261 years later, Guinness launches first alcohol-free beer

31.10.2020

The Irish brand is about to release the first non-alcoholic beer made with the same procedure as the original.

It is a first for the Irish brewery, 261 years after its foundation are launched in the sector without alcohol. The brand is preparing to release its classic marbled stout.

Photo: Phillip Glickman on Unsplash

The new product began its commercialization, to begin with, in the United Kingdom and Ireland on Monday, October 26th. Other countries are expected to start selling the beer soon. For their part, British pubs will enjoy the arrival of the alcohol-free Guinness stout from spring 2021.

The alcohol-free Guinness beer is made with a similar process and with the same ingredients as the original. Once the water, hops, barley and yeast are mixed, the alcohol is removed through a cold filtration process, said Diageo, the parent company of Guinness, in a statement broadcast on CNN. The company explains that non-alcoholic beer should allow people to enjoy Guinness and its usual flavors without drinking alcohol. Alcohol-free Guinness also has far fewer calories than its big sister.

Guinness also launched a new range called Pure Brew, a beer with 0.5% alcohol. Competitors, including Heineken and Carlsberg, have also entered the non-alcoholic beer market. At the St James’s Gate production plant in Dublin, 2.5 million Guinnesses are produced every day.