As much as beer can be a social drink, a quiet beer can be a wondrous thing. Whether on the couch or at a bar, the experience of cracking open a can, or sitting there with a glass in your hand, and just letting yourself be with your thoughts whirring away can be a true pleasure. But what if you’re looking for that quiet beer and don’t want it to slow your thoughts? Or what if you’re keen on the beer and the social activity but don’t want the other effects of alcohol?
Heaps Normal’s answer to those questions is their flagship beer, Quiet XPA. The brewing company’s focus is on mindful drinking and keeping flavour dialled up but without the booze, and here the flavour comes in the form of New World hops that largely provide a punch of citrus and stone fruit in the less than 0.5 percent ABV beer. While there’s a touch of sweetness and biscuity character, there’s enough bitterness to provide balance and ensure that, while you might not be dealing with alcohol, you’re certainly drinking a beer.
Whether you're drinking it during a moment of quiet contemplation or in a band room with everything turned up to eleven, well, that's really up to you.
Will Ziebell
