We have seen wine, beer and even whiskey festivals over the years. But now there’s a Non-Alcoholic Beer competition – marking a shift in American drinking habits… Will beverage alcohol eventually disappear from the menu?
Remember the ubiquitous non-alcohol-ic ‘booze’ of the Star Trek – Next Gener-ation universe?
“Synthehol […] was a chemical variant of alcohol. It appeared to have the same taste and smell as ‘real’ alcohol to most individuals, but none of the deleterious effects associated with alcohol for most humanoids, such as debilitating intox-ication, addiction, and alcohol poison-ing,” Fandom.com records. “Most hum-anoids had an enzyme which broke down the alcohol-like compounds in synthehol.”
Not quite there…
We’re not quite there yet. But the inaug-uration of an annual non-alcoholic (NA) beer competition marks the legitimiz-ation of ‘boozeless’ booze in America. And may be enshrined in history as the origin point of a Star Trek-like future drinking culture…
What’s going on?
Judges tasted and ranked more than 100 non-alcoholic beers in the first annual edition of the North American Nonalcoholic Cup. The event took place earlier this year in Fort Collins, Col., and the win-ners were announced June 1.
To relieve you of the aggravation of continuing suspense… Best Day Brewing – an upstart Northern California outfit – took Best in Show with its new Wild American Pilsner.
Best Day founder and CEO Tate Huffard says the win was a ‘real moment of validation’ for the Best Day team. “For decades, American light lagers have been the beers people reach for most often,” he explains. But Huffard wasn’t satisfied with the drinking experience delivered by the non-alcoholic brews that were out there. So he decided to make his own.
“We thought, if we can crack this, we can prove that the NA category can meet people wherever they already drink – a cookout, a tailgate, an afternoon on the water – and those are the moments we built this beer for.”
And in doing so, he’s set the bar other makers of NA beer must meet – or surpass.
Growing interest…
A recent story in Food & Wine reports, “The nonalcoholic beverage category is seeing fast growth. According to a 2026 report from the Brewers Association, volume sales of nonalcoholic beer rose 111 percent, and dollar sales grew 159 percent between 2021 and 2025″
“People aren’t giving up beer. They’re shifting how and when they drink it,” Huffard observes. He says folks still still embrace the ritual, flavor, refreshment, and social connection associated with ‘having a beer’, but don’t necessarily associate that experience with consuming alcohol, and the ‘side effects’ that entails.
My take
While synthehol remains a drinker’s dream, NA beer is apparently here to stay. And its growth stats indicate it is shaping up as a huge trend.
But let’s not forget the parallel benefits from beer lovers not consuming alcohol. The rise of NA beer could lead to a significant reduction in vehicular and other accidents, barroom disputes, and condit-ions such as liver failure, heart disease, dementia and some cancers. But the real gains could come in an overall reduction in alcohol abuse itself.
And what’s next? Better alcohol-free wines? And even alcohol free ‘Hard’ liquors? If Huffard is right, all it takes is the desire to succeed… And the hard work to make your dream a reality!
~ Maggie J.