Bloomberg Businessweek - USA (2019-08-19)

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JustbeforenoonattheO’FallonBreweryO’BarinMaryland
Heights,Mo.,thepubbeginstofillwithworkersfromnearby
officeparks.Scatteredamongtheusualburgersandbuild-
your-ownflatbreadsaremorethana fewpintsofbeer.This
is a brewery,afterall,ina suburbofSt.Louis,theancestral
homeofAnheuser-Busch.
A closerlookatthesemiddaylibations,however,yields
surprises.AmongthestandardlagersandIndiapaleales,
thebarservesa Hellraiserdarkambertopatronswhowant
to stayclearforthedriveandalertfortheafternoon—orjust
savea fewcalories.Althoughit looksandtasteslikea craftale,
it containsbarelyanyalcohol.Thebeeris oneoffourbrews
createdinthisbuildingbytheupstartWellBeingBrewingCo.
Opened in2016, WellBeing says it’s the firstNorth
American brewery dedicated solelyto the making of
nonalcoholic,orNA,beer,a minusculebutfast-growingsec-
toroftheAmericancraftbeerindustry.Youngerconsumers
knowofthebodilydamagedrinkingcauses;agingdrinkers
findthatalcoholdoesn’tmixwithmedications.Beverage
Daily, a tradepublication,hasfoundthat84%ofpeoplewho
drinkarelookingtodrinkless.
ILLUSTRATION BY CARI VANDER YACHTEventhoughNA(0.5%alcoholbyvolumeandbelow)

CRITIC BloombergPursuits August 19, 2019

andlow-alcoholbeers(2.8%ABV)constitute5%ofU.S.beer

consumption, the “low-and-no” category overall grew at 5.2%

from 2010 to 2016, says GlobalData Plc, an analytics firm—while

the craft beer boom has slowed. Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV,

theworld’slargestbrewer,predictsthatlow-and-nobeerwill

growfromthecurrent8%ofitssalesto20%by2025.

Traditionallytherehavebeentwowaystomakeno-alcohol

beer: either halt the brewing process before the sugars fer-

ment, cutting short the period when beer develops its taste

profile; or boil the alcohol off a finished batch, essentially

scorching the flavor. Either way, what’s left is just plain

skunky, too sweet, or too watery—have you actually ever tried

an O’Doul’s? Enter Jeff Stevens, a marketing rep and recover-

ing alcoholic who founded WellBeing after he grew tired of

being the buzzkill at bars by ordering Diet Cokes.

Stevens brews his NA beer differently. In 2015 he found

researchers at the University of Munich who’d developed a

method of vacuum-distilling beer that lowers its boiling point,

preserving the flavor. The result was an almost booze-free

drink that had the texture and, most important, something

approaching the taste of beer. He consulted with the brew-

ers at O’Fallon, a regional craft mainstay known for a wide

range of styles and experimental flavors, to formulate recipes

and rented out a corner of its 39,000-square-foot factory. He

ordered a vacuum distillation machine (they retail for about

$800,000)andsettowork.

Sincethen,Stevenshasbeenjoinedbybreweriessuch

asBravusBrewingCo.inNewportBeach,Calif.,whichdoes

a nonalcoholicoatmealstoutakintoGuinness;Athletic

BrewingCo.inStratford,Conn.,whichmarketsitsUpside

Dawngoldenaletothemarathon-running,MichelobUltra

crowd;andPartakeBrewinginToronto,whoseblondis one

ofthefewlagersinthisspace.NirvanaBrewery,inLondon,

openedin 2017 astheU.K.’slonecraftsupplieroflow-alcohol

pubdraughts.

Some,likeWellBeing,usevacuumdistillingtoremovethe

booze,whereasothers,suchasBravus,manipulatetheyeast

toproducelessethanol.Aswithmagicians,mostbrewers

refusetodivulgetheirproprietarysecrets.

Stevens’sflightisamongthetastiest.At 68 caloriesper

12-ouncecan,hisflagshipHeavenlyBodygoldenwheat(0.2%

ABV)iscrisp,withthefrothytextureofa BlueMoon.The

Hellraiser(0.3%)couldstandinfora FatTirebasedonhow

it maintainsthemaltandnuttinessofa darkale.HisIntrepid

TravelerCoffeeCreamstout(0.4%)won’tmakeanyoneforget

whata SamuelSmith’stasteslike,butit’sa robusttreatwith

only 7 grams of sugar. Victory has enriched its citrus wheat

(0.19%) with electrolytes.

WellBeing’s beers are already available in stores, and

because the company isn’t bound by the interstate shipping

restrictions placed on alcohol, it can mail its beers practically

anywhere. The goal is to get retailers to move WellBeing off

the NA shelves—what Stevens calls the “sad space.” Having

conquered the basics of brewing, he now faces an arguably

harder job: changing perception. <BW>

Taste-testingthebestofthe

healthy “low-and-no” category

By Tony Rehagen

Craft Beer for

Nondrinkers