No alcohol free beer in pubs
03-July-2009
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No alcohol free beer in pubs

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Alcohol free beer? You've got to be kidding.  It looks like it’s really not cool to be tee-total in Britain.  If you fancy an alcohol free night out and want to take the car there really isn't much to choose from at the pub when it comes to drinks. Where's the alcohol free beer?  And how much are you charging me for that glass of coke?
No it wasn't the alcohol free beer!

Here in the UK we seriously have the wrong attitude to alcohol.  You just have to turn on the TV or open a newspaper and you will be swamped with stories about binge drinking, drink driving and alcohol related violence. Drink driving is probably the main thing that constantly grabs the headlines and yet the industry and government stand by and watch without really doing anything useful to help.

I recently switched over to alcohol free beer myself and found that the local Tesco supermarket does Kaliber and Becks low alcohol at a very reasonable price.  I just can't help thinking that if the pubs and clubs did the same, and offered those who just don't want to drink a reasonable low cost alternative to alcohol, that it could definitely go some way to help fix the alcohol related issues we face in this country.

Some of our pubs do cater for our friend DES!  Unfortunately they have to pay dearly for the privilege of being responsible as the alcohol free beer is just as expensive, or in some cases, more expensive than the alcoholic equivalent.  Not really likely to win over those who might consider staying sober, is it?

"Kaliber Alcohol-free Lager = Hello, fair car-legal beer, OK?"

Also, what about pregnant women, tee-totalers and people who have a medical condition which prevents them from consuming alcohol?  Is diet coke and the odd OJ the best the local watering hole can offer?  I think the government and alcohol industry need to pull their finger out and get a little more creative.  In my opinion relaxing the licensing laws would be a step in the right direction, but some real alternatives and some good education is needed too.

Helping you stay alcohol free

Alcohol Free Beer at onlyfinebeer.co.uk
I've provided a link to the search results for alcohol free beer on this site.  Very fast site and they have a good range of alcohol free beer.  The prices look pretty reasonable too!

The Alcohol-Free Shop
The Alcohol-Free Shop exists to provide a wide-range of alcohol-free products including food, drink, health and beauty products and gifts. Eat, drink and live - Alcohol Free


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I quite agree! I've just discovered and like alc-free lager, but they don't always have Becks in my local Wetherspoons and it's never chilled. I particularly like Cobra 0.0% and have emailed Wetherspoons about their lack of a responsible attitude towards us drivers.
*jben  18-Apr-2009 21:10

 
I don't know about the Kaliber but Becks Low Alcohol Beer tastes awful, the best I have come accross is Cobra Low Alcohol, unfortunately I have never found a pub that sells it.
*taxman  31-Mar-2009 18:00

 
3 Glasses of lemonade in a Buleigh Salterton Pub cost me 6 quid. No wonder so many Pubs are closing. Drink alcohol or be ripped off on the price of soft drinks.
*Brit  13-Feb-2009 06:30

 
For Little John

Waitrose sell something called Fre (I think that's what it's called) which is a <0.5% de-alcholised Merlot and it's lovely. Sorry if you're looking for 0.0% but if you can drink a trace then it's worth trying.
*Dee  13-Jan-2009 15:30

 
You ARE kidding me aren't you? You need an alcohol licence to sell alcohol free beer such as Kaliber and Becks alcohol free? Can anyone confirm this?
*Alcohol free now  07-Dec-2008 00:44

 
The Alcohol-Free drinks question. Many years ago, I worked in the convenience store trade. An idea was suggested by Head Office that if a store did not have a drinks licence, they could stock alcohol-free/low alcohol drinks. Not long after, the Powers That Be decreed that a licence was needed to be able to sell this stuff after all. Funny that the likes of Kaliber and Becks Alcohol free both have less alcohol content than a can of shandy, yet you need an alcohol licence to sell the stuff.
*Wilmo  06-Dec-2008 23:28

 
Having recently had a wake up call for the damage to my liver I have given up alcohol completely.
I have found that Becks is very good,but also excellent is Cobra, which comes in a larger .330 bottle,What I am looking for is a good red wine,I used to like Merlot/Shiraz type wines.Anybody able to recommend a suitable non alcoholic wine ?
*Little John  06-Dec-2008 13:26

 
For D S Queen - we've just started stocking San Miguel 0.0% at The Alcohol-Free Shop (www.alcoholfree.co.uk). Thanks.
*John  20-Nov-2008 15:01

 
How right you are! My boyfriend gave up drinking this year after recovering from an extremely serious head injury that almost killed him. He is a quintissential Geordie bloke and loves spending a laidback evening chatting away in the pub. However since he gave up drinking alcohol he has found himself completely uncatered for in most if not all of our local boozers. As he has spent years drinking beer his pallet just isn't tuned to half a sweet and sickly orange juice. So as a result he is either not enjoying or missing out on all the social outings he used to love all for the sake of pub owners stocking a few crates of a tasty alcohol free beer for customers who don't want to get legless every other night of the week!
And to Sam - no we should not lower the drinking age. Teens drink because so many of them look 18+ can and fool shop owners (much like myself in my teen years and there is a hell of a lot of stuff I did and now regret during that time I would not have done had I not been drunk). The drinking age should be increased to 21. As a result of the drinking age of 21 it is much harder for American teens to get their hands on booze.
*Suzie  08-Nov-2008 19:06

 
I love the San Miguel alcohol free lager. Does anyone know where I can get it? Asda have stopped selling it.
*D S Queen  12-Sep-2008 10:46

 
Do you have any info on sugar content of Alcahol "free" beers. I am diabetic so the value of drinking "free" beers could be counteracted by sugar intake which will also not help with weight loss aspirations.
*Colin THORNE  22-Aug-2008 18:14

 
Eat wine gums. They taste good. Gums, gums! I like the gums.
*Gums  21-Aug-2008 14:59


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