Low Alcohol Beer

There’s so many different terms when it comes to understanding beer. APA. IPA. IBU. ABV. What do they even mean? Well, we’re only going to talk about ABV right now but you can find the other meanings in the rest of our blog posts. 

ABV stands for Alcohol by Volume (no, not average booze volume). It basically describes how much alcohol is in a drink and is displayed as a percentage. So it’s reasonable to assume that a beer with a low ABV percentage has less alcohol. Beers usually have between 3.5%-5% ABV so anything below this is considered low alcohol.  

To be considered alcohol free, a beer needs to have 0.5% or lower. Which, doesn’t sound like it’s actually alcohol free but it is legally considered alcohol free at that point. That’s about the same alcohol content as bread, bananas, and fruit juices for reference.

Sometimes, you’ll see a low-alcohol beer described as light beer.

Whether you’re a seasoned Beavertown reader (thank you, btw) or are new to the Beavertown world (welcome!), you’ll notice we talk about low alcohol and alcohol free beers in different ways. There is actually a difference – it’s not just a case of our writers needing to mix it up. 

Low alcohol beer describes any of our beers with a lower-than-normal ABV – think super session IPAs like Satellite.

Alcohol free beers are brews that have lower alcohol levels than the legal amount to be considered alcohol free. The limit is 0.5% but Lazer Crush is 0.3% ABV, for example. It’s a small but important distinction.

Look, we get it. Sometimes, when you go to the pub with your mates after work, you want to enjoy that iconic, bitter, alcoholic flavour and let the day's stresses wash over you. But it's not for everyone. Enter low alcohol beer!

Lower alcohol beers are perfect for people who like the flavour but still want to be part of the gang and have a good night out. There are actually loads of reasons why someone might choose the low ABV option. They might be the designated spaceship driver, for example. People of different religions may also have different views on drinking alcohol and choose not to drink it. 

Whatever the reasons, the most important thing is not to judge someone on their decision. Low alcohol beer is awesome!

Usually low alcohol beer contains far fewer calories than their alcoholic counterparts as less sugar has been involved in the brewing process. We're not saying they're an ultra-healthy drink option, so don't go replacing your water intake with Satellite just yet. 

Still curious? Head to our Planet Blog For more info and learn 5 reasons to try low alcohol beer.

Excellent question! There are actually 4 different ways to make low ABV beer:

• Dealcoholisation: removing the alcohol after the beer is brewed.
• Dilution: A very strong beer is brewed and then diluted to make it weaker.
• Limited fermentation: Brewers stop the fermentation process early.
• No fermentation: seeing as the fermentation is what creates the alcohol, why not skip it altogether?