The idea with Coke Zero, before it was renamed Coke No Sugar, was to recreate a taste as close to the tooth-rotting original but without the sugar. Now, if you were to take that concept and apply it to Deeds, what do you think they'd want to recreate without booze?
I imagine most of you would go for "hazy IPA", or at least something hazy. And you'd be right. On cans of Deeds Zero, their entry into the non-alc space is labelled an "Alcohol Free Pale" although elsewhere it's tagged an "Alcohol Free Hazy IPA".
And Zero certainly is hazy, albeit so pale in colour it's more reminiscent of an original German Berliner weisse sans cordial than a contemporary hazy IPA or pale. Hops are present at a suitably Deeds rate – dry-hopped at 10 grams per litre with Simcoe, Citra, Vic Secret and Amarillo – adding a limey-citrus character, and it finishes with a crispness that's as much the result of carbonation and pH as it is bitterness.
Can you tell it's low in alcohol? Sure. Would you happily knock back a few as refreshment on a warm day when you're driving or otherwise need to keep your wits about you? Of course.
James Smith
Published November 9, 2022 2022-11-09 00:00:00
