It’s a hot summer afternoon. I’m sitting down on a hot afternoon, with a burger, and a cold beer.

What I’m looking for is something to replace that cold beer with. I want it to be crisp and fresh, but also not sweet. I love tart and bitter flavours. Unfortunately, my options are either cold and sweet, cold and alcoholic or hot and non sweet.

So threadiverse, what alternatives am I missing?

Tereré is great, but it’s a bit of a pain to source in Australia. What else is there?

top 50 comments

sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] 43 points 10 months ago (4 children)

There isn't really anything that tastes like beer other than beer. As others have said, the non-alcoholic versions have gotten pretty good over the last few years.

I'm also quite partial to unsweetened iced tea. Just make a very strong tea and pour it over ice and chill, optionally add lemon juice to taste.

Cold brew coffee is also quite nice, but personally, I prefer that one as a sweet drink mixed with sweetened condensed milk.

  • source
  • hideshow 4 child comments
  • [–] 8 points 10 months ago (3 children)

    Unsweetened ice tea is great. If you want to drink a lot of it you can brew a pot and leave it in the fridge overnight for the next day with two containers you can just swap them out whenever one gets empty.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 3 child comments
  • [–] 36 points 10 months ago (2 children)
  • [–] 5 points 10 months ago

    Would also highly recommend kombucha.

    Cold, fizzy, relatively healthy as it's mostly tea by default with probiotics, and you can change up the flavor. The default is kinda tart and vinegary, but then you add (or buy) fruit or herb flavors and you can really find what you personally love.

  • source
  • parent
  • load more comments (1 reply)
    [–] 28 points 10 months ago (5 children)
  • [–] 12 points 10 months ago (3 children)

    This right here. Some are very bad, but there are some really good ones around these days. Guinness for example tastes almost identical to real Guinness.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 3 child comments
  • load more comments (2 replies)
  • [–] 7 points 10 months ago

    On the days when I'm really just hanging out for, and worked a really sweaty, dirty day on the chainsaws, I drink N/A beer. The cheapest I can find. It either hits the spot or it tastes like garbage and turns me off beer again. Either way it averts the craving and lets me stay sober. Most alcos in recovery will frown on N/A beer, but I don't care, whatever helps me not drink alcohol is fair game.

  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 12 points 10 months ago

    Unsweet iced tea

  • source
  • [–] 11 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    I have been enjoying sparkling water flavored with hops. It's distinctly different from non-alcoholic beer, and much better IMO.

    Unsweetened iced tea and cold brew coffee are also standards in my kitchen during summer. My significant other likes kombucha enough to make it at home sometimes, but I never liked the stuff myself.

  • source
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • [–] [S] 8 points 10 months ago*

    sparkling water flavored with hops

    I just got some of this today! I haven't tried it yet, but the guy at the bottle shop said it's what he has when he feels like a beer, but doesn't want a beer!

  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 10 points 10 months ago

    how about NA beer? Everything you want and nothing you don't.

  • source
  • [–] 10 points 10 months ago

    If the alcohol is the problem, there's a lot of non-alcoholic beers available in Australia these days.

    Possibly a nitro cold brew? I don't know if you'd consider that a good pairing with a burger, though!

    Maybe a switchel, if you make it yourself and don't sweeten it too much, leaving it mostly tart.

  • source
  • [–] 10 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    Unsweetened buttermilk, or even better, ayran?

    Virgin Bloody Mary is really good.

    Or just ... alcohol-free beer.

  • source
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • [–] 10 points 10 months ago

    Rye kvass, Kombucha

  • source
  • [+] 9 points 10 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago) (1 child)
    load more comments (1 reply)
    [–] 8 points 10 months ago

    If you are willing to make it yourself, kvass or ginger beer, those can be dry and sparkling. Water kefir or kombucha. All very, very low in alcohol, not intoxicating. Chinotto soda is something I buy for dry months too.

    As someone else said, tonic water has a bitter edge that really hits the spot, I make a sweet non alcoholic cocktail called the Friend Zone, made with strawberry tepache (strawberry fruit kvass), lime, and tonic water, and I swear everyone thinks it's a boozy cocktail. Too sweet for what you are looking for here but it's certainly the tonic pulling most of the weight.

  • source
  • [–] 8 points 10 months ago

    Gaspacho? At least it is cool and savory...

