If you’ve spent time in major metropolitan areas other than Los Angeles, you know, at least anecdotally, one thing that’s true: We’re not a very good drinking city. Maybe it’s for health reasons; Maybe it’s because states like California have adopted other ways to relieve stress. Or possibly because in Los Angeles, unlike cities where you can strap one on and then head home on foot or take public transportation, we typically get behind the wheel of a car at the end of the night.
All of these factors contribute to making Los Angeles fertile ground for an unprecedented boom in non-alcoholic drinking.
For a long time, there weren’t many non-alcoholic beer options in this country. There was O’Doul’s, which launched in 1990 and it was a finishing touch for many years. “Why would anyone want to drink a non-alcoholic beer?” was a common refrain.
Nowadays, there are so many non-alcoholic beers that it’s hard to know where to start.
Sales of these beers have has grown steadily since the pandemic and are expected to exceed 40 billion dollars by 2032. In fact, there are so many options these days that for this article, I’ll only review non-alcoholic IPAs or India pale ales. Because? Well, for one thing, it’s an incredibly popular type of beer. Second, I needed some way to narrow down NA’s ever-growing list of beer options. But also, the IPA, known for its hoppy flavor and relatively high alcohol content, is a great litmus test for the quality of non-alcoholic brewing. It is such a distinct and powerful drink that it is difficult to fake.
The many ways to make non-alcoholic beer are too complicated to delve into, but they often boil down to one of two ways: removing alcohol from a beer after it’s brewed, or stopping alcohol production before it even begins. Sierra Nevada has a handy guide on how it works Trail Pass IPA is made without alcohol (one of the beers included on this list) which explains how they use a special strain of yeast that only consumes certain sugars to create a small amount of alcohol.
I’ve grouped the following 19 (!) different non-alcoholic IPAs into three categories: the ones I loved, the ones I liked, and the ones that, frankly, weren’t my favorites.
Loved
Athletic Brewing: Run Wild IPA
Connecticut-based Athletic Brewing has quickly become one of NA’s top beer brands and it’s easy to see why: it’s a quality IPA. It is floral and tannic, with a strong bitterness on the back of the tongue that does not cross the metallic line, as some beers do. I tried it with some family members, one of whom thought it tasted a little like hop tea, with which I agreed.
Best Brew of the Day: Hazy IPA
This is a nice beer from Best Day Brewing, a Northern California brand. The first thing you notice when you open it is a smell very similar to grain. This is a moderately hoppy beer with a pleasant flavor – it might lead you to believe it actually contains alcohol. (To be fair, non-alcoholic beer in this country actually contains a small amount of alcohol; it is usually advertised as having less than 0.5% alcohol by volume.) There is a pleasant bitter quality here with no lingering aftertaste.
DrinkSip – Hazy IPA
I wasn’t expecting a particularly mature beer from the art on this can (a cartoon mouth with “HANGOVERS SUCK” printed underneath), but I liked this hazy IPA from DrinkSip, a company co-founded by NFL defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence. Hazy IPAs, sometimes called New England IPAs, have a hazy appearance and often fruity profiles. This beer has a good balance between juicy, bitter and hoppy. A slight lingering bitterness lets you know it’s no nonsense. A surprisingly mature NA IPA.
Figueroa Mountain — Hoppy Poppy N/A API
This is a nice IPA from Figueroa Mountain, a brewery based in Buellton, between Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo. There’s a light sweetness and spiciness – someone I tried this beer with thought it smelled slightly cheesy. I agree: I like cheese too. That original bouquet gives way to floral notes and, finally, to a quite assertive bitterness that is really savored at the back of the throat.
Lagunitas — IPNA
One would expect a good IPA from Lagunitas, one of the original craft breweries that really made it big on the national stage (Heineken now owns it), and this one delivers. It has a very good flavour: hoppy, floral and balanced with enough bitterness on the tongue to give you something to think about. If I had one criticism it would be that it is slightly watery, but that’s not enough to take it out of the top tier.
(A side note: the initial bottle of this beer I tried was skunk. I had never tried a bottle of skunk beer before and was confused at first. But it smelled like, well, like a skunk, so I went out and bought another pack of six. Curiously, this was the only beer of the 19 that came in a bottle. Everything else was in a can).
Untitled Art – West Coast IPA
I’m not strictly ranking these IPAs, but this was probably my favorite of the bunch. It was hoppy, slightly acidic and with soft floral notes. The biggest item in the win column for this IPA from Wisconsin-based Untitled Art is, quite simply, that it tastes more like beer than the others. I shouldn’t be surprised: Midwesterners know their beer. But I was surprised by the richness and depth here. This beer has a lot going on and doesn’t just taste like hop water.
Woodland Farms Brewery – Pointer IPA
Here’s an entry from the great state of Maine: Woodland Farms Brewery produces a very fruity and round IPA. It has a lot of body, is heavy and lingers in the mouth. The expected bitterness of the IPA is idiosyncratic here and tastes a little ashy. A good beer.
