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You are here: Home / All reviews / Lagers / “Kaliber” review – alcohol-free (0.05%) pale lager

“Kaliber” review – alcohol-free (0.05%) pale lager

By Tom Hallett on July 28, 2018

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Kaliber is a non-alcoholic pale lager from Guinness. Get tasting notes, stockist info and nutritional info in this review.

Whether it likes it or not, Kaliber is the alcohol-free beer that all other alcohol-free beers are measured against.

Launched in 1986, it wasn’t the first alcohol-free beer on the market. But it’s probably the most well known thanks to an 1980s advertising campaign featuring Billy Connolly and its status as many pubs’ standard non-alcoholic beer offering before Beck’s Blue came along.

Close up of bottle of Kaliber non-alcoholic lager

Nowadays it seems to be a beer that still sells itself, even though it has nothing like the near-monopoly it used to have on the non-alcoholic beer market. Guinness certainly aren’t throwing an advertising money its way – it’s not even mentioned on the Guinness website.

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Despite its long history, I’d never tried Kaliber before. My only recollection of it is spotting a few bottles hiding on the bottom shelf of pub fridges. Anyway, it’s not exactly the coolest brand around is it? Which is perhaps why Guinness don’t make a song and dance about it.

I’ve read that Kaliber has its alcohol removed after fermentation but it’s got a whiff of wortiness that says otherwise when you open the bottle. After pouring, the aroma turns even more savoury with hints of biscuit. Then there’s a soapy smell, which gets stronger and more obvious with each whiff and eventually takes over the other aromas.

The mouthfeel is impressive but it left me with a syrupy coating on my tongue. It’s rather viscous, and more thick than you’d expect from a lager. Highly carbonated, there are tight bubbles that left me with a few burps post swig.

Bottle and glass of Kaliber non-alcoholic beer

There’s a savoury vibe to the taste too. The wortiness continues with bready and caramel notes – few of the characteristics of a typical lager. There’s a sweetness in the flavour too. This gets too sickly after a few sips, despite the efforts of a little bitterness to balance things out.

Verdict

I can see why Kaliber has a bad reputation. It has good body and mouthfeel. But the flavour and aroma – with that soapiness that overpowers everything else – letting it down.

Key info – Kaliber

  • Name: Kaliber
  • Brewery: Guinness
  • Style: lager
  • Alcohol content: 0.05%
  • Calories: 71 (per 330ml)
  • Ingredients: water, malted barley, hops, yeast
  • Country: Ireland
  • Dispense: bottle (330ml)
  • Stockists (UK): Amazon.co.uk* and some supermarkets, convenience stores and pubs
  • Stockists (US): Amazon.com*

Related posts:

Cheers "Branca" review - low-alcohol (0.5%) lager
Stella Artois "Alcohol Free" review - non-alcoholic (0%) lager
San Miguel "0.0" review alcohol-free (0%) pilsner

"Kaliber" by Guinness

Close up of bottle of Kaliber non-alcoholic lager
3.9

Aroma

2.5/10

Mouthfeel

6.3/10

Flavour

3.0/10

Pros

  • Good body

Cons

  • Poor flavour
  • Soapy aroma
Buy now on Amazon.co.uk* (UK)
Buy now on Amazon.com* (US)
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Disclosures

*If you buy something after you visit links marked with *, I might receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.

†Reviews marked with † feature beers I didn't pay for (usually because the producers gave them to me for free). My aim is to review these beers the same as beers I've paid for but you may want to bear this in mind when reading the review.

Find out more on my disclosures page.

About Tom Hallett

New(ish) dad, slow runner and Border Terrier owner (or is it the other way round?) on a mission to find the world's best low-alcohol and alcohol-free beers.

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