  • source
  • [–] 7 points 10 months ago

    Personally, I like just plain seltzer water. (i.e. just carbonated water with nothing added.) Mixing it with a bit of plain (unsweetened) cranberry juice is good too if you want something more flavorful.

    Chilled barley tea is another good hot weather drink. It was a summertime staple when I was in Japan.

  • source
  • [–] 7 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 child)
    load more comments (1 reply)
    [–] 6 points 10 months ago (5 children)

    A ginger beer, tastes nothing like beer and is a real pickme up.

  • source
  • hideshow 5 child comments
  • load more comments (5 replies)
    [–] 6 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    My go-to social drink is a club soda with a twist of lime

    It is simple, cheap and has the added benefit of sort of looking like it might be a vodka club or gin and tonic.

  • source
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • load more comments (1 reply)
    [–] 6 points 10 months ago*

    Water kefir is a great alternative. You can buy it in organic shops or make it at home. The hardest part would be to source grains but once you get them started, as long as you take care of them they last forever.

    It's tart, fizzy, refreshing, has flavors reminiscent of some wild fermentation sours, and can be flavored with almost any fruit after transfer (and probably hops too).

  • source
  • [–] 6 points 10 months ago

    Sparkling water with pickle juice. Add bitters if you want different flavors.

  • source
  • [–] 6 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    There's lots of dry / tart option, especially if you like tonic water and that dry quinine taste. Add a dash of citrus or bitters and it's not much more trouble than a beer. There's also some intresting non alcoholic herbal 'spirits' that bring complex (and often dry / bitter) flavours, and could be used to make something nice with tonic or plain soda water.

  • source
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • load more comments (1 reply)
    [–] 5 points 10 months ago (6 children)
    load more comments (6 replies)
    [–] 5 points 10 months ago

    Oh, yes, also cold black tea (no ice, no lemon, just nice slightly bitter taste. Also nice because the taste is not really fighting with the taste of whatever you eat

  • source
  • [–] 5 points 10 months ago
    [–] 5 points 10 months ago

    80% Unsweetened iced tea, 20% lemonade. Play with the ratios. (the classic Arnold Palmer is 50/50 but that's too sweet for me.)

  • source
  • [–] 5 points 10 months ago

    Malt beer or even better Kvass

  • source
  • [–] 5 points 10 months ago

    If you want a savory drink, I recommend soup broth.

  • source
  • [–] 5 points 10 months ago (3 children)

    If you want to make it yourself, try Tepache

  • source
  • hideshow 3 child comments
  • [–] 5 points 10 months ago (1 child)

    What about a kind of cocktail with at most 20% red wine filled with sparkling water?

    It sounds weird, I agree, but it has few calories, is refreshing, is tasty and may remain cheap enough as you do not need a great wine for it.

  • source
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • load more comments (1 reply)
    [–] 5 points 10 months ago

    Everyone is recommending just stuff that's not sweet, but you asked for savory.

    Beef Fizz Search YouTube for videos of it.

  • source
  • [–] 4 points 10 months ago
    [–] 4 points 10 months ago

    Beef broth, mmmm savory!

  • source
  • [–] 4 points 10 months ago

    I think Tapache might be a good idea to take a look at.

  • source
  • [–] 4 points 10 months ago

    Unsweetened, iced, mint tea.

  • source
  • [–] 4 points 10 months ago

    Cold fruit teas sound like they could be good for ya

  • source
  • [–] 3 points 10 months ago
    [–] 3 points 10 months ago

    Not sure about availability or price in AU, but I like "hoplark" non alcoholic beer. Their IPAs are awesome.

  • source
  • [–] 3 points 10 months ago

    Ginger soda. You can use a ginger bug to ferment soda. You can add flavors to make different varieties or you can just do the ginger base.

    Its refreshing and good for you. Does have like up to a half percent alcohol... But nothing that will be inebriating.

  • source
  • [–] 3 points 10 months ago

    I haven't seen it mentioned in here, but switchel is a favorite of mine. Water, Apple cider vinegar, some kind of sweetener (molasses is traditional), and ginger. Pretty easy to make a pitcher of during the summer. Tart, and hits the spot in the summer. You can also utilize a shrub for some NA mocktails.

  • source
  • [–] 3 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

    Tonic and Angustura on ice, with a splash of lemon. I put a dab of sugar sometimes.

  • source
  • load more comments
    view more: next ›