Cannabis beers are hitting dispensary shelves, but which bud’s for you? We happily tested three brands to find the best cannabis beers on the market.
First, for the uninitiated, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau prohibits making beer that combines alcohol and THC — the main psychoactive component of the cannabis plant. However, if you enjoy the taste of beer, but don’t want the alcohol and/or impending hangover, one of these three non-alcoholic “canna-beers” might be for you.
And “no,” they don’t taste like weed.
Two Roots Brewing
Available in California and Nevada, San Diego’s Two Roots Brewing Co. has five styles of nonalcoholic THC beer: lager, stout, New West IPA, blonde ale and wheat.
Packing less than 100 calories per 10-oz. can, each “canna-beer” contains roughly 3.5 mg of THC — a third of the regulated 10 mg. single edible serving. Using special technology to remove the alcohol from the beer (formally Helm’s Brewing,) Two Roots tastes like a true San Diego craft beer.
Important to note, with low THC content, it’s perfect for casual consumption in a social environment.
High Style Brewing
Photo Credit: High Style Brewing Facebook
Hailed for releasing the first cannabis beer in California, Miramar’s High Style Brewing Company also trades alcohol for THC, but with different, very satisfying results.
While inspired by using Cascade and Amarillo hops, High Style boasts stronger flavors, or notes, of citrus, floral, pine and honey. A fruitier, lighter, more crushable alternative to a heavy IPA, each 12 oz. amber glass bottle contains 10mg of THC and only 50 calories per serving.
Important to note, with a higher THC content, new consumers may wanna start with half a bottle (despite wanting to drink the WHOLE thing.)
Hi-Fi Hops
Lagunitas Brewing Company, a division of Heineken, is now selling Hi-Fi Hops, an IPA-inspired sparkling water infused with THC and/or CBD. Using everything Lagunitas knows about hops but without brewing beer, Hi-Fi Hops is meant to taste like beer, but, at the end of the day, it’s flavored sparkling water — zero alcohol, zero calories, and zero carbs.
Hi-Fi Hops is available in two dosages, one with 10 mg of THC and another with 5 mg of THC and 5mg of CBD, at March and Ash dispensary in Mission Valley.