Appreciated
Atmos Brewing – Wayfarer IPA
From the heart of Idaho and Atmos Brewing comes this big, effervescent IPA with a deep caramel flavor. This was big and drippy when opened, and I mean that in the most literal way – it overflowed and had a huge foam when poured. It’s a decent beer overall, but it almost reminds me of a porter or stout, with an assertive, bitter finish.
Grüvi – Juicy IPA
Denver-based Grüvi (the inclusion of the umlaut honestly seems optional, as is the case with clothing brand Stüssy) brews a Juicy IPA that is, in fact, juicy. It tastes like overripe fruit, sweet and heavy, like dense pineapple bread. It’s tasty, to be sure, but it lacks much of what makes an IPA an IPA, namely bitterness. This fruity entry is certainly a good beer for those who don’t particularly like IPAs.
Samuel Adams – Only Haze IPA
Sam Adams (he said he could call it “Sam”) is not, in fact, a beer as old as our nation’s independence, but was created in Boston in the 1980s. This is a light, sweet and fruity IPA that is very easy to drink and lacks the characteristic bitterness of the IPA. It is a good, drinkable, juicy beer, with a fruity profile but without much flavor.
Sierra Nevada — IPA Trail Pass
I think of Sierra Nevada as one of the quintessential American pale ales: bitter and almost belligerently hoppy. This is a PG version of that: it’s slightly funky, sweet with some mild fermented notes in the initial taste that give way to a slight floral flavor. It’s not bitter at all. In fact, it goes down quite easily.
Strive – Juicy IPA
This IPA from Connecticut’s Strive Brewing really straddled the line between an IPA and a hefeweizen: it was light and fruity, with a citrus flavor that really filled the palate. There was a bit of that peculiar cheese flavor, as mentioned above with the Figueroa Mountain beer. Fortunately, cheese and fruit go together quite well. A tasty beer, but not necessarily what I want in an IPA.
Three Weavers – NA IPA
This is a solid non-alcoholic IPA from Three Weavers, an independent brewery based in Inglewood. It was citrusy and bright, with a good bite and hops. I really wanted this to go into the top category, but it tasted quite a strong metallic finish, spoiling what would otherwise be a fantastic beer.
Two Roots Brewing: Straight IPA
Please note: Two Roots Brewing, which was based in the Detroit suburb of Auburn Hills, appears to have closed permanently in September, according to its website and Facebook page. It’s a shame, because I really liked their Straight Drank IPA, which tasted like a dark cherry, with notes of pine, and was very hoppy. There was a slightly unpleasant finish and lingering bitterness, but overall this is a loss for the NA brewing community. If you can find this beer at your local store, grab it! You may not get another chance.
Wellness Brewing: Intentional IPA
A solid, very holistic-sounding beer from St. Louis-based WellBeing Brewing. It’s good and harmless, but it lacks any particular quality that would make it a memorable or exceptional drink. It is hoppy and semi-sweet with only a slight bitterness and a not very persistent aftertaste. As intermediate as possible.
It’s not my favorite
Hairless Dog Brewing – NA IPA
There’s a fine line between love and hate, and this beer, to be honest, really confused me. This NA IPA from Hairless Dog Brewing, owned by Minneapolis-based Finnegans Brew Co., ultimately wasn’t for me, but that doesn’t mean it’s not for you. I can see why some people would like this, maybe even love it. It’s very advanced, almost overwhelmingly so. You know that sweet, processed cereal smell from dry dog food? That’s what this reminded me of. But I found it excessively bready. This was one of the most unique beers of the group; I feel like there might be circumstances where I would happily drink this one. But as far as APIs go, this doesn’t qualify.
RationAle Brewing – West Coast IPA
I didn’t hate it at all and I’m convinced that this IPA from RationAle Brewing is great for those looking for something easy to drink. This beer is light, fruity, and quite flavorful, but there isn’t much meat on the bones. There’s not much under the engine. An IPA should hit you in the mouth with its bitterness and hops, and this taps you lightly on the shoulder. I’ve said this about other beers and it applies here too: this one doesn’t taste bad and could be a good IPA for people who don’t particularly like IPAs.
Sober Carpenter – NA IPA
This company has a great name (Sober Carpenter would also be a good name for a band or megachurch), but unfortunately, that’s where the fun ended for me. The smell of this reminded me of old socks and had a strange taste, like a sticky dorm basement floor after years of partying. There is a bitterness at the end that lingers, like an unbreakable worm.
Surreal Brewing: Milkshake IPA
Well, now I know why it’s called Milkshake IPA. This beer from Surreal Brewing has a very sweet smell and a strong vanilla flavor. I guess it’s a fun trick, but I don’t know if I need to be reminded of a 1950s diner when I’m drinking a beer. I could deal with the vanilla if there were other things that made this beer interesting, but there aren’t. An IPA should have bite and bitterness – this beer lacks fangs.
