Just chiming in on the NA beer tip as I’ve spent the last two years trying as wide a variety as I have access to here in Tahoe/Reno.
I personally don’t get all the hype surrounding Athletic. It has a very stringent chemical taste to me and I think it’s one of the worst of all readily available N/A’s out there.
Not a fan of Lagunitas IPNA, either.
And Heineken 0 is great if you like that skunky Heineken taste (I don’t).
I have tried two different N/As from Crux and was not impressed.
For my $$$$, these are my favorite N/A Beers:
Self Care
https://drinkselfcare.com/
“Fuzzy Hat”
This English style brew tastes like a classic ESB
Untitled Art
https://www.drinkuntitled.com/
Everything these folks make is top notch.
Their regular IPA is great, as is their Italian Pilsner and Mexican Lager.
Their Chocolate Milk Stout is bonkers good (and I am not a fan of stouts)
Sober Carpenter
https://sobercarpenter.com/
“Irish Red” - tastes like an Irish Red Ale
“Black IPA” - fantastic faux schwartzbier
Sierra Nevada
Their N/A IPA is one of the best I have had to date
***(I had it at the brewery back in October, but have heard that it won’t be in stores until sometime in December)
Best Day
https://bestdaybrewing.com/
Their Kolsch is crisp and clean and their IPA is west coast hoppy.
Southern Grist
“Company Pils” is the best N/A Pilsner I have found to date.
***not sure if they still brew this as there is zero info on their site…
Gruvi
https://www.getgruvi.com/collections/beer
Their “Nitro Stout” is pretty stellar.
Their Hazy IPA is solid, too.
Two Roots
https://www.tworootsbrewingco.com/
Their “Straight Dank” is an uber hoppy W/C IPA
Estrella Galicia
https://estrellagalicia.com/us/estrella-galicia-00/
This is my go-to lager. It’s absolutely fresh and clean and is easy to crush a few on a hot day or with a meal.
Old Milwaukee
On the cheap tip, I have found Old Milwaukee N/A to be the best of the bunch (better than PBR N/A by a long shot). Gotta drink it really, really cold, though.
This will most likely be my ski season crusher for when hanging out with my fellow coaches apres in the lot.
YMMV depending on your palate…
![]()
Last edited by dookeyXXX; 11-30-2023 at 08:47 PM.
Meh….. Think about it. The ones I’ve bought and seen are 99% water, not distilled then alcohol removed. They don’t age them in oak barrels or anything. They don’t pay federal proof tax. They are selling herb and spice infused water for 2-3x the price of cold brew or kombucha.
Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums
Best Skier on the Mountain
Self-Certified
1992 - 2012
Squaw Valley, USA
I had no idea there were so many. Now I have to find places that sell these. However, the times I really want one are when I'm out and about, not at home. I'm almost always the designated driver. I always ask and if a place has any NA or 0, they usually only have one offering, so I'm stuck with that. It's usually none of the interesting ones.
I did have a Guinness 0.0 a few weeks ago at an Irish Pub in Ottawa.. It was interesting. Definitely not a daily driver for me. It tasted watery. But real Guinness tastes watery to me too, so I suppose that means they nailed it.
HUDGE Guinness 0% fan here. Always have a few cans in the fridge and my local pub has started carrying it.
It does exactly what I need which is fill the familiarity and ritual void while I watch soccer at home or at the pub when I want to have 0, 1, or 2, pints vs 6-8 during a match
had a few, none stand out as great, but def good place holders. THIS would be up your alley me thinks https://enjoymxxn.com/products/kentucky-oak/
You know when you are canoeing and your paddle stroke leaves a section of water that is different than the water around it? It takes on what I describe as a "rough flatness". That's how I describe the finish taste from a drink of Guinness poured from a can with that gadget they use for carbonation, into a glass. It's not unpleasant, it just is. It's sort of watery. I don't get that as much with Guinness from the tap. Anyway, the 0.0 poured from a can tasted exactly the same as I remember the real deal from a can. Disclaimer: I'm a Murphy's fan.
I haven’t drunk much beer lately, NA or not, but I recall that the best I tasted back when I did was Clausthaler. Tasted just like a normal fermented German beer, except without most of the alcohol (I think it’s 0.5%).
St Pauli Girl also makes a reasonable NA beer.
Gave the Guiness 0.0 another try last night and I have decided I like it. I have something from Athletic that I don't like as much.
Yup, you're getting old
I had a Heineken 0 or whatever they call their fake beer. It was gross. Way too syrupy sweet. And none of the skunky flavor their real beer has. 0/11. Would not bang.
1. Guinness 0%. Slightly watery and soy-saucey. Beautiful pour. Would buy again, but in no real rush to do so.
3. Sam Adams Just the Haze. Holy shit this is the best NA beer I've had - it tastes amazing. 10/10.
Sent from my Pixel 8 Pro using Tapatalk
My local watering hole has Just The Haze. I haven't been drinking much NA lately but I agree that it's the best NA I've had.
Anyone else like the Budweiser NA? On a hot summer day it does the job for me. I don't particularly care for regular Bud if I'm drinking cheap swill but the NA is pretty crushable.
I like the Guinness. Need to try the Sam Adams out of a glass. I had it in the can but that’s not fair to it. Oddly enough for me, Busch Latte NA is ok. Maybe it’s because the normal version set the expectation bar so low?
Don’t like any of the Athletic. Super bummed about the Crux, I figured if anyone could get it right it would be them.
My favorite so far is Deschutes Porter. I will get a pour pic up next time I secure some. It’s a bit hard to find and hit and miss on availability.
I agree with you about the Athletic, I tried it for the first time a few weeks ago and it didn't taste much like beer at all, more like malt liquor. I'm much more likely to drink water than non-alcoholic beer, but I might give the crux a try next time I'm in Bend if they have it at the tap room
I've been adding these hop oil concentrates to my bubbly water. It certainly not a "beer" taste but it adds a bit of a bite, good aromas and nice flavor.
https://www.33books.com/products/berts-beer-baster
Sent from my Pixel 6a using Tapatalk
Interesting. In the same vein, I was drinking a lot of hoptea for a while. https://hoplark.com/collections/clas...YaAlTnEALw_wcB
I like bud zero, good week night beer taste when I don’t want any alcohol. Haven’t tried the busch na as a half rack of bud zero is $2 more than a six pack of busch na at my local grocery. I tried the Athletic IPA and Blonde, both were horrible imo. Bud zero is cheap and does the trick.
The NA Black Butte is pretty good, not much different than the regular
Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums
Busch NA is the best shitty American beer substitute. It also brings back memories of my friends and I sitting in a treehouse making ourselves drink Busch because we knew it was an acquired taste way bitd.
Sierra Nevada Trail Pass is pretty good. No fucking idea why anyone likes skunky Heineken so there is no way in hell I'll try their NA beer.
Bookmarks