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Author Topic: Clausthaler Dry-Hopped (N/A)  (Read 1773 times)

Offline narcout

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Clausthaler Dry-Hopped (N/A)
« on: August 20, 2019, 01:54:21 pm »
A few months ago I was listening to Episode 63 of the Brew Files (about Athletic Brewing) wondering to myself why anyone would bother drinking non-alcoholic beer.  But here I am.

Yesterday, I ordered some of Athletic Brewing's N/A Golden Ale which will hopefully arrive in a few days, but I noticed this dry-hopped Clausthaler at Trader Joe's and decided to give it a shot.

There isn't a whole lot of info on the packaging other than the fact that it is N/A, unfiltered, and dry hopped with Cascade.  According to the website, it is brewed to have under 0.5% ABV rather than having the alcohol removed by either filtration or vacuum boiling.  Knowing almost nothing about N/A beer, it's unclear to me exactly how it's produced.  It does have 90 calories though, which surprised me.  Maybe I will degass a sample and test the FG.

Anway, it pours slightly cloudy but with a nice head and is a deep amber in color.  The malt flavor is strong and a bit sweet.  I would say it's too sweet for a real amber ale, but it works well in a N/A beer and gives it a good depth of flavor.  The sweetness fades and is overtaken fairly quickly by the  hops.  I perceived it as being quite bitter, and it has a pretty dry finish.  Somehow, it manages to have both a satisfying malt sweetness and an enjoyable hop bitterness (and I say that as someone who typically does not care for malty beers).

Surprisingly, I found myself wanting to open a second bottle.  I don't know if that's just force of old habit or what, but it left me wanting more.  I'm actually looking forward to having one after dinner tonight.

There is a bit of an odd flavor to it, which I assume is due to it being non-alcoholic.  If someone just handed me one without telling me what it was, I think I'd pick up on that flavor, but I don't think I would know it was N/A.  Not bad...


Sometimes you just can't get enough - JAMC

Offline chezteth

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Re: Clausthaler Dry-Hopped (N/A)
« Reply #1 on: October 22, 2019, 08:12:31 pm »
A little late to the party. But, I came across your review of Heineken N/A. I then found this review. I have also recently discovered Clausthaler Dry Hopped and enjoy it. For an N/A beer it is quite tasty! As others have stated in other threads you started, thank you for your reviews!

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Offline ravenwater

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Re: Clausthaler Dry-Hopped (N/A)
« Reply #2 on: May 04, 2020, 03:44:22 pm »
I'll chime in that I also appreciate your reviews of NA beers. I'd like to know what's decent versus what's awful, as a time will come when I want to enjoy beer flavor but not have the alcohol.
Shawn Crawford  -  Rio Rancho, NM.  
 BJCP, Worthogs Homebrew Club of New Mexico

Life is good. Beer makes it gooder.