Good morning and happy Friday! We hope you've all had a wonderful National Pollinator Month. What's that you ask? Read on to find out!
In this week's issue:
We'll never say no to coffee + beer
GOATed trivia hosts for 400
Beer shines in its non-alcoholic era
[ 01 // THE FLIGHT ]
Our faves from this week
🌶️ This new saffron-and-paprika paella beer collab will have you enjoying the World Cup European style.
☕ Need a pick-me-up? Try the cold-brew-infused Black Tripel collab from Dayton’s Warped Wing and Wood Burl Coffee Roasters.
🐝 Ever celebrated National Pollinator Month? Us either, but Gainesville's First Magnitude Brewing has us sold with their Pollinator Palooza festival.
💪 Weird flex: Pittsburgh's Hop Farm Brewing's trivia host is Jeopardy! champion Liz Q through August. Who's yours?
🔤 Can you spell onomatopoeia? What if you had beer + phone-a-friend? Give it a shot at PetSkull Brewing's adult spelling bee.
[ 02 // THE PINT ]
Beer enters its NA era and it’s here to stay
When's the last time you passed on a beer because you had a 6 a.m. alarm?
Your only move used to be powering through or sipping on a sad soda water while everyone else was having fun.
Not anymore. Non-alcoholic beer is having a real moment. And plot twist, the beer is actually good now! Here are three stories from the last few weeks that show how far NA beer has come.
The sober legend who crafted the NA beer he was never able to find
Mike Poggi got sober a decade ago, but he never stopped missing the smell and mouthfeel of a big West Coast IPA. As he aptly describes it: "tropical, citrusy, piney, stick-to-your-ribs."
He looked everywhere for an NA version that scratched his itch but came up empty. So he spent three years making his own, and in May he launched Virtue Signal Brewing Co. out of Pittsburgh.
His pitch isn't just sobriety, it goes beyond that: "I never want to be that annoying buzzkill. I'm interested in making moderation cool."
A US soccer icon pouring NA at the biggest party of the summer
While the whole world floods into American taprooms this summer, Best Day Brewing brought in Kasey Keller, four-time World Cup goalkeeper, to sign jerseys and hand out free NA six-packs in Seattle after the matches.
The co-star of the show: Wild American, their new NA pilsner. As Best Day's founder put it, "the occasions for non-alcoholic beer are constantly expanding."
We 100% agree. Turns out the thing that brings everyone together off the pitch doesn't have to come with a hangover.
The Peter Parker who made a beer for his Mary Jane
Tom Holland's NA brand BERO just dropped what's billed as the first-ever non-alcoholic shandy line, built for his wife Zendaya who doesn't drink. We love a couple who supports each other.
NA doesn’t carry the same “party pooper” stigma that it used to. It's about having options. The ability to join your people and celebrate whether you’re “drinking” or not.
One last thing, because it's our favorite fact of the week: the universal cutoff for non-alcoholic beer is 0.5% ABV, roughly the alcohol in a very ripe banana. So technically your fruit bowl is living more dangerously than these beers.
Whatever your reason: sober, driving, early start, or you just don't feel like it tonight. There's finally a genuinely good beer waiting for you.
PS we love Best Day and you should too 😉