Beer O'Clock: Sober Suds

My beer fridge is pretty empty, these days.

By pretty empty, I mean that there are 10 cans of various brews, which take up about a third of the available space. But was surprised me, when I looked in the fridge the other night, was that 60 percent of the beer being chilled is non-alcoholic.

I haven't been drinking much beer, lately. When I saw some of the video that I shot in Costa Rica and my belly really stands out, I think I subconsciously slowed down my beer intake. Much of the non-alcoholic beer in my fridge is only 25 calories per can, so I've been reaching for those more times than for regular brews.

I had a case of 24 hazy ales from Partake, and they've been my go-to for having a drink, but I'm down to my last four cans. The other two non-alcoholic cans were picked up on the weekend.

I've seen cans from this brewery many times but I finally decided to go for a couple of cans of their session IPA, just to try this Montreal company. Let's take a look.

Organic Session IPA (0.5% ABV; 30 IBUs)
Sober Carpenter
Montréal, QC

Appearance: pours an unfiltered, effervescent pale straw that reminds me of ginger beer. The foamy white head settles quickly to a dense lace. Lots of sediment floating around and on the bottom of the glass.

Nose: it's a pretty closed nose but there are traces of lemon and what I can only describe as almost a vanilla pudding. But the aromas are very faint.

Palate: the malt comes first with a plain, biscuity flavour. My impression of ginger beer seems to be influencing my taste buds, as I detect almost a mild ginger with a similar bite on the back of the throat, much like I get when drinking ginger beer. The body is light, and with successive sips I get almost a cedar flavour.

Carpenter's shavings?

The finish is light to medium, with piney notes that border on turpentine.

Overall impression: this session IPA is refreshingly light but does not make me think of a session ale, nor an IPA, nor a session IPA. It's a piney ale that drinks almost like an unsweetened ginger beer. I like it and would probably drink it again, but I don't know if I'm ready to add it to my list of non-alcoholic beer that I would keep in my fridge.

Beer O'Clock rating: 🍺 + .5

You can find Sober Carpenter brews in various grocery stores and in the alcohol-free section of your friendly neighbourhood LCBO.

Cheers!