Lawson’s Finest Liquids released Sip’N, a Citra and Mosaic-hopped non-alcoholic IPA under 0.5% ABV and around 100 calories a can. The brewery says it built flavor in from the start with a maltose-negative yeast rather than stripping alcohol out after the fact, which is the more common (and often flatter-tasting) approach. Worth a look if you’re cutting back; our best non-alcoholic beers guide covers the ones that actually taste like beer.
Non-alcoholic beer has come a long way from the flat, watery reputation it had a decade ago, and the brewing method matters more than most drinkers realize. There are two main approaches: strip the alcohol out of a finished beer after fermentation using vacuum distillation or reverse osmosis, or brew the beer so it never produces much alcohol in the first place by using a maltose-negative yeast strain that can’t ferment most of the sugar that would normally become alcohol. Lawson’s Finest went with the second route for Sip’N, which tends to preserve more of the beer’s original hop aroma and mouthfeel than the strip-it-out method.
That distinction is a big part of why NA IPA has become one of the fastest-improving styles in the category. Citra and Mosaic, the two hop varieties used in Sip’N, are both known for big tropical fruit and citrus aromatics that come through strongly even at low or no alcohol, since aroma compounds are extracted from the hops themselves rather than generated by fermentation. That’s different from a style like an NA stout or NA lager, where alcohol’s contribution to body and warmth is harder to replace.
Calorie count is another reason the category keeps growing. At around 100 calories a can, Sip’N lands well below a typical 5-7% ABV IPA, which commonly runs 180-250 calories, without most of the sugar-bomb sweetness that hurt earlier NA beers. For anyone doing a Dry January reset, cutting back for training, or just drinking less on weeknights, that combination of real hop flavor and a much lighter calorie hit is the actual selling point, not just the absence of alcohol.
Lawson’s Finest built its reputation on hop-forward IPAs like Sip of Sunshine, so an NA release from them carries more credibility with IPA drinkers specifically than an NA launch from a brewery known mainly for lagers. It’s a similar logic to why craft drinkers trust NA offerings from breweries that already had a strong beer to begin with, rather than treating NA as an afterthought category.
Pricing is worth flagging too: NA beers frequently cost close to, or sometimes more than, their alcoholic counterparts, since the production process (whether dealcoholization equipment or specialty yeast strains) adds real cost even though the finished product has no alcohol duty attached. Don’t assume an NA six-pack will be meaningfully cheaper just because it has no alcohol in it; the value proposition here is about calories and moderation, not necessarily savings.
Expect more NA product launches from established craft breweries generally over the next year, since Lawson’s move to lend its existing hop-forward reputation to an NA release is becoming the standard playbook other well-known IPA breweries are likely to follow rather than leaving the category to dedicated NA-only startups.
Retailers have also started separating NA beer more clearly from the regular beer aisle to help drinkers find it, a shelf-placement shift that itself tends to boost sales simply by making the category easier to browse. That matters for a launch like Sip’N, since NA IPA drinkers browsing a dedicated cooler section are far more likely to notice and try a new release than if it were buried among dozens of standard IPAs on a crowded shelf.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is non-alcoholic beer actually made?
Either by brewing normally and then removing the alcohol afterward through vacuum distillation or reverse osmosis, or by using a special maltose-negative yeast that ferments very little sugar into alcohol in the first place, which is the method Lawson’s Finest used for Sip’N.
Does an NA IPA actually taste like a real IPA?
The better ones do, especially when hop aroma is doing most of the flavor work rather than alcohol-driven body. Citra and Mosaic hops in particular translate well to non-alcoholic beer since their aromatics come from the hops, not fermentation.
Is non-alcoholic beer actually healthier than regular beer?
It’s meaningfully lower in calories and alcohol, which matters for anyone moderating, but it’s not a health beverage; check the label for sugar content since some NA beers add sugar back in to compensate for lost body.
Where can I buy Lawson’s Finest Sip’N?
It’s rolling out through Lawson’s Finest’s usual Vermont and Northeast distribution first, alongside their regular lineup, with wider availability expected as demand for NA IPA continues to grow.
How much caffeine or sugar is in a typical NA IPA?
NA IPAs generally have no added caffeine and vary in sugar by brand; look at the label specifically, since some producers add sugar back in to compensate for body lost during dealcoholization, while yeast-based methods like Lawson’s typically need less.
Can I brew a non-alcoholic IPA at home?
It’s possible but genuinely difficult for homebrewers, since maltose-negative yeast strains and precise dealcoholization equipment aren’t widely available at the homebrew scale, which is part of why NA brewing has stayed concentrated among commercial producers.
Source: PR Newswire →
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We tasted Sip’N ourselves: read our full review of Sip’N, and see how it stacks up in our roundup of the best non-alcoholic beers.
