The 10 Alcohol Free Beers to Try This Month
WORDS BY TOM CRONKOver the past few years I’ve tried well over 500 booze-free beers.
That’s an awful lot, I know. But I’m one of those guys who decided to make craft beer a sizeable chunk of his personality in his late 20s/early 30s. You probably know the type.
After a pretty serious TBI in the summer of 2023, I was told in no uncertain terms by doctors that my tap room boozing days were over. So I made the Big Switch to the little section on the end of the aisle, and found some truly great little online bootle shops along the way.
Before we begin, I must say that I’m no cicerone (the beer equivalent of a sommelier), but what’s that thing Malcolm Gladwell says about 10,000 hours of focused practice to achieve mastery in any complex field? Well, I’m more than 5% of the way there having tried quite so many 0.5% beers*.
OK, enough, on with that list.
Anything by We Can Be Friends
IPAs, Lagers
Cuckoo-brewed all over the country in small batches, pick up a can of whatever is fresh and I promise you’ll be gobsmacked that this stuff is free from booze. It’s easy to be overzealous and superlative with food and drink reviews (just watch any reaction video on social media), however, these beers really are streets ahead of the competition. Provided you have a taste for fruity, full-bodied, complex beers this is the place to start your craft AF pilgrimage. Pick up a can of Zeus and go from there.
Nolia (by Beak)
IPA
Lewes-based Beak punch well above their weight in the craft scene, with throngs of devoted fans sinking their delicious conveyor belt of juicy 8% DIPAs. In early 2025 they collaborated with the head brewer behind We Can Be Friends (who has his own cultlike following in the AF world - of which I’m a central cheerleader) on a brew named FLWRS. That beer is no longer in production, but clearly the magic lingered on in those tanks; Nolia picks up where FLWRS left off. This is one for lovers of big, bold and juicy New World flavours.
The Bianca Series, Omnipollo
Lassi Gose Sours
Oh boy. Do I have the beer for you if you don’t like regular beer, love pulling silly faces, and enjoy bright colours! This run of sours from Swedish craft giants Omnipollo are beautiful to look at well before you crack the can. When you open one up, probably on a special occasion thanks to the imported price tag, you’ll be bowled over by the vibrancy dancing in your eyes, nose and mouth.
No Quarter Pacific Pils, Jump Ship Brewing
Lager
Edinburgh-based and female-owned, Jump Ship really sprung to the forefront of the conversation in 2025. This isn’t my favourite from their range (although I did enjoy it), but the truth is this list would simply be wall-to-wall New England IPAs if I told you about my 10 best beers. This pils is just the ticket for lager-lovers, albeit with a herbal, cereal edge to give it a lot more bite than the dreaded mass market brews from Becks, Heineken and co.
Fresh, Cloudwater
IPA
This little evolving run of AF IPAs are based on the quintessential bold hops and body of Cloudwater’s famous full alc collection. They were late to the AF party, initially resisting the chance to join the alc-free booze train in the early days, but all is forgiven. This was worth the wait. Fresh is now available with a number of hop variants, so you can really show off your craft beer nous.
Milk Shake, Wiper & True
Milk Stout
In 2025 Wiper & True went BIG for Dry January, releasing four great AF collabs (named: 1, 2, 3, 4) with fellow brewers. They’re back in 2026 with a solid NEIPA and this dealcoholised version of their classic 5.6% stout of the same name. I cracked my can open on Christmas Day — it was the perfect pair to the afternoon slice of cake.
Chug, Mash Gang
Hazy IPA
In many ways, Mash Gang are/were the kings of UK AF beer. For a couple of years they hosted a monthly subscription where they would send a few core range beers alongside experimental one-offs as they mastered their craft. Following a buy out the phenomenal, weird and idiosyncratic brews have taken a back seat, but the upshot is supermarket availability and more people drinking from a smaller pool of the core range. The photo above is from a Lou Sanders gig at the Brighton Dome. Oh how far we’ve come in just a few years!
Proper Job, St Austell
IPA
It’s always a risk to pin the AF badge on an iconic, core range beer from one of Britain’s biggest breweries. But this IPA really stands up to criticism from a corner of the market not known for being the most welcoming to change (I’m trying hard to not say ‘older gentleman beer drinkers). With that big name comes a nationwide rollout. In fact, you can often find this in your local Tesco before you spot its full fat big brother.
Guinness 0.0
Stout
Available in virtually every supermarket, corner shop, pub fridge and even on tap in some places. This is the perfect gateway for any beer drinker to discover that alcohol free really can taste like the real deal. I tried 0.0 on tap in Belfast (the closest I got to St James’ Gate in 2024) and it was phenomenal: the ceremony of the pour, the live band, the stuffy overcrowded bar, the creamy legs. Perfect.
Easy AF, Only With Love
IPA
Stone fruit is my favourite burst of beery flavour, so the Nectaron and Idaho 7 hops here are very welcome. Easy is the perfect name for this beer, best enjoyed on a warm summer’s evening with nothing urgent to do and nowhere to be (except, perhaps, Summer Camp?). And from a brewery doing things the right way, too.
And finally, a quick list of those places to find great AF beer (beyond the usual suspects in the supermarket):
thesobersloth.co.uk
wisebartender.co.uk
alcoholfreedrinks.co.uk
thefuss.club
But best of all, visit your local bottle shop!
*In case any purists are wondering, 0.5% really is alcohol free. Some stuff like Guinness 0.0 is obviously lower, but no one is getting drunk on these 0.5% brews - it’s the same as a ripe banana.
