Jiddler's Tipple - All Day Pale Ale

Jiddler's Tipple is a London-based brewery that produces a range of GF alcoholic beers, this being their only (currently) alcohol free (0.5% ABV) offering. The ingredients are given on the 330ml can as being oats, wheat, glycerin and Munich malt together with Citra, Mosaic and Amarillo hops. The beer is vegan and it pours a very pale colour from the can, whilst the modest white head is soon lost. There is a fresh and sharp character to the aroma. Tastewise, given the hops, it is unsurprisingly very citrussy, though it is a touch rounded out with a resinous base. The mouthfeel is light and is bordering on the slight. There is a clean finish to what is a very pleasant pale ale, albeit with a rather simple flavour profile.

3 / 5

Below Brew Co - Elephant in the Room Pale

It is described on the 440 ml can as an experimental pale ale and one can maybe see why given that this vegan beer is made using coconut, peach and marijuana terpenes. There are also oats, barley and wheat - as well as Sabro and Krush hops - in the mix to ensure that it is actually a beer in your glass. The head soon disappears upon pouring and there is a slightly sweet but rather mossy aroma. The taste is definitely out of the ordinary. The dominant flavour is of coconut. There are also notes of sweet fruits, peach obviously but also some tangerine and berry. The flavours are well combined and the mouthfeel is very soft. The finish is very much of sweet coconut. Definitely experimental that on balance manages to remain more beer than pina colada. 

3 / 5

Verdant Brewing - Psych! IPA

This is the Cornish brewer's first foray into the world of alcohol free beers and it's a 0.5% ABV vegan IPA delivered in a 440 ml can. The beer is produced utilising a "clever yeast", rather than by dealcoholisation. The ingredients include various malts and a good selection of hops (Chinook, Mosaic, Simcoe, El Dorado and Citra). This provides a spicy and attractive aroma when Psych! is poured into the glass. Floral and tropical flavours abound (particularly lemon and blueberry) in a well-orchestrated blend and there is also a nice base of resinous pine. The body is light but firm and there is a sharp hoppy finish. Hopefully it will not be long before Verdant brew a second AF beer.

5 / 5

Birra Moretti - Zero

Birra Moretti is brewed in the Netherlands, the Italian brewery now being owned by Heineken. The 330ml bottle gives the ingredients as malted barley, hop extract and natural flavouring. The ABV is no more than 0.05%. The modest white head sits atop a pale amber body, pretty much a standard looking lager in fact. The aroma is gently of lemon. Tastewise it is a citrussy affair and has a light malt base, whilst the finish has that same touch of lemon. The mouthfeel is light, the carbonation being rather modest. Indeed, it is very easy to drink; maybe going well with a pizza or pasta dish. 

3 / 5

Bowness Bay Brewing - Swan Free Pale Ale

The half litre bottle proudly states that this 0.5% ABV pale ale has won Bronze at the World Beer Awards not once but twice - in 2020 and then again in 2021. The label also states that the ingredients are malted barley, hops (three unnamed varieties) and Lake District water. The Cumbrian brewery mainly produce alcoholic beers but as well as this pale ale they also offer an AF pilsner-style lager. This pale ale is certainly very pale and the slight head on it when poured into a glass soon disappears. There is a delicate aroma, nothing overpowering and this follows on to a gentle tasting ale. The main flavour of the beer - citrus - is quite soft; more tangerine than lemon I would say. The mouthfeel is light and the carbonation level quite modest. There is a refreshing finish to the beer, making it a very pleasant and easy drinking option. 

3 / 5

Wiper and True - Tomorrow Lager

This dealcoholised and unfiltered 0.5% ABV lager arrives in a 440 ml can which declares it to have won the Bronze medal at the World Alcohol Free Awards 2024. It is vegan friendly. The ingredients are listed as malts and traditional German hops. The aroma is a very slight herby one and with maybe just a touch of citrus. The taste and mouthfeel of this pale beer is immediately very pilsner: crisp, fresh, light and smooth. The clean, hoppy finish makes for a very pleasant beer indeed. And, as an aside, the Bristol brewery try to be as eco-friendly as possible - in terms of carbon footprint, solar power and packaging - and so are doing their bit for a better tomorrow.

