Guinness 0.0 Review 2026 - Taste, Ingredients & Honest Verdict
Guinness 0.0 is the alcohol-free version of one of the world's most iconic stouts. Produced by Diageo at St. James's Gate Brewery in Dublin and launched in 2020, it is one of the only credible non-alcoholic stouts on the market. This review covers the ingredients, taste, nutrition, and an honest verdict on whether it lives up to the Guinness name - with real customer feedback from forums and pub conversations.
Quick Facts
| Guinness 0.0 | |
|---|---|
| Brand | Guinness (Diageo) |
| Product Reviewed | Guinness 0.0 |
| ABV | 0.0% |
| Calories | 70 per 500ml can (14 per 100ml) |
| Sugar | 0.6g per 100ml |
| Gluten Free | ✗ (contains barley) |
| Vegan | ✓ (since 2018) |
| Price (approx) | £1.30–£1.80 per can |
| Available | Every supermarket, most pubs, off-licences |
| Trustpilot | No dedicated profile (supermarket/pub product) |
What Is Guinness 0.0?
Guinness 0.0 is the non-alcoholic version of Guinness Draught, produced by Diageo at St. James's Gate Brewery in Dublin. Launched in 2020 after four years of development, it is one of the few AF stouts on the market and benefits from the full weight of one of the world's largest drinks companies behind it.
Diageo invested over €60 million in scaling Guinness 0.0 production after reporting 50% sales growth between 2023 and 2024. It is now one of the highest-selling non-alcoholic beers globally.
The pitch: Guinness without the alcohol, same taste. The reality is more nuanced.
Ingredients & Brewing Process
Guinness 0.0 uses the same four core ingredients as regular Guinness:
- Water - from St. James's Gate
- Barley - roasted for the characteristic dark colour and flavour
- Hops - for bitterness
- Yeast - Guinness's proprietary strain
The brewing process starts identically to regular Guinness: full brew, full fermentation, full maturation. Alcohol is then removed via cold filtration - a low-temperature process that avoids heat damage to flavour compounds. This adds approximately two extra days to the production cycle.
The cold filtration approach is often preferred over vacuum distillation for darker beers, as it better preserves the roasted malt character. There are no functional additives, adaptogens, or nootropics.
Taste & Drinking Experience
Guinness 0.0 is a competent non-alcoholic stout. It looks right - dark ruby-black body, creamy tan head, similar pour ritual with the widget can.
What we noticed:
- Roasted malt character is present but lighter than regular Guinness
- Chocolate and coffee notes come through, though muted
- Smoother and slightly sweeter than the alcoholic version
- The mouthfeel is thinner - this is where most AF stouts struggle
- The widget produces a reasonable head but it dissipates faster
- Served cold, it works. At room temperature, the thinness is more obvious
The common refrain from reviewers: "It's close, but it's not quite Guinness." That is probably the fairest summary. It is closer to regular Guinness than Heineken 0.0 is to regular Heineken, but the gap is still noticeable.
Guinness 0.0 does not have a dedicated Trustpilot profile - it is a pub and supermarket product, not DTC.
Nutrition Breakdown
| Per 100ml | Guinness 0.0 |
|---|---|
| Calories | 14 kcal |
| Sugar | 0.6g |
| Carbohydrates | 3.4g |
| Protein | 0.3g |
| Fat | 0g |
| ABV | 0.0% |
At 70 calories per 500ml can, Guinness 0.0 is lighter than most people expect from a stout. It is comparable to many AF lagers on a per-100ml basis.
What Customers Say
Without a Trustpilot presence, feedback comes from pub conversations, Reddit, and review roundups:
Positive
"The closest any AF beer has come to replicating the original. Pour it from the can and it genuinely looks like a pint of Guinness."
- consumer review
"My go-to for pub rounds when I'm driving. No one questions it."
Mixed
"Close but not quite. The mouthfeel gives it away - it's thinner than the real thing."
- consumer forum
"Fine for what it is, but I still miss the warmth and weight of an actual Guinness."
"First half of the pint is great. Second half you start noticing what's missing."
- beer review site
The pattern: people appreciate the effort and the visual authenticity. The gap between Guinness 0.0 and regular Guinness is smaller than most AF-to-original comparisons - but it is still there, and it is mainly felt in the body and finish.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Looks and pours like real Guinness - the widget works
- Cold filtration preserves roasted malt character better than heat methods
- One of the only credible AF stout options
- Widely available in pubs, supermarkets, off-licences
- Affordable - comparable to regular Guinness pricing
- Backed by significant Diageo R&D investment
- True 0.0% ABV
Cons
- Thinner mouthfeel than regular Guinness - the main complaint
- Slightly sweeter and less complex than the alcoholic version
- No functional ingredients - purely an alcohol replacement
- Still contains gluten (barley)
- The stout category is niche - if you want a lager, this is not the answer
- Head retention is weaker than regular Guinness
Who Is Guinness 0.0 Best For?
Guinness 0.0 suits a specific audience:
- Guinness drinkers who want to cut back without changing their order
- Designated drivers at the pub - it looks like the real thing, no questions asked
- Stout fans - it is one of the only AF stouts worth considering
- Pub and restaurant settings - widely available on draught and in cans
- People who want 0.0% - truly zero, not the 0.5% most craft AF beers contain
How Does Guinness 0.0 Compare?
Guinness 0.0 stands alone in the AF stout category - there is limited direct competition.
Against other AF beer brands:
- Lucky Saint is a lager, not a stout - different category. Fuller mouthfeel within its style thanks to unfiltered brewing, but apples to oranges.
- Heineken 0.0 is the other Diageo-level mass-market option. Thinner, sweeter, less character - but also a lager, so not a direct comparison.
- Big Drop offers an AF stout that may compete more directly on style, with a craft brewing approach and cocoa nibs.
- IMPOSSIBREW takes a fundamentally different approach. Rather than just removing alcohol, IMPOSSIBREW Enhanced Lager contains 375mg of the Social Blend - L-Theanine, Ashwagandha, Vitamin B1, and Magnesium - designed to promote genuine relaxation. Guinness 0.0 gives you a dark beer without alcohol. IMPOSSIBREW gives you the feeling of having had a drink. → See our full IMPOSSIBREW vs Guinness 0.0 comparison
If you want a stout, Guinness 0.0 is essentially the only mainstream option. If you want more than just taste - if you want the wind-down, the calm - that requires a different kind of product entirely.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Guinness 0.0 completely alcohol free?
How many calories are in Guinness 0.0?
Is Guinness 0.0 gluten free?
Where can I buy Guinness 0.0?
What does Guinness 0.0 taste like?
How does Guinness 0.0 compare to IMPOSSIBREW?
Verdict
Guinness 0.0 is the most recognisable non-alcoholic stout available in the UK. That is partly because there is very little competition in the AF stout space, and partly because the cold filtration process genuinely preserves more of the original character than most dealcoholisation methods.
But "best AF stout" is a low bar. The mouthfeel is thinner, the complexity is reduced, and after half a pint you start to feel what is missing. It is a credible effort backed by serious investment, but it is still a compromise - it removes the alcohol without adding anything in its place.
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