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15 Low-Calorie Beers to Drink Through the Holidays

Forgo the White Claw. These beers taste better and have even fewer calories per can.

dogfish head beerDogfish Head

By Ryan Brower and Jack Seemer

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Every drink has a time and a place, maybe even hard seltzer. But if you’re reaching for a White Claw or Truly because you think it’s “healthier” than beer, remember this: that can of hard seltzer has about 100 to 110 calories — more than a majority of the suds collected below. Here are more than a dozen low-calorie, low-carb, full-flavor beers to consider instead.

25 Calories

Athletic Brewing LiteAthletic Brewing Co.

Athletic Brewing Lite

Specs

Calories 25
ABV Less than 0.5 percent

From Athletic Brewing, one of America’s leading NA producers, Lite is a crisp nonalcoholic beer that combines a rice and malt base with noble hops for a next-to-Pilsner drinking experience. What’s more, it has just 25 calories per 12-ounce can, so why not? Have another.

81 Calories

evil twin brewing bikini beerEvil Twin

Evil Twin Brewing Bikini Beer

Specs

Beer Style Session IPA
ABV 2.7%
Calories 81
Carbs 4 grams
Brewery Location Queens, NY

Well ahead of its time, Bikini Beer came along in 2012 and arguably led the way for all the other beers on this list. It’s extremely light-bodied and drinkable, being the lowest ABV beer on this list. Despite that, it still offers your typical IPA notes of citrus. If you’re looking for a beach beer, look no further.

86 Calories

new holland brewing lightpointNew Holland Brewing

New Holland Brewing Lightpoint

Specs

Beer Style White Ale
ABV 3.7%
Calories 86
Carbs 2 grams
Brewery Location Holland, MI

A white ale is not typically a beer style you’d expect to see as “low calorie.” Additionally, the brewers of one of the most accessible bourbon barrel-aged stouts (Dragon’s Milk) are not the ones you’d expect to also be doing a low-calorie session beer.

But Lightpoint is refreshing and has just the right amount of Belgian spice to it. It’s not overwhelming in any way, but has enough of the required flavors to pass as not low calorie. It’s an under-the-radar non-IPA on this list.

95 Calories

low calorie beerDogfish Head

Dogfish Head Slightly Mighty

Specs

Beer Style Session IPA
ABV 4%
Calories 95
Carbs 3.6 grams
Brewery Location Rehobeth, DE

By utilizing monk fruit (which has no calories), Dogfish Head was able to reduce the malt bill in Slightly Mighty to cut down on calories without sacrificing an IPA’s balancing sweetness. The result is a full-bodied, Lo-Cal IPA with loads of tropical hop notes.

98 Calories

low calorie beerLagunitas

Lagunitas DayTime

Specs

Beer Style Session IPA
ABV 4%
Calories 98
Carbs 3 grams
Brewery Location Petaluma, CA

Tied for the least amount of carbs on this list, DayTime punches above its weight. That’s thanks to the use of Centennial and Citra hops, as well as oats in the malt bill — all of which give this one a close-to-normal-IPA taste. Its straw color appearance is a bit deceiving in this regard, as it’s a tropical hop-forward beer that you can pound all day long.

99 Calories

low calorie beerBallast Point

Ballast Point Lager

Specs

Beer Style Light Lager
ABV 4.2%
Calories 99
Carbs 3.5 grams
Brewery Location San Diego, CA

Is there a more modern fall-from-grace story in craft beer than that of Ballast Point? The cautionary tale of selling out aside, Lager from Ballast Point is one of its beers that has remained unchanged.

This light lager packs more taste and flavor than most others in the category and doesn’t give you the feeling that you’re drinking something low in calories or carbs. And at the end of the day, that’s what a good low-calorie beer does.

100 Calories

firestone walker mind haze lightFirestone Walker

Firestone Walker Mind Haze Light

Specs

Beer Style Session IPA
ABV 4%
Calories 100
Carbs 8 grams
Brewery Location Paso Robles, CA

A light version of the beloved Mind Haze is just a beer we all deserve. And Firestone Walker delivers on that promise: it’s got plenty of mouthfeel, hop character and body to trick you into thinking it’s just a solid Hazy IPA.

Mind Haze Light is a beer we’re going to be drinking a lot of, and if you’re looking for a lo-cal IPA that doesn’t sacrifice on taste then stock your cooler when you find it.

