options (remember when the only NA beer was O’Douls?) Time to give some final thoughts. The best compilation was Brooklyn Brewing Special Effects – overall, they scored consistently high. The biggest surprise was Penn’s Best. I was genuinely impressed with that beer, it had great flavor and it’s affordable. And finally, my NA Best in Show has to be Untitled Art Juicy IPA.
