In this article, we are going to discuss the top 15 low carb craft beer brands in the US. You can skip our detailed analysis of the rising popularity of low carb craft beers and how they present a new opportunity for craft breweries across the country, and the major players in the beer industry riding the low carb trend, and go directly to Top 5 Low Carb Craft Beer Brands in the US.
While beers come in a variety of macro counts, they have, historically, not been low in carbs. The average craft lager beers have about 12g of carbs and the average IPAs clock in at 12-15g of carbs per 12 oz beer. While drinking a lager doesn’t seem that bad calorie-wise, for other diets, specifically keto, 12g of carbs in one beer can quickly put people up against their carb limit for the day – usually 20 or 25g for keto-dieters. With the rise in popularity of keto and other low-carb diets, breweries have been working on a way to bring down the carbs too.
The Rising Popularity of Low Carb Craft Beers:
The high-end, light beer category is now a $4.5 billion industry in the United States. Putting aside the growing consumer interest in health and wellness and lower-alcohol libations, this new enthusiasm for lower-carb craft beer may also have been prompted by the brewers’ ability to reduce the carbs in beer by using amyloglucosidase, a fungal enzyme that’s the defining ingredient in Brut IPAs. This enzyme has taken the beer industry by storm.
However, despite the growing consumer interest in light beers, ‘light’ has historically been a turnoff for craft beer consumers, even the ones who may not want a lot of calories or carbs, because they do want a lot of flavor. In the past, they had to take the bad with the good, but today brewers are increasingly discovering new ways to serve full-flavored craft beer with lower calorie and carb counts for a growing base of health-conscious consumers.
With the recent shifts of the beer market, breweries have to figure out a way to bring in new customers, and the calorie and carb-conscious consumers make up a significant part of the population. The idea that people don’t have to sacrifice taste, can still support a local, craft brewery, and also keep on track with their macros is a great way for craft to stay in the game.
Riding the Low Carb Trend:
As part of its efforts to reach a new category of consumers, Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) debuted its latest product innovation in May this year – the Modelo Oro. Filling a void in the high-end light beer category, Modelo Oro is a time-crafted cerveza that seals in the golden flavor of Modelo to deliver an exceptionally smooth, elevated light beer with a crisp, clean finish that is worthy of the name ‘gold’. Bill Newlands, the CEO of Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ), said the following in the company’s Q1, 2023 Earnings Call Transcript:
“Our beer innovations, which are still centered around the flavor and betterment of consumer-led trends, are off to a great start. Modelo Oro was a top 10 share gainer and incrementally has actually been slightly above what we saw in initial test markets.”
Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ) was held by 48 hedge funds in the Insider Monkey database as of Q2, 2023, with Holocene Advisors boasting the largest stake of 796,935 shares, valued at around $196.15 million.
To make sure it doesn’t miss the low carb bandwagon, Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD) also announced the launch of Bud Light NEXT last year. This was the first ever zero-carb, zero-sugar beer from the brewing giant, with a message to consumers that it is the beginning of a ‘new era’ for the Budweiser owner. The new extension boasts not only zero carbs, but also 80 calories, and 4% ABV – in comparison, the original Bud Light has 6 grams of carbs, 110 calories, and 4.2% ABV.
Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD) has already pushed major advertising for the new brand, with the beer taking center stage at the Super Bowl last year with a 30 second-ad, at an estimated price tag of $6.5-7 million. Michelob Ultra is also a popular low-carb offering from the company.
Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD) has been facing some headwinds in the American market after the recent controversy regarding its best-selling brand Bud Light, which resulted in the iconic brand losing its crown as the Top-Selling Beer in America after nearly two decades.
Although, as we mentioned in our article – 17 Countries with the Highest Percentage of Non-Drinkers – billionaire Bill Gates’ portfolio managers decided to initiate a $96 million position in the firm during the second quarter.
Broyhill Asset Management said the following about Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD) in its second quarter 2023 investor letter:
“The largest detractors to performance over the quarter were First Horizon Corp (FHN), Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV (NYSE:BUD), and Bayer (BAYRY). Problems at Anheuser Busch InBev began on April 1 with Dylan Mulvaney’s social media post, which ignited a fiery backlash amongst Bud Light customers across ‘Merica. With volumes down sharply, and competitors gaining share at BUD’s expense, operational deleveraging is set to weigh heavily on US margins amid peak demand pressure in the second quarter. Despite severe US headwinds (second-quarter operating profit maybe half of last year’s levels), we still expect BUD to grow consolidated operating profit at a mid-single-digit rate for the full year. With current issues well understood and investor sentiment in the gutters, we see significant upside in a stock, which is approaching a double-digit FCF yield. With FX headwinds and rising input costs reversing course, increasing margins are likely to drive positive surprises into FY24 as continued deleveraging accrues more value to shareholders.”
With that said, here are the Top Low Carb Craft Beers in America.
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Methodology:
To collect data for this article, we referred to a number of sources, such as The Beer Connoisseur, VinePair, Men’s Journal, Reddit etc., looking for the Best Low Carb Craft Beer Brands in America. We picked beers that appeared at least twice in these sources, assigned them a score based on their number of appearances, and ranked them accordingly. When two beers had the same score, we ranked them by their total carbohydrates content.
If you’re also interested in the no-lo category, here are the 20 Best Low-Alcohol Beers in America.
