As pubs continue to expand their low & no alcohol offerings, alcohol-free (AF) beer on draught presents an opportunity to give customers more choice. But does it bring additional challenges when it comes to dispense hygiene and beer quality?
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Dr Grzegorz Rachon, brewing and beverage microbiology research lead at Campden BRI, an independent food and drink science organisation providing industry-backed research, explored this at Club Soda’s Low, No & Mid conference at Big Penny Social, London, earlier this month.
His message was that alcohol-free beer can be served successfully on draught, but warned operators needed to understand the factors that influence its stability.
Alcohol is one of several factors that can limit microbial growth in beer. When little or no alcohol is present, other characteristics - including pH, carbonation, available nutrients and storage temperature - become particularly important in managing quality.
What did the research find?
Campden BRI analysed 90 draught alcohol-free beer samples from 42 outlets across the UK, Spain, Belgium and the US, testing them for alcohol content, bitterness, pH and microbial counts.
Across all samples, 51% had microbial counts below 1,000 colony-forming units per millilitre (CFU/mL). A further 32% recorded counts between 1,000 and 10,000 CFU/mL, while 17% exceeded 10,000 CFU/mL.
Under the criteria used in the study, counts at this higher level may be associated with sensory changes and turbidity.
Results varied by country. In the UK, 31% of samples exceeded 10,000 CFU/mL, compared with 7% in Spain.
Rachon suggested factors such as cellar temperatures, dispense-line lengths and shared systems could help explain the differences, although the study did not establish a single cause.
Importantly, no E. coli or Salmonella was detected in the samples tested.
The research did not directly compare alcohol-free and conventional beer, so did not establish whether alcohol-free beer is more likely to be contaminated.
It did, however, highlight the importance of controlling the conditions in which it is stored and served.
What can pubs do to protect quality?
Rachon highlighted several practical measures for operators:
- Keep beer cold: Maintain appropriate cellar temperatures and avoid unnecessary fluctuations that could encourage microbial growth.
- Maintain carbonation: Experimental findings presented by Rachon indicated carbon dioxide levels above 3g/L inhibited certain pathogens under the conditions tested. This is not a universal safety threshold, but reinforces the importance of maintaining carbonation.
- Clean dispense lines consistently: Microorganisms can form biofilms on internal surfaces, making regular, effective line cleaning essential.
- Clean nozzles nightly: Rachon recommended cleaning dispense nozzles every night to maintain hygiene at the point of service.
- Monitor the finished pint: Regular sensory checks for changes in flavour, aroma, clarity and appearance can help identify potential quality problems early.
