Drinking habits have changed in the UK since lockdown restrictions were relaxed with people becoming more conscious of the strength of their tipple and the amount of alcohol consumed.
The new trend is known as ABVarious and follows a study suggesting one in five drinkers are more health conscious, incorporating low and no alcohol options into their drinking lifestyle.
Research from alcohol-free beer brand Freestar highlights an emerging trend of UK drinkers balancing alcohol intake following the Covid-19 ‘lockdown lock-in’, where almost a third of Britons were drinking alcohol between four and seven days a week.
As the country eases out of lockdown, two in five people in the UK self-identify as being ABVarious, having a flexible appetite for consuming both alcohol and alcohol-free drinks.
However, there is still a negative stigma attached to ‘not drinking’ as a third (29 per cent) of the UK say they feel more comfortable drinking alcohol-free options in their own home, compared to when ordering at a bar or restaurant.
That is why founders Charlie Crawley, Eddy Falls and Felix von Hurter decided to set-up Freestar when out in a London pub in 2017.
Mr Crawley said: “At Freestar we’re ABVarious ourselves, we’re not teetotal or anti-alcohol, but will often drink a full strength beer followed by a Freestar to balance our drinking.
(Image: PA)
“When we set out to create Freestar our aim was to make people feel confident and proud to choose an alcohol-free option, whether an alcohol drinker or not.
“Our research shows that following Covid-19 more people are re-thinking the amount of alcohol they consume weekly, and are wanting to balance this out with non-alcoholic options.
“The new tribe of ABVariousdrinkers shows the UK is moving away from binge drinking, and looking for products that have a benefit on their mental health, waistline, and of course, the environment.”
Rather than using the traditional brewing process of creating and then removing the alcohol made from the yeast fermentation, Freestar doesn’t use yeast therefore no alcohol is ever created.
The full-bodied and citrusy flavoured beer has a clean and refreshing finish, which led to it winning a 2019 World Beer Award within the UK low alcohol category in its first year of launch.
It is available to purchase on the Freestar website and via Ocado, Farmdrop and Amazon.
