Guinness Zero Review: Does The Nitrogen Stout Stand Out?

Guinness is one of the most famous beer brands in the world, famous for it’s Irish heritage and it’s innovative taste, texture and experience. Many people only think about Guinness on St. Patrick’s Day, but with the launch of Guinness 0, everyone can and should drink it all year round. Guinness 0 was first launched in 2020, but was recalled for process improvements to ensure quality and safety. This delay in getting it to market surely contributed to an increased demand and hype around the beer. When it was relaunched in 2022/2023, it created a buzz like no-other non-alcoholic beer has done to date. Read our thorough review of this infamous non-alcoholic stout because you’ll want to try some for yourself.

Table of Contents

Our Verdict

Guinness Zero, Guinness 0 or Guinness 0.0, however you want to call it, is absolutely fantastic. It’s miles above any other non-alcoholic stout out there.

What We Liked

We really liked that Guinness Zero retains most of the depth of flavor of it’s boozy sibling. It’s nice and dark and tastes really premium. The widget inside the can gives it the same ‘nitro’ experience you get when a pint of regular Guinness is pulled (or from the Guinness can).

What is Guinness 0.0?

Guinness 0 is a non-alcoholic stout. It’s the dealcoholized version of the regular Guinness stout everyone knows and loves. It’s made at the Guinness brewery in Ireland, just like standard Guinness.

How is Guinness Zero Made?

Guiness Zero is made by first brewing regular Guinness beer at the plant in Ireland. Once the brew is finished, Guinness uses a cold-filtration process to remove the alcohol from the regular Guinness liquid. Cold-filtration helps retain the well-known flavour and texture of Guinness, and protects the liquid from thermal stress. It’s a unique and innovative process that took many years for the team in Ireland to fine-tune, in order to launch a product that lived up to the brand standards and consumer expectations.

Guinness 0 Alcohol Content

Guiness 0 has less than 0.5% alcohol in it, but it’s not completely alcohol-free. If you’re sensitive to alcohol, check with your doctor before consuming.

What Sets It Apart?

Guinness 0 is almost in a category of it’s own. Alongside the fact that they’ve managed to retain the flavour and thickness of the original Guinness, they’ve also made sure to replicate the nitrogen injection into the cans of non-alcoholic Guinness. This small but impactful thing helps the beer drinker feel like it’s as special as the regular Guinness they might drink.

Guiness 0 Tasting Notes

Appearance

This is where Guinness literally wins the drinker over, when this liquid is poured into a pint glass and you can see the creamy foam mix with the dark liquid to create that ‘latte’ effect that Guinness is known for. It’s a thing of beauty - literally. You can sit and stare at it and not realize you’re looking at a non-alcoholic beer, it’s that identical to the Guinness experience we’ve seen at pubs and restaurants.

Aroma

Mellow and nutty with a hint of caramel.

Flavour

Nutty, doughy, dark brown bread with a nice balance of hops; just a little bit of bitterness at the back; really smooth flavour. As mentioned, Guinness uses 10% roasted barley in the brewing process which is what gives it that nice burnt flavour. You can’t tell there’s no alcohol.

Mouthfeel

So thick! It feels just like the real thing. Because of the nitrogen ‘do-hickey’ on the inside of the can, the beer intensely foams once the tab is cracked and the nitrogen is released. There is literally so much foam on the head that drinking it from the can is actually tough until it goes down. Once you get into it, it’s extremely smooth and silky just like the standard Guinness.

Guiness 0 vs Comparable Non-Alcoholic Beers

Guinness stands leagues above most non-alcoholic stouts and there are few that can truly compare to this beautiful liquid. The Nonny Stout from British Columbia is adjacent to the Guinness in it’s taste and mouthfeel, but it’s only available at limited times in the fall. Where Guinness wins in this category is the addition of the ‘do

Where Can I Buy Guinness 0.0?

In the U.S., Guinness is now available across the country at Total Wine, but call first for availability. In Canada, Guinness can be found at TheSobrMarket.com and soon it will be in grocery and at the LCBO.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do Guinness Zero cans have the widget inside them?

Yes, non-alcoholic Guinness cans have the widget inside them which adds nitrogen into the dealcoholized beer to help replicate the regular Guinness experience.

What’s the Guinness widget?

The Guinness widget is a small plastic ball inside cans of Giunness they call the “smoothifier'“. It helps to introduce Nitrogen into the liquid once the can is cracked, creating a smooth and velvety texture. This differs from regular beer because it replaces carbon dioxide with the less fizzy nitrogen for a smooth texture. In Ireland, the nitrogen injection is so important to the zero alcohol Guinness, that bars have special ‘single can’ micro draught taps that a bartender can use to properly pull a pint of Guiness 0 into a glass.

Does Guinness Zero taste like a normal Guinness?

Truly, Guinness 0.0 really replicates the exact taste and texture of a regular Guinness. If you’re a Guinness aficionado, you will most likely be able to pinpoint some differences in complexity, but most consumers of the product will be unable to do that.

How many calories, carbs, and sugar does Guinness Zero have?

71 calories, 17g carbs and 3g sugar per 14oz can, which is very interesting because it does not taste like a thin, low-calorie non-alcoholic beer like Partake. It has significant mouthfeel and heft in comparison, so if you’re looking for a great non-alcoholic beer experience, with low calories and sugar, this is a good one!

What food to pair with Guinness Zero

Guinness Zero has enough dark complexity in it, that you can pair it with stew, soups, hearty sandwiches and other traditional pub fare. It’s a meal in a glass on it’s own, but definitely a nice companion to comfort food. It would also be a great pairing with any type of coffee-flavoured dessert or even ice cream - lots of people love stouts as a float with ice cream.

Conclusion and Further Exploration

Buying Guinness 0 to try, whether you love stout or not, is a must if you’re curious about non-alcoholic beer. This is definitely the finest of the ‘big brewery’ beers. There are lots of other great non-alcoholic craft beer from small breweries and enterprises, but for one of the largest companies in the world, they’ve done a fantastic job at staying true to their roots.

Guinness Zero is owned by Diageo, a corporate brand that has made a commitment to community and they’ve defined that as being inclusive to everyone - even non-drinkers.

Knowing this will make it even easier to grab a Guinness when you’re looking for a great non-alcoholic beer option.

Slainte!