Guides
Part of Why a zero proof label keeps quietly reformulating behind the same brand name
An honest review of zero proof beverage brands
Athletic, Ritual, Seedlip, Lyre's and Ghia zero proof beverage brands, judged on what is in the glass, what the price tag says and who each brand actually suits.
Athletic Brewing, Ritual Zero Proof, Seedlip, Lyre's and Ghia are five zero proof beverage brands that sit on the same shelf and behave nothing alike.
Two are brewed and then dealcoholized. Three are built from botanical extracts and never held alcohol at all. That difference decides what you taste.
What to take away
- Athletic Brewing brews real beer and strips the alcohol, so malt and hops survive.
- Ritual, Seedlip, Lyre's and Ghia are formulated from extracts and acids, not fermented.
- Seedlip is a distillate base for mixing. It is not built to be drunk neat.
- Lyre's is the widest range and the most variable. Buy one bottle before a case.
- Ghia is bitter and aperitif shaped. It suits a spritz, not a spirit swap.
- Heineken 0.0 and Guinness 0 run the brewed-then-stripped route at industrial scale, for less money.
The brewed brands: Athletic Brewing, Heineken 0.0, Guinness 0
Athletic Brewing Company, Connecticut, brews full strength beer and removes the alcohol afterward. Run Wild IPA and Free Wave Hazy IPA are the two you will find most often. Expect malt body, real hop bitterness and roughly 70 calories a can.
It suits someone replacing a weeknight beer, not someone chasing a cocktail. Sold in supermarkets, direct from the brewery and on draft in some bars.
Heineken 0.0 and Guinness 0 use the same route at industrial scale. Both are cheaper per unit than craft zero proof beer, and both are consistent. Consistency is the whole argument for buying them.
The extract built brands: Ritual, Seedlip, Lyre's, Ghia
Ritual Zero Proof, Chicago, makes a whiskey alternative, a gin alternative, an aperitif and a tequila alternative. The whiskey alternative carries oak and cayenne rather than sugar, which is why it works in an Old Fashioned and fails neat.
Extract brands at a glance
Ritual
- Origin
- Chicago
- Style
- Spirit alt
- Best use
- Old Fashioned
- Retail
- $20-30
- Suits
- Spirit call
Seedlip
- Origin
- Diageo owned
- Style
- Botanical distillate
- Best use
- Long over tonic
- Retail
- $35-40
- Suits
- Gin drinker
Lyre's
- Origin
- Australia
- Style
- Broad range
- Best use
- Home bar
- Retail
- $30-40
- Suits
- Several categories
Ghia
- Origin
- Los Angeles
- Style
- Bitter aperitif
- Best use
- Soda and orange
- Retail
- About $35
- Suits
- Negroni drinker
Retail runs twenty to thirty dollars for 750ml. It suits a home bartender who wants one bottle to cover a spirit call.
Seedlip, now owned by Diageo, sells Grove 42, Garden 108 and Spice 94. These are distillates of botanicals with no sugar and no alcohol, and they are meant to be mixed long. Drunk neat they read thin.
Around thirty five to forty dollars a bottle. It suits a gin drinker who wants something herbal over tonic.
Lyre's, Australia, is the broadest range:
- American Malt
- Dry London Spirit
- Amalfi Spritz
- and more. Quality varies bottle to bottle, which is the honest finding. The Aperitif Rosso is the strongest of them. Around thirty to forty dollars. It suits someone building a home bar who needs several categories covered at once.
Ghia, Los Angeles, is a bitter aperitif built on gentian, yuzu and rosemary. It is not a spirit substitute. Mixed with soda and a slice of orange it is one of the better aperitifs in the category.
Around thirty five dollars. It suits a Negroni drinker who wants the bitter without the alcohol.
The extract built brands
| Brand | Method | Best use | Rough retail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Athletic Brewing | Brewed, dealcoholized | Weeknight beer | $12 to $16 a six pack |
| Heineken 0.0 | Brewed, dealcoholized | Everyday lager | typically $8 to $12 a six pack |
| Guinness 0 | Brewed, dealcoholized | Stout substitute | typically $9 to $13 a four pack |
| Ritual Zero Proof | Botanical extract | Cocktail swaps | $20 to $30 per 750ml |
| Seedlip | Botanical distillate | Long mixed drinks | $35 to $40 per 700ml |
| Lyre's | Botanical extract | Home bar coverage | $30 to $40 per 700ml |
| Ghia | Botanical extract | Aperitif and spritz | $35 per 500ml |
Prices move and vary by state. Check the shelf.
How to check a claim on the label
The word "dealcoholized" means alcohol was present and removed. "Distilled" or "botanical" usually means it never was. That distinction is not regulated the way malt beverage class and type is under TTB labeling rules, so read the process description, not the front of the bottle.
Nutrition panels are the other half. FDA's explanation of Daily Value and percent Daily Value gives the mechanics. A drink with 30 micrograms of a nutrient whose Daily Value is 300 micrograms shows 10 percent. Compare that against the sugar line, which is where most of these products differ.
What to do with this
Buy one bottle per brand before you commit to a case. The shelf changes fast, and reformulation behind an unchanged label is common. Photograph the back label when you buy it. That photo is the only later proof of whether a product you stopped liking changed or you did.
Our guide to avoiding common errors covers the buying mistakes that cost the most. For serving these side by side, see pairing by house style. The wider brand picture is in our thirteen observations, and the shelf's regulatory map is in our guide to the U.S. zero proof category.
Common questions
Which of these is closest to real spirits?
Lyre's American Malt and Ritual's whiskey alternative come closest in a mixed drink. Neither is convincing neat. The gap is the burn, which comes from alcohol and cannot be faked with botanicals.
Is the expensive one always better?
No. Heineken 0.0 costs less than most craft zero proof beer and is more consistent. Price tracks production method and brand position, not quality.
Can I drink Seedlip neat?
You can, but it is not built for it. Seedlip is a distillate with no sugar, so it reads thin and dry on its own. It works over tonic or in a long mixed drink.
Where do I check a specific brand's rules?
Labeling and formula questions go to the TTB. Anything about selling, shipping or serving goes to your state alcohol control board, or to a licensed beverage attorney.
