I have never quite understood the appeal of non-alcoholic beer – I mean, just why? However, I am always open to changing my mind, so when we got a chance to try an alcohol-free craft beer, I thought I’d give it a go.
The lads down at Big Drop Brewing Co. were kind enough to ship over a 4-pack of their latest brews for us to try all the way from Australia. There was a bit of a mishap with delivery due to delays and the pandemic (damn you COVID-19), which led to a damaged package being delivered. Thankfully, we were able to salvage 3 out of the 4 cans, so all was not lost. We won’t, however, be using any original photography from our side, because the surviving cans are pretty banged up.
Why go for non-alcoholic beer?
I don’t think we are in any position to take a stance against alcohol – because we don’t want to and we’re not hypocrites – but there’s no reason we cannot look into it.
So studies from the US and a few other countries have shown an increase in alcohol consumption during the pandemic. This isn’t a surprise given the mind-numbing boredom that can set in during a lockdown, but is also a worrying statistic. I know for a fact that I drank more frequently during the lockdown, compared to pre-COVID times.
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Maybe, an alcohol-free option would be the healthier alternative to help you satisfy the urge without the risk or negative side-effects. It can be a useful option for those who want the ice cold beer on a hot day.
Anecdotally, we are seeing a rise in the number of low or non-alcoholic beers available on the market and more of my friends are choosing that for an evening drink on a workday. Does this mean that alcohol consumption is reducing worldwide? It isn’t, but it is good to know there are different options available in the market.
The alcohol review
Big Drop Brewing was started by two new fathers, who were looking for alternatives to their usual brews, but couldn’t find them. This led to them teaming up with renowned experimental brewer, Johnny Clayton to create an alcohol-free craft beer without using the old artificial method for the removal of the alcohol. The resulting brews taste just like your amazing beers at the pub and yet is no more than 0.5% ABV.
They basically use a process of reverse osmosis and vacuum distillation. The former filters the beer such that the alcohol is removed without heating. The latter still heats the beer, but does so in a vacuum, so a lower temperature is required for the alcohol to evaporate thereby affecting the beer flavour to a much lesser degree compared to the old techniques of heating the beer.
Using barley, rye, wheat and oats (up to 20 speciality grains) to give great flavour and aroma, they produce a variety of low/non-alcoholic beers like Stout, Lager, Pale Ale, IPA, Brown Ale, Golden Ale, Winter Ale and a Sour.
We got a chance to sample two of Big Drop’s signature beers, Pine Trail Pale Ale and Uptown Craft Lager for this review. So here we go.
First reaction
When it comes to beer, I tend to prefer a lighter beer in general – something in between a lager and an IPA. So I went in expecting much the same experience.
I first tried the Pine Trail Pale Ale. This lightly carbonated brew is quite creamy and has a decent amount of foam that lingers on top. It has a bit of a bitterness that you come to expect, so it wasn’t unpleasant and definitely had some body to it.
The first sip of the Uptown Craft Lager was a surprise, the fruitiness definitely came out strong and I had to take a second to fully understand what was going on.
The taste
As I carried on with the Pine Trail Pale Ale, the citrus and sweet aroma were definitely present throughout. The bitterness actually attenuated the overall flavour of the beer, seeming tropical in nature.
Probably the most surprising, but the great thing about this non-alcoholic beer was the fact it was surprisingly well-balanced and full-bodied, but most alcohol-free beers tend to forego.
The fruity flavours melded well together and was overall a very pleasant drink on a hot muggy afternoon in the tropics.
With the Uptown Craft Lager, as we continued to drink the one thing that stood out to us was the thinness or lack of body for the beer. It resembled a pretty normal non-alcoholic beer in that sense.
However, taste-wise I may have actually preferred this a bit more. For lack of a better description, it was a clean and crisp beer – which is surprising for a lager. I enjoyed the fruit flavours more as it lacked the bitterness of Pine Trail Pale Ale to cut through it.
It was quite a refreshing drink for the afternoon and I can see this go well at most barbeques or even a cheeky afternoon beer (which isn’t really cheeky if its non-alcoholic).
Keen to try the two brews? Find them online at Big Brew Company and if you’re in Australia, look for them on the shelves at BWS and Dan Murphy’s.
How you should enjoy it
Both go well with the usual – bar snacks or at the barbeque. They do not overwhelm the flavours of most things and I think standalone quite well.
If you were to bring this over to a friend’s house for game night or make this your contribution at the barbeque, I think it would go quite well.
Would you go alcohol-free? Let us know in the comments or through a message what you would do. It was definitely a tasty beer and a great alternative on a hot day, so I don’t see why not.
