The UK’s first brewery to produce entirely low- and no-alcohol beer will brew its first craft beer today.
Nirvana Brewery Co, based in London, will try and take advantage of dwindling interest in alcohol. Statistics from the market analysis company IWSR show that, between 2005 and 2014, annual consumption of alcohol among British adults fell by almost 40 litres per person. While alcoholic version of some drinks – notably sparkling water – have proven popular, many breweries now offer zero-alcohol and low-alcohol versions of their beers.
Eisberg, the brand of alcohol-free wine, expanded its collection with sparkling white and rosé wines in December.
Nirvana will follow in the footsteps of Seedlip, the fellow British brand that launched the first non-alcoholic distilled ‘spirit’ back in 2015. It received investment from Distill Ventures, the Diageo-backed and funded accelerator programme, in July.
Its range of beers include Chakra pale ale, Karma lager, Kosmic stout, plus two IPAs called Mantra and Tantra – all with no more than 0.5% ABV.
By brewing only low-alcohol beers, the company hopes to develop a reputation for making alcohol-free beer taste great, rather than making great-tasting beer alcohol-free.
As Nirvana Brewing co-founder Steve Dass explained, the concept relies on appealing to buyers from markets outside the UK, where consumption of low-alcohol beer may be much more mainstream due to social or political reasons.
“I came up with the idea after travelling and selling craft beer across many countries,” Dass said. “I was asked several times, mainly from buyers overseas, whether I could offer them any good-quality, low-alcohol beer.
Nirvana’s portfolio will include lagers, pale ales and stout.
“We know that a number of major breweries already have non-alcohol and low-ABV beers.
“We want to create a range of alcohol-free beers without compromising on quality or taste and [while still] sticking to traditional brewing methods.
“Ultimately, we want to produce a range of beers that can be enjoyed by those looking to cut down, as well as craft beer fans. Not sat lonely on a different shelf but rather sat alongside all the other good quality craft beers.”
The range has a distinctly eastern feel, with label motifs and variant names that won’t be unfamiliar to consumers in India.
Indeed, in all the Indian religions, the word ‘nirvana’ refers to a state of perfect quietude, freedom and happiness.
The company hopes to make alcohol-free beer taste great, not great beer taste alcohol-free
Fellow Nirvana co-founder Becky Kean said: “We’ve already seen a huge rise of people wanting to drink non-alcoholic beer as part of a healthier lifestyle in both the UK and Europe.
“Last month we saw huge numbers of people having a ‘dry January’ – but we want people to have the option to drink a good-quality craft beer that is full in flavour but low in alcohol all year round.”
The brewery will first aim to secure a foothold for its craft beer in the UK during its initial year, with the goal of securing organic certification for all of its beers by December.
It will then look further afield to markets in Europe – particularly the Benelux countries – as well as South Korea, Japan and the US.
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