How to pour it
an alcohol-free beer in
Rinse the glass with cold water and do not shake it dry. The foam collar adheres better to a wet, cold glass and stays in place longer. Grease from your fingers or a tea towel makes the foam collapse, so hold the glass at the bottom and do not dry it.
Hold the glass at an angle of approximately forty-five degrees and gently pour the beer against the inside wall. This releases little foam at first and preserves the carbonation in the beer. Alcohol-free beer sometimes foams up faster, so pour the first half more slowly than you are used to.
Set the glass upright once it is two-thirds full and pour the rest into the centre of the beer. This is where the foam builds up, so you create a two- to three-centimetre collar in a few seconds. If the collar gets too high, wait a moment and then top it up.
Skim off the collar with a clean, wet slotted spoon, or simply leave it as it is; it is a matter of taste. Serve the beer immediately afterwards, because alcohol-free beer is best served at five to seven degrees. With a wheat beer, you can place a slice of lemon on the rim; leave it out if you want the hops and spiciness undiluted.
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The story
Non-alcoholic beer had existed for a long time before it became widely consumed, but for years it tasted like a bland imitation. The problem was the technique: boiling off the alcohol also boils away the volatile aroma compounds. Vacuum distillation lowers the boiling point so less of this happens, while reverse osmosis removes the alcohol from the beer through a membrane without heat. Brewers who prefer to intervene earlier stop fermentation early or use a yeast that leaves most of the sugars behind. Both routes arrive at the same point: whatever alcohol is removed has to be compensated for with hops, acidity, or a drier finish.
The right glass
Pour non-alcoholic beer into the glass used for the beer it imitates: a 0.0 pilsner into a flute or a vaasje, non-alcoholic weizen or wheat beer into a tall wheat beer glass, and a non-alcoholic IPA into a footed goblet. Since there is little or no alcohol to carry the aroma, a glass that narrows slightly toward the rim helps keep the aroma together. A measurement mark is useful if you want to pour exactly a quarter liter. Tall, straight models for pilsner are in the pilsner glasses collection.
Schott Zwiesel Beer Basic small wheat beer glass 30 cl with measurement mark (4 pieces)
Royal Leerdam Beer Specials beer glass 30 cl (6 pieces)
Both sets together € 59,90.
The right tools
For a non-alcoholic beer, you don't really need anything besides the glass, but a bar spoon for gently stirring a mix and a zester for a strip of lemon peel come in handy. These are the bar tools we use ourselves; you'll find everything in our bar tools & cocktail sets.
Glass set (our choice 01) + 2 bar tools together € 60,85.
What do you pour alongside it?
With non-alcoholic beer, the beer itself takes center stage, and no spirits are involved. Want to know what's in the other bottles on the bar? You'll find the Dutch classics under jenever, Bokma, and Beerenburg. On each drink page, you'll find the alcohol percentage, what it tastes like, which cocktails it works in, and which glass you need.
Variations & twists
Witbier and weizen often work best alcohol-free because their flavor mainly comes from yeast and spices, which remain intact. An alcohol-free IPA also works, relying on hops as it does, as long as the brewer gives it enough bitterness and dryness. Heavier styles such as tripel and quadrupel are the most difficult, because alcohol provides the body and warmth in those beers. A radler made with alcohol-free pilsner and lemon soda is the simplest variation. Want to read more? View all drinks and brands.
Serving tip
Serve alcohol-free beer at five to seven degrees. Colder temperatures make the flavor seem flat, while warmth emphasizes the sweetness. So put the bottles in the refrigerator, not the freezer. Rinse the glass with cold water and fill it to two or three centimeters below the rim, leaving room for the head.
Good to know
Removing the alcohol after brewing
With this method, a regular beer is brewed completely first and then has its alcohol removed. In vacuum distillation, the reduced pressure lowers the boiling point, so the alcohol evaporates at a lower temperature and less aroma is lost with it. In reverse osmosis, the beer is forced along a membrane that lets water and alcohol through while retaining the larger flavor compounds; the water is then added back. Neither method is completely flavor-neutral, so brewers build the flavor back up afterward.
Brewing with hardly any alcohol
The other route intervenes during brewing. Stopped fermentation means the yeast is cooled or removed before it has converted the sugars, resulting in little alcohol. Another approach uses yeast that does not absorb certain sugars at all, so almost no alcohol is produced in the first place. The advantage is that no aromas are boiled away; the disadvantage is that a lot of unfermented sugar remains in the beer.
0.0 and alcohol-free are not the same
A beer may be called alcohol-free if it contains up to 0.5 percent alcohol, so that label also covers bottles containing 0.2 or 0.4 percent. 0.0 on the label means there is no measurable alcohol in it. For anyone who wants to avoid alcohol completely, that difference is all that matters, and it is always stated on the bottle. Low-alcohol is something else: it is the category above alcohol-free.
Why it often tastes sweeter
Alcohol is made from sugar during fermentation. If that does not happen or only happens partially, the sugar remains in the beer, making the glass taste sweeter and fuller. In addition, alcohol itself gives a dry, sharp sensation that normally offsets the sweetness. Brewers compensate with more hop bitterness, a sour or salty note, more carbonation, or a lighter malt profile, making the finish drier.
Which styles work well and which do not
Wheat beer, weissbier and IPA are the styles that most often work well alcohol-free: their flavor comes from yeast, spices and hops, and they do not need alcohol. Pilsner can work too, but it is unforgiving, because there is little to hide a flaw behind. Tripel, quadrupel, barley wine and imperial stout are the most difficult, because the alcohol provides the warmth, body and sweet roundness.
The same glass as the original
An alcohol-free beer belongs in the glass for the style it imitates, not in a separate glass. A 0.0 pilsner in a flute or tumbler, an alcohol-free weissbier in a tall wheat beer glass, an alcohol-free IPA in a stemmed goblet. The same temperatures apply: pilsner four to six degrees, wheat beer and weissbier five to seven.
Frequently asked questions
Is alcohol-free beer really completely alcohol-free?
Not always. A beer may be called alcohol-free up to 0.5 percent, so that label also includes bottles with 0.2 or 0.4 percent. If the label says 0.0, there is no measurable alcohol in it. The percentage is always stated on the bottle, so read the label if the difference matters to you.
How is alcohol-free beer made?
In two ways. Either the beer is brewed normally and the alcohol is then removed, through vacuum distillation or reverse osmosis across a membrane. Or it is brewed in a way that produces almost no alcohol, by stopping fermentation early or using a yeast that leaves most of the sugars behind.
Why does alcohol-free beer often taste sweeter?
Because the sugar that would otherwise be converted into alcohol remains in the beer, and because the dry, sharp sensation of alcohol is absent. Brewers compensate with more hop bitterness, a sour note, more carbonation or lighter malting, making the finish drier.
Which glass do you drink alcohol-free beer from?
From the glass used for the beer it imitates. A 0.0 pilsner in a flute or tumbler, an alcohol-free weissbier or wheat beer in a tall wheat beer glass, an alcohol-free IPA in a stemmed goblet. A shape that narrows slightly toward the rim keeps the aroma together better.
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