One of the growing post-holiday trends in recent years is Dry January, in which people choose to abstain from some or all alcohol for the month. For some, it’s a chance to recover from an excessive holiday season, while others may choose to do it for health, pregnancy, social purposes or even a chance to try something new.

Whatever the reason, this Dry January is an excellent time to revisit the non-alcoholic beer options that are available, something I covered in 2021.

Since that time, the range of non-alcoholic (NA) beer options has grown wider than ever, from both traditional craft breweries and a growing number of dedicated NA brewers. For instance, companies such as Athletic Brewing Co., RationAle Brewing Co., and Best Day Brewing Co. all focus exclusively on non-alcoholic beer. All are available locally from stores such as Market of Choice, 3rd Street Beverage and others, offering a variety of styles to try.

Brewed locals

Closer to home, several Central Oregon breweries are producing NA beer to supplement their regular lineups.

To legally qualify as a non-alcoholic brew, the amount of alcohol must be at or below 0.5% by volume. There are different ways to achieve this, from special processes designed to remove alcohol post-fermentation to brewing extremely low-gravity beers that yield low alcohol (which can be further diluted with water to get below the threshold).

Crux Fermentation Project leads the way with its NØ MØ line of NA beers, of which the brewery currently offers four. The original is NØ MØ IPA, styled as a traditional IPA, which I find to provide a nice hoppy balance against a lighter body. The brewery has since followed up with its NØ MØ Hazy IPA, Hoppy Red, and a new Dark experimental brew available only at the pub.

Indulge in these mocktails in Central Oregon

Crux’s approach to crafting its NA beers begins with a low-gravity recipe. The lower the starting gravity of the beer — meaning less malt is used so there are less fermentable sugars — the lower the final percentage of alcohol will be. This can be further diluted as needed.

Deschutes Brewery launched its Black Butte Non-Alcoholic in 2022, replacing its first foray into NA beer, Irish Style Dark. In creating Black Butte NA, Deschutes partnered with Colorado-based Sustainable Beverage Technologies, which developed its proprietary BrewVo process to remove the alcohol from a full-strength beer.

Essentially, the brewery starts with its regular full strength Black Butte Porter, and this is processed by the BrewVo technology, which works to preserve the flavor and mouthfeel. In theory, the NA version is identical to the original, minus the alcohol.

I’ve tasted both side by side, and though you can tell the differences concurrently, by itself, Black Butte NA is a fairly faithful version of the original.

Also in 2022, 10 Barrel Brewing Co. released its first non-alcoholic beer, N/A IPA. Like Crux, 10 Barrel brews this IPA traditionally, and then it ferments with a specialty low-alcohol producing yeast. This yeast keeps the beer in the NA range, without other post-processing.

N/A IPA is brewed with Cryo Hops (a specialty product line in which the hops are processed with liquid nitrogen to extract flavor and aroma with minimal vegetal matter) which imbues a fruity, citrusy character for a juicy impression.

There are other NA beer options coming, as well. Bridge 99 Brewery recently released No Wake Zone, its first non-alcoholic beer, and Silver Moon Brewing Co. teased an NA beer for 2024 on social media.

In hop water

If you’re looking for something lighter, consider hop water as a suitable substitute. This is essentially non-alcoholic sparkling water infused with hops and sometimes additional flavors, and is usually calorie-free as well. An excellent example comes from Pelican Brewing Co. with its line of Sparkle Hops waters, crafted with hops and various fruits.

Initiative Brewing releases barleywine-style Non-DenominationALE

Here in Bend, Worthy Brewing Co. crafts its Hop Quencher Tropical Strata Hop Sparkling Water with Strata hops and lemon juice. One notable feature touted by the brewery is the addition of xanthohumol, a compound present in hops found to have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant benefits.

I found Hop Quencher to have a tea-like quality with its hops, along with a refreshing and lightly fruity presence and a crisp drinkability. With zero calories and no alcohol, it’s a nice option if you enjoy seltzers and carbonated waters such as La Croix.

Similarly, McMenamins also has a new hop water product available, Sparkling Ruby Hop Water. It’s crafted with Citra hops as well as lemon and raspberry, and is available in cans at the Old St. Francis School.

If you’re participating in Dry January, or looking to try non-alcoholic options in general, these are all great alternatives to consider, and watch for more as the market continues to grow.