Dealcoholisation of beer

Non-alcoholic or low-alcohol beer is made either by removing alcohol after fermentation or by managing fermentation so that hardly any alcohol forms in the first place. Removal methods include vacuum distillation at low temperatures and membrane processes such as reverse osmosis.

In fermentation control, either fermentation is stopped early or special yeasts are used that ferment wort sugar only partly or not at all into alcohol. Each method influences flavour and body, so breweries adjust recipe and hopping accordingly. By general convention, beers up to 0.5 percent ABV may be labelled “alcohol-free”.