Non-alcoholic stout face-off and a surprise winner

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Non-alcoholic Guinness in a glass and other non-alcoholic stout cans around it.

Non-alcoholic stouts are a vibe for this St. Patty’s Day! We thought it would be fun to try a few stouts side by side and the results are SO SURPRISING! Stouts are generally lower in alcohol naturally, and full of flavour, so they’re actually a pretty good option for a zero alcohol beer if you’re into them. Here’s what we tried and our tasting notes:

1. Guinness 0.0 (Ireland)

We’ve written about Guinness before and it’s overall a great beer, but a little too malty in comparison to the others. We wished there was less sweet malt and more crispness to it. It does taste very much like the real Guinness but obviously no alcohol. It pours black and thick and has the nitro foam on it from the do-hickey inside, just like the real Guinness.
7/10

2. Drop Bear Bonfire Stout - (Australia) WINNER

This is an incredible non-alcoholic stout. We were so surprised by this one! It has a ton of smokiness to it, and a real stout taste. It wasn’t too thin or watery and was really enjoyable. It almost tasted more like a Guinness than the Guinness did.
9/10

3. Athletic Extra Dark Stout - (USA)

This one was not our favourite. It isn’t a bad beer, but it was a bit flat. We wanted there to be a bit more mouthfeel and a tiny bit more crispness. It had some hints of stout but not enough. ABC is a great brand, and their other styles are all pretty much great. We think they could do better with this one!
6/10

4. Mash Gang Cherry Cola Ice Cream Float Pastry Stout (UK)

Just with the title alone, there are already way too many flavours to be crammed into a non-alcoholic stout. This tasted like a Cherry Cola and not much else. Mash Gang is KNOWN for its non-alcoholic beers but this one is not a winner. Their other ales (West Coast Gold for instance) are incredible, so don’t judge the brand based on this one review.
1/10

The overall winner is the Drop Bear Bonfire Stout. Truly a great non-alcoholic stout experience. The Guinness is not bad, and if you’re a Guinness fan you’ll probably like it. It’s a little bit too malty sweet for our liking though, particularly in a non-alcoholic beer. The Drop Bear is worth finding near you to give it a try, as it really stood out for us.

Whatever you chose, we hope you’ll find something you like to celebrate St. Patty’s Day - doesn’t have to be a non-alcoholic stout. Whatever you enjoy, drink mindfully and stay safe. Cheers!