The evolution of low and no-alcohol beer

The rise of low and no-alcohol beer has been one of the most significant shifts in modern brewing. As more consumers moderate their drinking, brewers are proving that flavour, style and technical quality do not need to depend on alcohol. Few understand that challenge better than Nirvana Brewery, one of the UK’s early pioneers in dedicated alcohol-free brewing. Drawing on insights from a recent WSET webinar with Head Brewer James Rabagliati, this article explores how brewers have helped transform the category. Brewing beer, not substitutes Alcohol-free beer has not always been brewed with style diversity in mind. For many years, the category focused primarily on creating alternatives to existing beers rather than building distinctive products in their own right. When Nirvana Brewery was founded in 2016, alcohol-free beer was still often treated as a compromise. Choice was limited, styles were few and many products felt more like alternatives rather than beers people genuinely sought out

by WSETglobal · source ↗