4 / 5

Stewart Brewing - Scot Free Pale

Stewart Brewing was established in Edinburgh in 2004 and won the Scottish Brewery of the Year award in 2024. The brewery mostly produces alcoholic beers but do also produce an AF lager and this 0.5% ABV pale, served up in a 330 ml can which declares it to be unfiltered, GF, vegan friendly and containing malted barley, wheat, oats and hops. The can is rather reticent about who makes it though - "Stewart Brewing" being hidden in the small print. Maybe one has to recognise the logo? The hops used are all American: Mosaic, Simcoe and Citra. Unsurprisingly then that the aroma is both citrus sharp and floral in character. The taste is a superbly crafted mix of tangerine, mango, berry and with a very definite resinous/piney character to the fore. A good malt base holds the mouthfeel firm, whilst the finish is a 100% thirst quench. Definitely going to be on repeat.

5 / 5

Fruh - Kolsch 0.0

Colner Hofbrau Fruh has been brewing beer for more than 100 years and this is their first alcohol free offering. It is a dealcoholised version of their 4.8% ABV kolsch (a style specific to the Cologne area of Germany). The 33 cl bottle dispenses a very bright looking beer with a decent white head on top. A gentle floral aroma is noticeable, with maybe a touch of orange as well. In terms of taste, it is a subtle affair - with notes of malt, bread and a little honey in the background. It has a clean, light and gentle mouthfeel, whilst the finish is quite dry. Kolsch is fermented like an ale but then conditioned like a lager and this process results in a kind of hybrid style of beer - maybe a little closer to the lager end than the ale end, but either way it is a very crisp and refreshing drink.

4 / 5

Buxton - Axed IPA

This is the AF version of the Derbyshire brewery's Axe Edge IPA, coming in at just 0.5% ABV. It is vegan, but not GF - the ingredients on the 440ml can are given as barley, oats, wheat and hops. It is also available on draught (at least in Buxton!). Axed has a clean, citrus aroma and the body is lightly carbonated. Tastewise there are (naturally) citrus notes (grapefruit and tangerine in the main) as well as a softer stone fruit background. It is a well hoppy IPA and has a good bitter finish. Clean and refreshing, I'd happily wield more of this beer.

4 / 5

BERO - Kingston Golden Pils

Made in the USA, but with "globally sourced ingredients" which are listed as malted barley, hops and yeast, this pils arrives in a 355ml can. The beer is indeed a strong golden colour and the head is good and firm. There is very little in the way of aroma, perhaps a touch of breadiness. Tastewise it is very much biscuity malt all the way, with maybe a touch of grassiness. Lacking any real hoppiness or citrus the finish is quite dry. All in all, Kingston Golden Pils is not the most refreshing beer I have tasted.

2 / 5

Unbarred - Coastin' West Coast IPA

Brewed in Brighton, this vegan beer contains oats, barley, wheat and a quartet of hops: Chinook, Columbus, Citra and Simcoe. Emptying the 440ml can into a glass creates a good frothy topping which persists for a good while. A soft mandarin aroma greets you as you bring the glass to the lips. And the taste is a really well balanced array of flavours - mango, grapefruit and passionfruit, on a nicely understated base of pine and with a hint of spice. The mouthfeel is light and the finish is at once fresh and dry. This is a tasty partner to a hot summer's day - whether on the coast or not. 

4 / 5

Wiper and True / Track Brewing First Draught Pale Ale

This 0.5% ABV collab vegan beer comes in a 440 ml can and is produced by dealcoholisation, rather than by fermentation to a lower gravity. As well as utilising barley, wheat, oats and spelt, there is something called Citra Hyperboost, which is a concentrated hop extract oil. The billowing frothy head certainly gives off a strong grapefruit aroma. The taste is very much grapefruit, lemon and lime with perhaps some sherbet-like softening. The body is light and well-carbonated and the finish is sharp, meaning it is a refreshing drink but is rather one-dimensional in overall character.

2 / 5