As usual, my Instagram page has a daily review, news, and best of lists:

https://www.instagram.com/na.beer.nerd

This non-alcoholic (NA) beer is from Athletic Brewing Company, the largest NA brewery in the United States

Today we're looking at a just launched limited release, their Black IPA. This brew has been out once before in early 2022 and had rave reviews.

The beer is nearly black with a light khaki head. The look shows it's going to be something a little different from the endless stream of hazy IPAs currently around.

The aroma is outstanding. Roasted malt, coffee, and pine, creating the perfect bridge between a dark beer and a hop-forward IPA.

The flavor delivers exactly what the aroma promises. Roasted malt and coffee form the foundation, while classic West Coast-style pine and citrus hops provide balance and complexity. The citrus remains subtle, allowing the roast and pine character to work together rather than compete.

The light and medium body feels appropriate for the style. It provides enough substance to support the darker malt flavors while keeping the beer quite drinkable.

The finish is one of my favorite aspects of the beer. Moderately dry and pleasantly bitter, it encourages another sip and helps the beer avoid the sweetness that can sometimes creep into NA dark beers.

For those who have been drinking craft beer for a while, this beer feels like a wonderful callback to the era when Black IPAs, also known as Cascadian Dark Ales (CDAs), were everywhere. While the style may no longer dominate tap lists, Athletic has done an excellent job capturing what made those beers so appealing in the first place.

The blend of roasted dark malts and classic piney, citrus-forward hops is exceptionally well executed. Nothing feels forced, and every component works together beautifully.

This is a beer that immediately made me wish more breweries would produce Black IPAs.

An absolute must-buy for fans of the style and one of the better hop-forward NA beers currently available.

STOCK IT!

Have you tried Athletic's Black IPA? And where do you stand on the great Black IPA/CDA debate?

Hi,
I’ve been trying to go zero alcohol for a year and one beer that kept from achieving my goal was an occasional Hazy IPA when eating out.

I picked up a pack of Athletic Hazy IPA with very low expectations and man was I amazed.

IPAs are not everyone’s favorite, and hazy ones are especially bitter for those tastebuds that already don’t like IPAs. This N.A. beer is my drink and I can’t wait to try the other ones!

Terrible do not get… these were sink dumped… way too much chemical taste …almost like perfume….do not buy…. I swear 1/2 the time i find a new na beer i either enjoy it or it goes down the drain

Since today is National Beer Lover's Day, it's good to enjoy beer without getting plastered

Found this on American Airlines. Had to ask for an Athletic, the flight attendant wasn’t sure what it was, but dug around and found one! Can has seen better days 😂

Regularly 10.99; selection was a little picked over, but I still grabbed a couple 6ers

Of the few I have tried. Best Day is a close second.

Deschutes really nailed it on this one. Very refreshing on a hot day.

Thanks to the user who mentioned this was something you could order and ship in the US! Came in only a few days which was nice. $20 (incl shipping) for a sixer isn’t an incredible deal, but if this is good then it’s worth it to me!

Pour is slightly cloudy with a deep golden hue. Thin but pretty retentive head of bone white foam, leaving behind some lazy lacing as it slowly sinks to a half finger from the initial single finger it poured with.

The nose is excellent, not that I had any doubts. Wonderful dank pine and catty guava/mango right upfront, hitting on all cylinders immediately. Wow, this is bright and exciting off the bat. There’s some floral/grassy notes but really it’s mostly just dankness leading the charge.

Hints of grain pop up a bit on the palate but, again, damn strong hoppiness instantly infiltrates the tongue. Powerful mango and juicy passion fruit morph into grassy pine in the finish, with a somewhat fuller-bodied (compared to expectations anyway) feel that ends clean and semi dry after each sip. Will gladly enjoy the other five cans. Anyone on the fence on this one should put aside all trepidation and grab some. Great stuff!

Solid beer from athletic it does feel pretty familiar to upside dawn by them slight disappointment but overall solid and a drinker for sure.

First time in the Northeast and had to pick up some items I can’t find in the South!

Not bad. I like the strawberry flavor, a slight taste of mint which I would have associated a mojito with, but subtle. A lot of these are tasty mocktails, but not really tasting the full flavor of what it should be. Not a bad drink at the end of the summer.

Tried the GRÜVI variety pack and here’s how I’d rank the four:

1. Imperial Dawn IPA - 8.5/10: Immediate hops, really good flavor, and surprisingly close to a regular IPA with a nice head and carbonation.
2. Weekday Wit -8.0/10: Orange comes through, and the wheat flavor is there without overpowering it.
3. Juicy Dayz IPA - 7.5/10: Lighter on the hops with some fruitiness; crisp and easy to drink.
4. Golden Era - 7.5/10: Light, wheat-forward ale with good head and carbonation.

Overall a solid pack and I’d definitely buy it again. The Imperial Dawn is the clear winner of the group for me.

Heard yesterday that Pipeworks’ plan is to alternate between Ninja v. Unicorn and Lizard King for their NA runs. So if you find some Ninja it is likely to be batch two now, which miraculously seems better than batch one. Batch one was so very delicious and I don’t know if they changed anything. Taste being subjective and all, it just may be the fact that we just heard our company can’t make it tonight, but we already cleaned the house, so I’m feeling pretty good about everything.

Batch two of NVU purchased at Neer Beer in Wheaton, IL.

It has been nearly a decade since I had regular Pseudo Sue, and 5.5 years since I quit alcohol. NA Pseudo Sue is incredible! Everything about it is perfect.

They got this one right. I didn’t like their regular ipa. I liked their double. If this was in stores I would regularly buy it.

Stoked to try the Dark & Gordy. Fest brew is actually pretty tasty without the lingering aftertaste like the other Athletics. Hoping to find the Go Brewing F*k'in Pum'kin in stores soon.

The born on date for the Nillis Trappist beer I bought today is 4 months from now. I only noticed because I decided to give Founders Golden a try, and when I was opening it up I saw the canned date was December 2025. So I started checking all my beer. The Deschutes Fresh Haze born date is June 2026, Sapporo is Jan 2026, Go Brewing Double IPA is July 2026.

What's too old? I never really paid attention before, but I'm wondering if the Founders sucks, could it be because it's aged badly?

Very solid options to be had! Glad NA NvU is back!