15. Revolution Brut-Hero India Pale Ale
Insider Monkey Score: 2
Carbs: 5 grams
Being a rendition of the highly popularized Brut IPA style, Brut-Hero is a 7% ABV IPA, sparkling with white grape, passion fruit, and lemon notes and capped with an extra-dry champagne-like finish. If one was looking for a beer that pushes the envelope for ABV while balancing low-carbs, this would be a good choice.
Revolution Brewing is the largest craft brewery in Illinois, operating a bustling brewpub and a 90,000 square foot production facility. The brewery had total production of 73,000 barrels in 2021.
14. Southbound Light Lager Beer
Insider Monkey Score: 2
Carbs: 3.5 grams
Georgia-based Southbound Brewing Co. released this aptly named beer which explicitly states what its style is right on the can. A smooth and effervescent craft light lager, Southbound crafted an excellent brew for those that enjoy sessionable light lagers, as well as a beer that will allow keto dieters to imbibe their favorite beverage while not breaking ketosis.
The Southbound Light Lager is counted among the Best Low Carb Beers in 2023.
13. Victory Easy Ringer Lo-Cal IPA
Insider Monkey Score: 2
Carbs: 3 grams
Victory Easy Ringer Lo-Cal IPA is a crisp and light IPA with a slight bitterness and tons of hop character. The beer has notes of passionfruit and citrus and is only 96 calories.
Founded in 1966 in Pennsylvania, Victory Brewing Company was born out of a passion to introduce Americans to a high quality beer and a drinking experience rooted in connectivity. With a total sales volume of 188,750 barrels in 2022, Victory Brewing Co. ranks among the Largest Craft Breweries in the US by Volume.
12. Short’s Local’s Light
Insider Monkey Score: 2
Carbs: 3 grams
Local’s Light is a 5.2% ABV American Lager that tastes great on a boat, in a backyard, at a dive bar, by a campfire, at a concert, or on your couch. Called ‘Beer in its Simplest Form’ because it is just that – an all-grain, crisp, clean, bright yellow lager.
In 2017, the Michigan-based Short’s Brewing sold a 19.99% equity stake to Lagunitas U.S. Holdings (LUSH), a wholly owned subsidiary of Heineken International.
11. Pittsburgh I.C. Light
Insider Monkey Score: 2
Carbs: 2.8 grams
I.C. Light is the only premium light beer that embodies all things black and gold. One of the healthiest beers around, I.C. Light is low on calories and carbs, but full on flavor with a super smooth, light malt taste that is crisply refreshing.
With the company’s new facility along the Allegheny River in Creighton up and running, the Pittsburgh Brewing Co. ranked 31st on the national list of Top-Producing Craft Beer Breweries.
10. BrewDog Vagabond Pale Ale
Insider Monkey Score: 3
Carbs: 5 grams
Putting beers through a gluten removal process can considerably cut carbs during the process. BrewDog, the feisty beer punks out of Scotland, have created their own gluten-reduced beer with Vagabond Pale Ale.
With an annual production of over 800,000 hectolitres, BrewDog claims to be the largest craft beer maker in Europe. The company owns more than 100 pubs around the globe and plans to expand to 300 by 2030. BrewDog sits among the Most Consumed Beer Brands in the World.
The Vagabond Pale Ale is one of the Top 10 Low Carb Craft Beers.
9. Abita Light Lager
Insider Monkey Score: 4
Carbs: 2.6 grams
This Top-Notch Low Carb Craft Beer is an all-malt lager brewed with pilsner and Carapils malts and Vanguard hops. Crisp and refreshing, it has only 95 calories and 2.6 carbs and goes great with almost anything. This brew goes down easy while hanging with friends at a crawfish or shrimp boil, after a run, or cutting the grass!
The Abita Brewing Company is nestled in the piney woods 30 miles north of New Orleans. The brewery has an annual production volume of 125,000 barrels of beer in its state-of-the-art production facility.
8. Surly Rosé Lager
Insider Monkey Score: 4
Carbs: 2.25 grams
The only Rosé wine-inspired beer on this list, this style of sour beers has recently taken off in popularity due to its refined nature and elegant flavor profile. Crisp, refreshing, and pink as hell, Surly Rosé features currants and strawberries in a fruit-forward, easy-going beer.
The Minnesota-based Surly Brewing Co. has been a proudly independent craft brewery since its foundation in 2005.
With only 2.25 grams of carbs in a 12 oz serving, the Rosé Lager is a craft beer good for keto.
7. Deschutes Da Scootz! Pilsner
Insider Monkey Score: 5
Carbs: 4.2 grams
Da Shootz is an all-American Pilsner brewed with a scintillating hop bill of Tettnang, Lemondrop, and Azacca to offer up zesty, slightly spicy, and lip-smacking citrus notes to this low-carb craft beer.
Deschutes Brewery has always been family-owned and operated. An Employee Stock Ownership Program was set up in 2013, so employees now own a percentage of the company.
The Oregon-based craft brewer ranks among the Most Famous Breweries in the US.
6. Yuengling Flight
Insider Monkey Score: 5
Carbs: 2.6 grams
This upscale light beer has been designed to elevate the drinking experience for consumers who want more from their beer. Born from six generations of brewing expertise, Flight by Yuengling is the ‘Next Generation of Light Beer’ that will bring even better taste, with low carbs and calories, to the refreshment category.
Yuengling Flight ranks 6th in our List of the Top Low Carb Craft Beer Brands.
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Disclosure: None. Top 15 Low Carb Craft Beer Brands in the US is originally published on Insider Monkey.