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Compared to Brewdog’s other pale ale, Nanny State, Punk AF has fewer varieties of malt and more varieties of hops. This leads to Wake Up Call perhaps ultimately reading more like “iced coffee” than it does coffee stout, per se, which isn’t such a bad thing for a non-alcoholic beer. It might not specifically scratch the “stout” itch, if that’s what you’re craving, but it certainly delivers on the coffee. Unlike these other beers, this might be one I’d be reaching for not when I really wanted a stout, but when I wanted a twist on iced coffee.
If you’re an observer of the alcohol market, you know this to be the case. For decades, non-alcoholic beer was the stuff of punchlines, associated with bad-tasting products consumed by nebbish, timid drinkers. Today, however, with the advent of Dry January, Sober October and other initiatives by the “sober curious,” and coupled with a generational shift that sees Millennials and Gen Z consuming less alcohol than in previous decades, the N/A beer space is being taken far more seriously than it ever was before. Major craft players such as Lagunitas (via Heineken) or Brooklyn Brewery are brewing non-alcoholic craft beer styles, and entire breweries such as Athletic Brewing Co. are thriving on the concept of exclusively producing N/A beer. We’re essentially entering the golden age of non-alcoholic options—perfect, I must add, for a 34-year-old alcohol writer who can no longer drink like a 25-year-old alcohol writer. Punk AF pours a light straw colour – quite a lot lighter than the original I fancy. The first bottle I tried looked a bit flat, with hardly no head or lacing. But the second (from the same batch) looked better in the glass, with a modest white head. The insane amount of hops and malts delivers in the flavour department too. There’s a rich, almost plummy, taste at first, which turns into a bitter and citrusy finish. It’s certainly very quaffable and another classic beer from Brewdog. Verdict The taste of the beer doesn’t quite live up to the smell, though. Taking a sip, I get a burst of intense bitterness – and not too much else. I was expecting more of a citrus flavour from the hops, but it seems like the bitterness has swamped it. Plenty of work went into making this beer – a lot of tinkering and experimentation to get it to what it is today. While it worked perfectly as such, they do not see Nanny State as simply a publicity stunt – they care about offering people low or no alcohol alternatives. They have even opened an alcohol free bar in Old Street. Nanny State Taste Test
Key info – Brewdog Nanny State
At BrewDog we appreciate your inability to know your limits - especially when it comes to alcohol – which is why we created Nanny State. Rather than remove the alcohol after fermentation, Brewdog produce a wort that’s low in fermentable sugars to make its Nanny State beer. And it looks like that’s what they done with Punk AF. You’ve probably guessed that this is going to taste hoppy, and it is, almost excessively so. I say ‘almost’ because BrewDog have done a great job of blending the flavours they’ve used. It’s still very bitter, and I know will not be to everyone’s taste. Rather sharp pine seems to dominate the taste, with malt not really making an appearance, except for a slight teasing of coffee/chocolate.
The contrast between the light and sweet fruity notes, with the harsher bitter and malty aftertaste really balances perfectly. You end up with a wonderfully refreshing drink, but a sophisticated one – it is made for people that love ‘craft’ beers, and I think it would satisfy even the most fussy of craft beer drinkers. There’s no denying it—Britain is a nation of beer lovers. The beverage has been brewed for centuries and shows no sign of losing its appeal, and with both multi-national corporations and smaller establishments offering a huge variety of British beers and ales you’re certainly not short of options. Ghost Walker is BrewDog’s collaboration with metal band Lamb of God, which is a pretty freaking 2020-esque sentence if you ask us—a legendary heavy metal band with their own non-alcoholic beer. That’s certainly a fun novelty, although in terms of profile, this beer is actually quite similar to the previous Hazy AF. They don’t necessarily play up the “hazy” aspect, but the flavor profile it’s going for hits very close to the same tropical fruit-driven IPA. Nanny State pours like a standard ale with a good head. But it’s more ruby in colour than your classic pale ale.Both only 24 at the time, they leased a building in Fraserburgh, spent all their money on stainless steel and started making some hardcore craft beers.
It’s the malts that come to the fore in the taste assisted by herby, grassy and mango flavours. There’s a dash of bitterness, which is all it needs. We’ve officially hit the time of year when beer and spirits writers are now bombarded with samples and press releases about non-alcoholic and low-alcohol offerings, and for me it comes at a fortuitous time.
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It is made with 5 types of hops and 8 different types of malts – the idea of this is to give it as full a body as possible, and that is definitely apparent, even from just pouring it into a glass. They have helpfully given us the IBU rating, which is 45. For the uninitiated, this is the International Bitterness Scale, and a rating of 45 puts it towards the bitter end of the most common section of the scale. Nanny State in it’s current state sits at a slightly more sedate 50 IBUs, which to some will still be too bitter. This is not surprising, as amarillo, cascade, centennial, columbus and simcoe hops are used in the brewing, with more amarillo and centennial added as dry hops later in the process. Coupled with 8 different types of speciality malts, BrewDog are still crowbarring as much as they can into this beer! In 2009 They launched Equity for Punks. In a ground-breaking first, they offered people the opportunity to buy shares in our company online. Over 1,300 invested and their famous anti-business business model was born. The company has made forays into N/A beer in the past, most notably with its “flagship” non-alcoholic beer Nanny State. But in time for this year’s Dry January, BrewDog has unveiled a new lineup that is vastly expanded in terms of its reach and variety, including N/A pale ales, IPAs, stouts and even sour ales. Although we sadly haven’t been able to taste the latter—the idea of an N/A fruited sour is especially wild—we did get to run through half a dozen other N/A BrewDog beers, which they actually refer to as “AF,” for “alcohol free.” Like other standard non-alcoholic beers (and unlike say, Heineken 0.0), these are not completely alcohol free, but rather contain very low levels of alcohol below 0.5% ABV.
Honestly, I don’t think I’d notice that Nanny State was an alcohol-free beer if no one told me. If you usually enjoy a full-strength British bitter or an IPA, the hoppiness of this beer is sure to appeal to you. The term “ale” basically refers to any beer that’s been fermented at a warm temperature using top-fermenting yeast. (That’s yeast that likes to hang out higher up in the fermenting container.) Beers brewed in this way include US IPAs (India pale ales), Belgian strong ales, and British stouts. When I smell the beer, the scent is quite piney and earthy. Not to get too poetic, but it really is something like walking through an evergreen forest after a rain shower. Very interesting. That’s the NA hops at work.The aroma is understated compared to some IPAs, but complex and interesting all the same. Importantly, it sets you up for a sip. Whether you’re a fan of the brand or not, it’s hard to deny that Brewdog produces great beers. So how would its alcohol-free offering measure up? Brewing a full flavour craftbeer at 0.5% is tough.After some playing about, tweaking, clever science and a few pilot batches we are delighted with what we have managed to create.
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