Sierra Nevada - Trail Pass Golden Ale

The Trail Pass can declares the ale to be less than 0.5% ABV, has 90 calories and is vegan. Ingredients are not listed. The brewery is based in North Carolina and the majority of their beers are alcoholic ones. The aroma is quite hoppy and with some floral notes. However, tastewise this initial promise is not delivered. It is bland and rather characterless, with a rather odd "synthetic" taste. The mouthfeel is smooth and with moderate carbonation. The finish has a slight sweetness to it. Not a trail I'll be going along again.

1 / 5

Lowtide - Our Future Is Golden

As the name suggests, this is a golden ale from the Bath brewery, offered up as a 0.5 % ABV brew dispensed from a 440ml can. The beer is vegan but not GF. The listed ingredients include Columbus, First Gold and Chinook hops. There is a delicate floral aroma released when the beer is poured into the glass. A light body and gentle carbonation provides a soft mouthfeel, whilst the taste is a nice combination of citrussy orange and underlying earthiness. There is a crisp finish and a moderate bitterness remains. It's pleasant enough but not too memorable in character.

3 / 5

Wold Top - Inkling

The Yorkshire brewery generally produce alcoholic beers but do offer two low alcohol ones - Intuition, a pale ale, and this one, a vegan and GF golden ale which weighs in at <0.5 % ABV. Upon pouring from the 330 ml bottle a good head is created which holds firm to the bottom of the glass. The aroma has a pleasing and restrained hoppiness. The malt and oats provide a very moreish combination of sweet caramel notes and crisp bitterness. The body is light and soft, whilst the finish has a clean, dry bite to it. All in all a refreshing brew which is very easy to quaff. 

4 / 5

Athletic Brewing - Upside Dawn

The Athletic Brewing Co set up shop in 2017 in Connecticut to specialise in AF beers and Upside Dawn is the brewery's golden ale and is dispensed from a 355 ml can. The ABV is less than 0.5 %. There are both English and American hops (not named) in the mix, together with malted barley, oats and wheat. The beer struggles to maintain much of a head when poured into the glass. The aroma is gently floral and with a touch of citrus. Tastewise Upside Dawn is very restrained - I get grapefruit, lemon, orange and sherbet. Maltiness is pretty much absent. It has a disappointing mouthfeel; a combination of watery thinness and yet overly gassy. The finish is moderately sweet. Upside Dawn is a light-bodied and subtle brew with a pleasant taste, but it is let down by that mouthfeel. 

3 / 5

Big Drop - BST Golden Ale

Big Drop brewery is based in Ipswich and is a multi-award winning concern. This golden ale contains lactose and so it is not suitable for vegans, but is gluten-free. The aroma has a slight citrus note but nothing too strong. The taste is more sweet and rather malty, with a hint of green tea bitterness. The mouthfeel is on the thin side.  Overall, it's an easy-to-drink , anytime kind of a beer. Pleasant is about the best word for it.

3/5

Wellbeing - Heavenly Body

A vegan "golden wheat" beer from the USA. The Wellbeing Brewing Company specialise in AF beers. Heavenly Body is brewed using lights malts. The beer is indeed golden and has a thin white head which doesn't hang around for too long. The aroma is slightly floral, presumably from the Cascade hops used. The body is particularly thin, although the taste is quite pleasant, having a slight citrus edge. Not so much heavenly as earthbound.

2/5

St.Peter's - Without Gold

A golden ale from Suffolk. It is, unfortunately, without much in the way of redeeming features, let alone gold. Out of the distinctive bottle comes a beer whose aroma is just about pleasant enough to invite drinking. The taste lacks the refreshing qualities one might expect from a golden ale. Bread, yeastiness and a lingering corn type aftertaste make it a hard beer to enjoy much.

1/5