100 Calories

low calorie beerDeschutes

Deschutes Brewery Wowza

Specs

Beer Style Session Pale Ale
ABV 4%
Calories 100
Carbs 4 grams
Brewery Location Bend, OR

Another Lo-Cal Hazy, Deschutes employed chicory root to help cut down on the malt bill while continuing to balance out the hop combination of Simcoe, Citra and Cashmere. Not as full-bodied as some of the others on this list, Wowza still does a tremendous job of passing as a Session Pale Ale thanks to its tropical notes and ability to refresh on a hot day.

100 Calories

cigar city jai lowCigar City Brewing

Cigar City Jai Low

Specs

Beer Style Session IPA
ABV 4%
Calories 100
Carbs 14.9 grams
Brewery Location Tampa Bay, FL

Jai Low is Cigar City’s low-calorie version of its flagship Jai Alai. While Jai Alai is an iconic 7.5-percent ABV IPA, Jai Low drops the volume but still packs a flavor punch. It has the most grams of carbs of any beer on this list, and that’s probably why it more or less tastes like a regular IPA — in a good way.

102 Calories

low calorie beerWallenpaupack

Wallenpaupack Brewing Smallmouth

Specs

Beer Style Session IPA
ABV 4.4%
Calories 102
Carbs 3 grams
Brewery Location Hawley, PA

Wallenpaupack Brewing may be the one brewery on this list you haven’t heard of before. But that doesn’t mean they’re not making some solid beers out in Pennsylvania. Its newest offering is Small Mouth Session IPA, a very clean Session IPA that’s a refreshing welcome in the sea of Hazy IPAs these days.

110 Calories

low calorie beerBell’s

Bell’s Brewery Light Hearted Ale

Specs

Beer Style Session IPA
ABV 3.7%
Calories 110
Carbs 8.7 grams
Brewery Location Comstock, MI

It’d be an honest mistake to think that Bell’s Light Hearted Ale is just a lighter version of the legendary Two Hearted Ale.

Instead, Light Hearted is more like a cousin that packs its own hop character (with the addition of Galaxy to go along with Centennial) yet still offers a full body. The 8.7 grams of carbs are the third-highest on this list, but Light Hearted also tastes the most like a really good IPA.

120 Calories

low calorie beerNight Shift Brewing

Night Shift Nite Lite

Specs

Beer Style Light Lager
ABV 4.3%
Calories 120
Carbs 8.1 grams
Brewery Location Everett, MA

Many local and regional craft breweries have started brewing Light Lagers in the past few years, which we’re very much in favor of as a trend. But Night Shift’s Nite Lite was an inspiration for others (having been released in 2016) and was a leader in a revived commitment to light sippers.

The malt bill is delicately balanced with a decent hop character for a light lager, providing a crisp and clean finish.

110 Calories

bell's brewery losunBell’s

Bell’s Brewery LoSun

Specs

Beer Style Wheat Ale
ABV 4%
Calories 110
Carbs 7.5 grams
Brewery Location Comstock, MI

Let’s be clear: LoSun is no Oberon. Then again, it’s hard to live up to one of the best wheat beers out there.

What LoSun is though is a lo-cal wheat ale that packs a bit more hop character than the typical wheat beer. Smooth and a bit of citrus taste, LoSun is a beer that’ll be a great refresher on a sweltering day.

110 Calories

low calorie beerSouthern Tier

Southern Tier Swipe Light

Specs

Beer Style Light Lager
ABV 4%
Calories 110
Carbs 6.5 grams
Brewery Location Lakewood, NY

Southern Tier tends to get overlooked as a New York export among the vast array of hyped NYC and Hudson Valley breweries. But its Swipe Light is a complex yet crisp light lager that’s an ideal pairing for any day spent outdoors. The use of go-to IPA hops Citra and Mosaic give Swipe Light more hop character and taste than most other light lagers on this list.

120 Calories

low calorie beerHarpoon

Harpoon Rec League

Specs

Beer Style New England IPA
ABV 3.8%
Calories 120
Carbs 10 grams
Brewery Location Boston, MA

Harpoon recognized the emergence of two trends and was one of the first breweries to put out a Lo-Cal NEIPA when it released Rec League in early 2019. Being ahead of that curve is part of the reason why Rec League has the most calories and most carbs of any beer on this list.

But it’s very much akin to a NEIPA — (mostly) pillowy-soft mouthfeel and tropical juiciness with the faintest bit of watered-down quality as you go through it. But at 3.8 percent ABV that’s not really a dealbreaker.

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