Over the years I have grown into quite the vegan beer chick, so with Labor Day around the corner, I wanted to give all you beer lovers some vegan options to try!
First of all, if you are wondering, “Does alcohol belong on a vegan diet plan?” click HERE to read my answer.
Secondly, a big thank you to Barnivore.com is called for. This website makes it easy to quickly find out if a beer, wine, or spirit is vegan-friendly or not. You simply type in the name of the product and 9 times out of 10, the product is displayed with a “Vegan-Friendy” or “Not Vegan-Friendly” label. The website also gives exact statements from the company when available, explaining why or why not the product is vegan. Awesome, right?!
I am a lover of Belgium strong dark beers so the many of these beer suggestions reflect my preferences and are flavorful but not hoppy, but don’t worry, I’ve included a variety for those of you with a preference for lighter beer and/or enjoy some hop!
1. La Trappe Quadruple
This is a “quad” which, according to CraftBeer.com, makes it amber to dark brown in color. Caramel, dark sugar and malty sweet flavors dominate, with medium-low to medium-high hop bitterness. Quads have a relatively light body compared to their alcoholic strength. If aged, oxidative qualities should be mild and not distracting. Sometimes referred to as Belgian strong dark.
At 10% ABV (Alcohol By Volume), this is a sipping beer that is heavenly smooth and tasty. It’s my absolute favorite, hands down! BeerAdvocate.com describes it as having a “warm and intense flavour is rich and finely balanced. Malty sweet, slightly burnt, and pleasantly bitter with a sweet aftertaste. Quadrupel continues to ferment after bottling and offers aromas of banana, almond, vanilla and others.”
It’s also not an easy one to find. Neither the Whole Foods, Fresh Market, or any local liquor stores in Miami Beach carry it. The Yard House used to serve it but does not anymore. Such a bummer! Total Wine and More usually stocks it though.
2. Ommegang Three Philosophers
This is another quad; 9.70% ABV that I find incredibly satisfying and my perfect “go-to”. BeerAdvocate.com describes the flavor well. “Heavenly smoothness within the full body, creamy from middle to end. Thickly sweet of dark malts, nothing roasted. Deceiving alcohol leaves little warmth until the finish. Bitter phenols and a trace hop help to balance. Very herbal and a bit earthy as well.”
Luckily this one is much more common to find stocked at your local Whole Foods, Fresh Market, and/or liquor store.
3. Chimay (Red, White, Blue)
Chimay makes three awesome vegan beer varieties – a quad, a tripel, and a dubbel respectively. They are all fantastic depending on your preference so take your pick!
Check out their company email to Barnivore.com: “We don’t use any animal product for the production of our beers, nor any additive. We only are using first quality products. You therefore can drink our beers safely and with clear conscience!”
My favorite Chimay is the “Blue” which is the “Grand Reserve,” as it is a Belgium strong dark ale, 9% A.B.V. with a smooth and rich flavor. BeerAdvocate.com gives a more detailed description: “Super smooth, creamy, full-ish body, date sugar, estery, warming, spicy, faintly medicinal, yeast, mineral, leafy hops, dried grass, toasted fruit cake, semi-dry finish
The “White,” or Tripel, is 8% A.B.V. is lighter bodied than the Blue and is “sweet / tart balance up-front with a unique bitterness on the tongue. Alcohol notes seem to stay and dominate the mouth. The beer goes crisp, rather dry. More malt sweetness follows along with a very mild tea-like hop flavour that carries thru to the finish. Notes of Concord grape comes to mind” according to BeerAdvocate.com.
Last but not least, the “Red,” a.k.a. Premiere, is a Dubbel, which is 7% A.B.V. This one has a “Soft powdery mouth feel with a crisp carbonation and medium body. Smooth. Very evident clove flavour up front and stays around throughout the beer. Hints of birch and ginger beer-like flavours, peppery medcinal phenols and light herbal tea hop flavour. Quite malty but it stays in the back. Fruitiness is likened to a delicate date sweetness and ripe plum. As the beer warms, there’s also a suggestion of chocolate/carob. Finish dries a little though still a bit of residual sweetness leftover, herbal flavours also.”
Chimay is a popular brand and is not difficult to find.
4. Unibroue La Fin Du Monde
This one makes the top of many beer favorite lists. It’s one of the few beers that has a 100 out of 100 rating by “The Bros” of BeerAdvocate.com! “Peppery clove spiciness with a warming alcohol right behind it. Estery with a hint of solvent-like character in the high level of alcohol. Malt lays down some sweetness with a thick drying pale graininess, fruity flavours of mango and pear flash on the taste buds. Bitterness from the hops melds with the thick powdery yeast and bring the mouth to a slightly dry finish.”
The company email to Barnivore.com states, “In reply to your question there are no animal or dairy products used in the production of our beers. As far as filtration goes we use a silica xerogel and PVPP (nylon) to help clarification of our beers and no isinglass is used. This of course only applies to our filtered beers (U, U2, Bolduc). Our speciality refermented beers are not filtered and contain living yeast which carbonate the beer naturally via the refermentation in the bottle. As far as other raw materials are concerned, we do not use honey and all other sources are GMO free cereals, sugar, hops and spices. I hope this answers your question clearly and will premit you to continue enjoying the high quality of Unibroue beers.”
5. Belzebuth
I saved the strongest for last… Belzebuth, considered a Belgium Strong Pale Ale and has a whopping 13% A.B.V.! For this reason it comes in a smaller, 250ml bottle. It is surprisingly smooth and I find it incredibly delicious. BeerAdvocate.com reviews it as “Very fat and chewy malt mouth feel with a creamy slickness coming from the alcohol. Moderate carbonation accenting the spicy sweet alcohol that seems to dominate the front … we could feel the alcohol warm from mouth to belly. Some fruitiness and hop bitterness is evident leaving candied orange and raisins with a hop leaf flavours. Ghost like grain in the finish that leaves an amazingly clean after taste.”
This one can be a challenge to find. It used to be stocked at the local Whole Foods here in Miami Beach, but now the only place I see it is at the restaurant/bar, Burger and Beer Joint.
I hope I have sparked your interest and motivated you to try some new vegan beer this Labor Day (and for football season as well)!
I’d love to hear your favorites as well… I’m always looking for new craft beers to try!
Ella Magers, MSW
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