OnTap Magazine

A brewer recently told me that “the perfect beer is one without alcohol but full of avour.” And a surprising number of people would agree. More consumers want an alternative to standard strength beer – something healthier than soft drinks – when going to the pub. Breweries around the world are working to meet this increasing demand, with better technology to achieve better quality brews. Rest assured, low, or no-alcohol beer nowadays is a far cry from watery brews with nasty o - avours. Consumers are becoming more health- conscious and the low-ABV and alcohol- free beer trend is growing in Europe and elsewhere. e UK has seen a whopping 150% increase between 2013 and 2017, with 43 million pints of low-alcohol beer now sold annually according to the British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA). While still a small percentage of the overall market, low-alcohol beer is one of the biggest growth sectors. “ e fast growth demonstrates the popularity and interest,” says Stephen Livens of BBPA. “It’s fantastic that consumers can choose a beer they would normally drink but in a low- ABV form.” MINDFUL DRINKING Working to support this change is Club Soda, which was set up by Laura Willoughby in 2015. eir goal is to create a world where no-one feels out of place if they are not drinking alcohol. It’s not about promoting abstinence but rather making mindful drinking widely acce pted for consumers and helping the drinks and hospitality industries see the potential in low and no-alcohol alternatives. To promote the movement, Club Soda runs the Mindful Drinking Festivals, which showcase the best tasting adult-orientated low and non- alcoholic drinks brands in the industry. “Alcohol-free drinks are gaining momentum,” says Willoughby. “It’s not just about the drink but also the setting, the service and people’s behaviour. e pub is a social space and you should still be able to go there even though you want to drink mindfully.” Interestingly, the supermarket chain Sainsbury’s is catching on to the trend and earlier this year opened a two-day pop- up pub in central London named e Clean Vic, serving only low-ABV and alcohol-free beer to promote the category. TO DRINK, NOT TO GET DRUNK ere are some stand-out British breweries in the low-ABV and alcohol-free segment, such as Nirvana Brewery, Small Beer Brew Co. and Lucky Saint. And regularly appearing at the Mindful Drinking Festivals is Big Drop Brewing, which started around the same time as Club Soda. Its range of beers has proved to be a hit, regularly winning awards against full-strength rivals. At the most recent World Beer Awards, the brewery received a total of four awards for its 0.5% ABV beers and achieved the ultimate praise of a World’s Best medal for the Brown Ale (entered in the Low Alcohol Dark Beer category). Big Drop’s founder and CEO Rob Fink is excited about the shift in attitudes towards the category. “Lower strength beer is nally moving from back-bar fridges to sit front-and-centre of bar tops with proud tap badges,” he says. “ is not only means Low-alcohol beer is one of the biggest growth sectors Capetonians explore alcohol-free options at South Africa's first Mindful Drinking Festival Brewer at work at Glen Affric Big Drop’s Citra IPA on tap at Brewhouse & Kitchen Photo: Glen Affric Brewery Photo: Big Drop Brewing ontapmag.co.za | Summer 2019 | 31