I tasted 5 low-alcohol beers, and Sam Adams' left me looking forward to the next sip
Max Kalnitz
- I tried five low ABV beers to see which tasted the best.
- Each of the beers had an ABV between 4% and 4.9%.
- My favorite was Samuel Adams' Wicked Easy Light and Hazy Lager, which was flavorful and full-bodied.
If you're like me and enjoy the occasional day drink, you know that finding the right beer is essential. It can't be too strong but it can't be an unenjoyable, watery, light beer.
While domestic beers and hard seltzers are fine options, I find craft beer more enjoyable. But most craft beers have a high alcohol by volume (ABV), somewhere around the 7% or 8% range, which is much higher than the average beer ABV of 5%.
However, there are some craft beers with low ABVs, so I decided to taste-test five different types to see which one was best. All five had an ABV between 4% and 4.9%, and all are available across the US.
Keep reading to see which one took first place.
The Big Wave Golden Ale from Hawaii's Kona Brewing Co. was the cheapest beer I bought.
A six-pack of 12-fluid ounce bottles cost me $8.99 at my local beer store in Buffalo, New York.
At 4.4%, it had the third lowest ABV of the five beers I sampled.
The Big Wave Golden Ale is a lighter-bodied ale with notes of tropical and citrus hops. According to Kona Brewing Co., it uses caramel malt to give the beer a light golden hue.
Its beautiful golden color was promising, however, in my opinion, the beer's flavor was thin.
To me, the Big Wave had almost no flavor — or any aroma for that matter — besides the faintest hint of fruity, bitter hops that lingered after swallowing. There was a bit of carbonation but like the beer's flavor, its impact was underwhelming.
However, appearance-wise it was a winner. It has a gorgeous see-through gold color and a thin white layer of froth. Unfortunately, it doesn't change the fact that I'll be leaving this one in the cooler in favor of something else.
The Slightly Mighty Lo-Cal IPA from Dogfish Head was tied for the second cheapest beer I bought.
A six-pack of 12-fluid-ounce cans cost me $9.99 at my local beer store.
The beer was tied for the lowest ABV at 4%.
It's only 95 calories, zero grams of fat, and 3.6 carbs. Despite being lower in calories, it does a nice job of keeping the IPA flavor's integrity, and there's no shortage of hoppy flavors.
Although Dogfish Head packs an impressive amount of flavor into a relatively low-calorie beer, its bitter aftertaste wasn't for me.
The flavor of this hazy IPA is off the charts: notes of pineapple, citrus, and other tropical fruit give it a great initial taste and aroma. But once it coated my tongue, I was left with an undesirable bitter flavor — the brewery wasn't kidding when it said this is mighty in hops.
This is the perfect beer for someone who wants to cut back on their calorie intake while still enjoying a drink, but in my opinion, this felt like an imitation beer — partly because it is. Instead of using only malt for the body, Dogfish Head relied on monk fruit, a sweet fruit native to Southern China and northern Thailand.
Its website claims this is in order to avoid having a watery light beer, but I still found it pretty thin. I would drink one of these but don't think I could drink an entire six-pack.
The Blueberry Ale from Blue Point Brewing Company was tied for the second cheapest beer I bought.
A six-pack of 12-fluid-ounce cans cost me $9.99 at my local beer store.
It had the second highest ABV of the five beers at 4.5%.
What caught my attention was the beer's powerful blueberry aroma. As soon as I cracked open a can, the scent of fresh blueberries hit my nostrils and immediately made me feel like I was walking through a fruit farm on a warm sunny day.
Although I think this is a refreshing option, unfortunately the beer smelled more like blueberries than it tasted.
After getting a waft of fresh blueberries from the can, I was excited for that to translate to my taste buds. I was disappointed, however, to find that there were hardly any notes of blueberry on my palate.
The beer has a nice body to it and I foresee it being extremely refreshing on a hot summer day.
Stone Brewing Co.'s Neverending Haze IPA was the most expensive beer I bought.
A four-pack of 16-fluid-ounce cans cost $9.99. Although it was the same final price as the previous two beers, it costs more per fluid ounce.
At 4%, it was tied for the lowest ABV of the five beers.
I admit, I was skeptical buying this beer — I mean, who wants to drink a 4% tallboy? But Stone Brewing is known for its IPAs and the beer's flavor didn't disappoint.
The Neverending Haze is everything good about an IPA fit into a low ABV package.
For better or worse, IPAs have gotten slightly out of control, with some offering ABVs as high as 10 or 12%. For the person who wants a really good-tasting IPA without having to worry about a high alcohol volume, this is your beer.
A mosaic of lemon, lime, strawberry, pineapple, and other fruits gives this beer a wonderful aroma and flavor. Although it has a lower ABV, it doesn't sacrifice the body, haze, and hoppiness of Stone Brewing's iconic IPAs.
I can absolutely see myself ordering one of these at a bar this summer. I don't know if I need a four-pack of these regularly, but it is certainly a nice summer treat.
The best - and second most expensive - beer I bought was Samuel Adams' Wicked Easy Light and Hazy Lager.
A six-pack of 12-fluid-ounce cans set me back $10.99.
The beer had the highest ABV at 4.7%
As someone who likes strong beer, I appreciated that Sam Adams' had a higher ABV for this test.
The beer's robust flavor and crisp finish won me over.
Wicked Easy is, as its name suggests, wickedly easy to drink and has a crisp finish that leaves you looking forward to the next sip.
The intense lemon and orange flavors work really well with the hazy hops and malt in the body. I feel like other beers on this list fell short by trying to compensate for a low ABV with novelty flavors or ingredients. The Wicked Easy feels like I'm not compromising anything — it's a good beer.
While I tend to shop for beer in the 6% to 8% ABV range, I can see myself picking up a six-pack of this for a day in the sun.
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