Alcohol Free Beer Explorers

  Encoder beers started back in 2013 by two brothers, Will and Tom, who grew up on the countryside. They have stayed to their roots and have continued brewing beer in the countryside. They set out on a mission "to produce great beer that is crafted to be at maximum altitude on flavour, yet perfects balanced and drinkable". They brew a range of 8 beers, which includes a, alcohol-free been in Doppler. I think it's great that for a small brewery, they have decided to add an alcohol-free option to their core range. Good for them.  Brewery:   Encoder Beers Beer: Doppler Style: IPA Country: UK @HoppyAF 's thoughts I was really pleased to stumble upon this brewery when scrolling through Twitter. it appears that not many others in the alcohol-free beer twitter world had heard o this one, so it's great to be showcasing it here. I'm always up for trying something new so needed to introduction to make an order and give it a try.  Firstly, I was totally made up to receiv...

  This is a very dark colour for a lager looks and smells more like a dark ale. I get a dark malty toffee sort of aroma none of the tropical fruits described on the can.  The taste is quite malty with a bitter finish.    To me the taste also comes across more of a dark ale than a lager.   Don't know if this is down to the Chaga mushrooms affecting the flavour or something.   For me this is a nice tasting beer but it doesn't really stand out from the crowd.  Although it does have the added benefits of the adaptogenic mushrooms going for it if you are someone into those. There is a great article available from the yada collective on these benefits I purchased this from wise bartender . Also available from the yada collective

  My 2nd beer from two roots this time an IPA combining new England and West Coast styles with bold juicy hops used to create a crisp finish with a hint of bitterness.  Like the straight drank this pours with a good thick head, although not quite as thick as straight drank. The aroma is lots of tropical fruits getting pineapple and a bit of grapefruit.  The taste is very fruity, I get apricot and some citrus fruits.  Decent mouth feel to this as well.   Once again a great beer that I can see becoming a regular in the fridge for me.   These guys certainly do great IPAs. This is currently only available from dry drinker in the UK 

  My first beer from the American brewery Two roots.  This IPA comes with eureka and comet hops which are not ones I am familiar with.  It poured with a thick head and had to pour very carefully to not be nd up with too much foam and an ice cream head   The drink looks quite thick in the glass.   There's a decent hop aroma.    Lots of flavour to this one and the thickness continues in the mouth feel.   Citrus fruits come through along with a little peach and a nice bitter finish.    This is an excellent beer and one I hope stays around in the UK for a while longer.  I will admit to being slightly sceptical about the hype of these American beers coming over but after this one I can't wait to try some more.  This has everything you could ask for in an IPA and I think will become a regular in my fridge Currently only place I have seen available is at dry drinker

  Back in the late 90's Heineken took over a small French brewerys project of a tequila flavoured beer.   The beer was unique at the time and tried to introduce the beer as a way to get parties going.   Now you could have something tequila flavoured at the start of your night and build up to end your night with some tequila slammers.   The product proved highly popular and is now sold worldwide with a variety of different flavours all based around the tequila theme and cocktails you would have with it. Mockingbird Quite a few years later in 2020 Fern McCoy launched her Mockingbird spirit.  This is an alcohol free tequila flavoured spirit.  This is made using the same blue agave that is used in Tequila.   Fern experimented a lot to try and replicate the traditional tequila flavour. They also use  Ashwagandha which is an adaptogen that helps your mind and body manage stress and anxiety.  I was never a big tequila fan when I ...

   have always been someone who has stored and enjoyed my beers at room temperature and as such my usual storage place for beers has been the cupboard with an occasional IPA or Lager going in the fridge. Until recently this hasn't been a problem but since switching to AF I have had multiple cans (different brands) expand on me.  I have seen this happen to others too in some cases it has been so bad that thier beer has actually exploded in the cupboard and taken the top off the can. Sometimes it has happened so badly that beers have had to be recalled by the brewery. Now I'm no expert on this but believe this is usually caused by leftover yeast getting into the cans and a secondary fermentation occurs causing a carbon dioxide billed up and this causing excess gas and eventually the can to be put under so much pressure it expands.  This doesn't tend to be a problem in beers that have been pasteurised as the pasteurisation process would kill off anything that would caus...

 This box is a bit of a change from usual and I realise it won't be for all readers however I feel its a great box to introduce alcohol free beers to alcohol drinkers.  Cloudwater Brewing have come up with a great idea for a colab box.  They have created a pack containing 3 modern Juicy IPA's and one alcohol free IPA each with a different Hop Combinations. The beers were brewed with the help of brewdog  and sold in Tesco stores.  I know not everyone will agree with this and will think it's pushing away the bottle shops who have supported breweries through the years but for me it's a great way for these breweries to get their name out there and to have an alcohol free brewer in the mix is even better.  Hopefully people who find this box will then seek out more of the breweries beers from their local bottle shops and whilst there discover other great breweries along the way. Cloudwater are committed to changing the alcohol industry for the better.  The...