There are many reasons why someone might drink a non-alcoholic beer. You might be driving, allergic to alcohol, trying to detox or you may be teetotal. However, with summer approaching there aren’t many things better than a beer enjoyed outside in sun. For myself, watching Euro 2016 just wouldn’t be the same without a cold beer and a BBQ. However, as I will be driving a lot I often find myself unable to drink. So, in the name of safe driving, I have tried all the non-alcoholic/low-alcohol beers I could find.

The reviews will be spaced out with one review of a different kind of beer each week. Every review will rate them on taste alone and how well they compare to the beer they are trying to emulate. For example, does Beck’s Blue taste like Beck’s? The final test will be, ‘would I rather drink said non-alcoholic beer or a carling’ (my personally most hated beer). There will be an end of season awards for the best and worst beers. Hopefully this will make it easy for you, the reader, to choose the best beer for yourself. I did it so you don’t have to.

This week’s contender: Beck’s Blue
Alcohol percentage: 0%
Review in one word: Pleasant.

Taste?

Pretty good. Especially chilled these are dam good, as non-alcoholic beer goes. If you like Becks, then this is going to be a pleasant taste. Despite being 0% It manages to keep a nice alcoholic taste of a 5% larger. This also picks up bonus points for the sensation of drinking it. Many fake beers seem to taste flat, which makes the sensation of drinking it a bit crap. However, Becks Blue keeps a nice fizz even when left open for a while.

Is it similar to a regular Beck’s?

Mostly YES! If you drink a regular Beck’s and this side by side, you will notice a difference. However, drunk in isolation from a normal Beck’s, I would say that it emulates the generic Beck’s larger taste pretty dam well.

Would I recommend it?

Yes. If you like the taste of European larger then this is a pretty good shout.
A nice thing about the presentation of the bottle is that it doesn’t scream “I AM NON-ALCOHOLIC”. Many 0% beers stick it in your face, with 0.0% written all over the bottle. If I’m drinking a non-alcoholic beer in front of the football, I’m trying to kid myself for a few hours that I’m drinking real beer. This is hard to do when every time you look at the label it slaps you in the face and reminds you that its really 0.0%! However, the Beck’s Blue bottle looks almost identical to a regular Beck’s. The only difference is the word ‘BLUE’ under the logo.

The Carling test:

On taste alone Beck’s Blue wins out.

Aaron Macarthy Beards