OnTap Magazine

1 6 7 6 2 7 11 5 10 4 9 3 8 1 BAVARIA $avaria comes in a range oH flavoured variants including strawberry lemon apple peach pomegranate and our Havourite ginger and lime 6heyore great for those with a sweeter tooth who don’t want something as saccharine as a soda although they probably won’t hit the mark for a habitual beer drinker. 3 BECK’S BLUE p+t quacMs liMe a beerq said one of our tasters and the rest agreed that this was one of the best brews of the day. Crisp and clean it wasn’t too far from the original $ecMos 9e didnot even mind the slight skunkiness – the lightstruck character reminded us of regular Beck’s! 4 BITBURGER DRIVE The outright favourite of one of our tasters who has been Mnown to opt for one over a real beer on a sunny afternoon. The panel praised the mouthHeel which wasnot too Hull or too watery 9hile malt is Hront and centre there is some bitterness leaving a long and pleasant finish GERSTEL Available exclusively at Checkers and 5hoprite )erstel was one oH the most popular brews of the day 6hereos not much aroma but flavour wise it was Hairly balanced A little watery but this made it more drinkable than some of the fuller bodied brews. ERDINGER WEISSBRÄU ALKOHOLFREI +H youove ever tasted wort that is beer that is yet to Herment then you’d have an idea what 'rdingeros non alcoholic weiss tastes like. The panel found it a little cloying and not as thirst- quenching as others though the non- beer drinkers enjoyed the sweetness. It’s also pitched as a healthy option loaded with vitamins and isotonic properties – a sports drink for beer lovers! 9 HOPTOWN PALE ALE $rewed at 9ild %lover in 5tellenbosch *optownos non alcoholic pale ale offered up a vague whiff of rye bread but very little malt on the palate +H you find non alcs too sweet this one is at the opposite end oH the scale with plenty oH bitterness although not a great deal oH hop flavour 11 VALENTINS WEISSBIER The second weiss on the menu was met with mixed reviews. Some reckoned it to be not too far from a regular weiss; some loved the vanilla while others Hound it overly sweet /ost agreed though that while you could easily enjoy the first can you couldnot drinM more than one in a single sitting. 8 DEVIL’S PEAK ZERO TO HERO 2anellists picMed up pepper citrus and a hint of ginger in Devil’s Peak’s non-alcoholic pale ale +tos very low on body with a pleasant though not overpowering bitterness. 5 CLAUSTHALER p+t tastes liMe standing outside Newlands Brewery with your mouth open q said one oH our tasters which met with knowing nods from the rest +tos Hairly sweet and grainy but still rated quite highly with the panel # lemon version we Hound it too sweet is also available though Clausthaler’s dry-hopped non- alcoholic lager has sadly not yet made it to SA. 2 CASTLE FREE Far less sweet than some of the beers on the table our home grown non-alcoholic scored well thanks to its crisp dry finish light body and general drinkability. LAGERS LAGERS ABV PALE ALES AND WEISSBIER 9hile most non alcoholic beers are brewed to mimic pale lagers we managed to get our hands on a Hew other options all readily available in SA. 10 BREWDOG NANNY STATE There’s very little body to this pale ale but what it does have plenty of is hops. The crew enjoyed the aroma oH citrus and pine describing the beer as pheavily hopped soda waterq PALE ALES & WEISSBIER 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 1 2 3 4 FEATURE 24 | Summer 2018 | ontapmag.co.za