ABV: 0.0%
Calories per can: 62 (19 per 100ml)
Founded in 2003, Edinburgh brewers Innis & Gunn are famous for little bottles of strong beer, up to 7.4%ABV. So, we had to take note when they launched a 0.0% pale ale for the 2017 Dry January market.
Given the range of flavours Innis & Gunn have introduced to beer drinkers – rum, whisky, toasted oak – this one was bound to have something unusual about it. It’s hoppy, that’s for sure, but there’s more to it than that – a nice citrus bite, a lemony flavour that’s nothing like the shandiness of, say, Becks Blue Lemon. It’s got a depth of flavour you’ll struggle to find in most alcohol-free beers, and is a worthy competitor to its fellow-Scot, BrewDog’s Nanny State.
Like Bavaria 0.0% and Cobra Zero, this beer never had any alcohol in it, and can justly claim to be totally alcohol-free. It’s also a source Vitamin C, but we wouldn’t rely on it in preference to, say, fresh fruit and veg.
Innis & Gunn are currently marketing it as a “limited edition”, with no firm plans to make it a permanent part of their range. That may change, of course, if it’s a big seller. If you want to grab a can or two before it gets to be a rarity, it’s one of a selection of beers that have made the cut in the excellent new alcohol-free section in major Tesco supermarkets.
