This year seems to be the year that non-alcoholic beer (and other options) are taking off; I’ve received a number of NA brews as well as wines and even a gin, and observing more hitting the market seemingly weekly. I wrote about Deschutes Brewery’s Fresh Squeezed NA IPA in May, comparing it side-by-side with the original, now have a roundup of the other non-alcoholic beers I’ve tasted so far. (NA wines and gin forthcoming!)

Let’s get into some reviews!

Best Day Brewing Electro-Lime Cerca de Cerveza

Electro-Lime started as a seasonal brew before being integrated into its core lineup earlier this year. It’s a non-alcoholic Mexican style lager with lime and sea salt, offering a lighter option to complement the company’s Kölsch.

It has less than 0.5% ABV (the legal definition of non-alcoholic), with 75 calories and 14 grams of carbs per 12-ounce serving.

Appearance: Pale yellow, straw colored, with a slight (chill?) haze. Fizzy white head.

Smell: Lime juice over a lightly grainy malt, a touch of lime zest. Fairly light so the lime character gives it a nice summery vibe.

Taste: Light and crisp, with a like kiss of lime along with a slight bitterness reminiscent of lime peel. There’s a mild hint of sweetness from the unfermented sugars, which has an end-of-the-sip impression of key lime cake frosting (if that makes sense). Otherwise it’s pretty light in flavor and it doesn’t drink like a non-alcoholic beer.

Mouthfeel: Light-bodied, fairly crisp, refreshing with a moderately dry finish.

Overall: This is good, a nice drinker that doesn’t give “NA beer” when drinking it.

Tsingtao 0.0

Tsingtao lists this NA version of its classic lager as having 0% alcohol, not simply content with “less than 0.5%.” In actuality, according to the website, Tsingtao 0.0 has no more than 0.03% alcohol by volume, with 63 calories per serving. There’s a bit more detail here in my original post.

Appearance: Brilliant golden color with great clarity, and a lacy, good white head (reminds me of whipped egg whites).

Smell: I get a bit of the green bottle treatment—skunkiness (lightstruck). Otherwise it’s got crisp, grainy notes with no hops and a super clean, light fermentation profile (or lack thereof).

Taste: It’s a crisp, snappy lager with a lightly grassy bitterness that reminds me of wheat chaff, which I think is from the NA process leaving some flavor artifacts. A bit of that lightstruck character comes through as well. It really doesn’t have any other non-alcoholic flavor markers that I can detect.

Mouthfeel: Light, crisp, slightly grassy-bitter into the finish. Medium dry.

Overall: Good for what it is; if I were tasting this blind, I wouldn’t know it was non-alcoholic.

Montauk Brewing N.A. IPA

This is the first non-alcoholic beer from New York’s Montauk, joining the brewery’s standard lineup (although I can’t find it listed on the company’s website except for the beer finder). It’s brewed with a blend of Citra, Mosaic, and a blend of Cryo hops.

It has less than 0.5% ABV, but unlike the others, does not list any other nutritional information. And as a side note, Montauk is a subsidiary of Tilray Brands.

Appearance: Golden bordering on copper colored, with decent clarity, and a white head.

Smell: There’s a bright fruitiness to it that’s a bit of citrus, a bit of fresh mango… maybe yuzu. Beyond that it’s pretty light, with maybe a hint of malt character.

Taste: Super light with a gentle citrus flavor and a toasty cereal grain with a subtle-yet-present grassy bitterness. Easy to drink without being obviously non-alcoholic, but it doesn’t really trip the “IPA meter” that I’d like, just tickling it. There’s a slight sweetness in the end.

Mouthfeel: Medium-light to a basically light body, with some structure and toastiness going into a clean finish.

Overall: It’s pretty good though it really doesn’t read “IPA” to me; much more pale or golden ale with nice fruity aroma.

Good Time Brewing IPA Non-Alcoholic

Good Time is also based out of New York, focusing entirely on NA beers. In addition to the IPA that was sent to me, the company also features an NA Pils and Wheat in its lineup. There seems to be a bit of hype behind the brand, but it’s the liquid inside the can that counts.

As usual, the NA IPA has less than 0.5% ABV, with 40 IBUs, and 80 calories and 17 grams of carbs per 12-ounce can.

Appearance: Hazy translucent orange, with a nice off-white head that fell quickly.

Smell: Hops with sticky lupulin and a touch of fruitiness dominate the nose, though they have a slight “boiled stem” note, slightly woody. There’s a wheat/grassy grain character but it’s light.

Taste: The hops dominate the palate as well and are a bit harsh—woody and astringent, either over-boiled or like an over-steeped hop tea. I get a “soup” of the grains (malts, oats, wheat) which isn’t unpleasant but it’s muddled and does drink a little wort-like (which could be why the hops have harsher character). There’s some residual sweetness.

Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied, a pleasant residual sweetness, but it’s still a touch astringent going into the finish.

Overall: It’s not the best of what I’ve had lately, a bit harsh on the hops, but it’s a decent first offering from the newer company.