Brewing giant BrewDog announced the new take on craft beer and spirits pubs with the opening of the first BrewDog AF Bar in central London.
The venue will offer 15 taps of draft alcohol-free craft beer along with alcohol-free spirits and Designated Cider, the new alcohol-free Cider from Hawkes.
The popular beer brand made the decision following the success of their first alcohol-free beer, Nanny State, in August 2009, which has gone on to become the UK’s best-selling alcohol-free craft beer.
The bar will exclusively sell alcohol-free drinks such as beer and cider.
The demand for, and popularity of, alcohol-free beer is on the increase with research from market analysts Mintel recently revealing that 28 per cent of beer drinkers surveyed by them say they are cutting back on consumption because of health concerns.
Their findings mirror a recent analysis by EeBria Trade which noted that sales of low and no-alcohol beers have risen by 381 per cent since 2017.
To capitalise on the trend, the BrewDog team say they are also expanding their core range of alcohol-free beers, with two new additions joining their AF line up – Wake
Up Call, a Coffee Stout and Hazy AF, an alcohol-free take on its existing New England IPA.
James Watt, co-founder of BrewDog, said: “Drinkers opting for low or no alcohol are in danger of compromising on quality, taste and experience. And that’s just the beer – forget about places in which to enjoy it.
"We are going to change that. We exist to be a point of difference, and our first BrewDog AF Bar is just that. It is a beacon for anyone in London after an alcohol-free alternative.
“Alcohol free does not need to be synonymous with taste-free. ‘Drink All You Can Jan’ is our anti-Dry January. Whether you have cut alcohol out or are cutting back, we want to show that alcohol-free doesn’t mean compromising on quality or taste.”
To showcase the new range of alcohol-free beers, BrewDog’s Drink All You Can Jan initiative will see all of its bars offering free refills of all alcohol-free beers throughout the month.
