In August 2017, Seattle Weekly<\/em> published an article posing a simple (albeit cheeky) question: \u201cIs N\/A Body Making Good Nonalcoholic Beer<\/a>?\u201d Eight years later, the column\u2019s well-reported answer\u2014no and probably never<\/em>\u2014best serves as a reminder for how nonalcoholic beer\u2019s become so good, so big, so fast.<\/p>\n Example A: Nine months after that article was published, nonalcoholic (NA) beer maker Athletic Brewing<\/a> opened its first production facility in Stratford, Connecticut. In the seven years since, Athletic has a) purchased additional brewing facilities<\/a> in California, twice; b) become America\u2019s second fastest growing food and beverage company<\/a>; and c) earned an $800 million company valuation<\/a>.<\/p>\n But as anyone that\u2019s perused their grocery store\u2019s beer aisle can tell you, Athletic is just the tip of an ever-expanding, hop-laden, alcohol-free iceberg. With an estimated $40 billion of boozeless brew sold globally in 2024<\/a>, there\u2019s been\u2014and will continue to be\u2014no shortage of entrants in the NA sweepstakes. Some of the beers\u2014like Athletic<\/a>, Good Time<\/a>, Guinness<\/a>, and Three Magnets<\/a>\u2014are incredible. Most are fine. (Think: Corporate breweries<\/a> with corporate budgets required to please corporate boards by staying on trends). And a few stink out loud.<\/p>\n Of course, if you want beer that registers on the positive side of that spectrum, it helps to have a basic, conversational knowledge of its history, how it\u2019s made, and where it\u2019s headed. So today, we\u2019re giving you that. Here\u2019s a glossary containing at least most of the terms and references you need to talk soft (yet delicious) beer.<\/p>\n American Pharaoh<\/strong>: A very fast horse. Won the Triple Crown in 2015. Also, was bred by Ahmed Zayat\u2014an Egyptian businessman who owned and operated the brewery that developed Fayrouz, the world\u2019s first Halal-certified, nonalcoholic beer. In 2002, Zayat sold the brewery to Heineken for $280 million, a transaction which funded the breeding and training of the horse that\u2014sidebar\u2014won me $50 at Belmont.<\/p>\n Arrested Fermentation:<\/strong> One of the most common ways<\/em> brewers strip alcohol from beer\u2014mainly because, compared to other dealcoholization techniques (which we\u2019ll cover later), arrested fermentation requires relatively less equipment. Summarized from a thousand foot view, arrested fermentation entails manipulating a beer\u2019s yeast (either via removal or rapid cooling) to prevent alcohol from developing while brewing. The downside to this process is that it’s liable to alter the brew\u2019s flavor, often sweetening the beer. To summarize: If your local pint factory\u2019s brewing NA, odds are they\u2019re using arrested fermentation\u2014meaning there\u2019s no guarantee the beer tastes spectacular.<\/p>\n