File Photo / Tim Greenway
Sean Sullivan, executive director of the Maine Brewers' Guild.
Updated: March 29, 2021
Kittery brewer makes strong debut of Maine's first nonalcoholic craft beer
Courtesy / Woodland Farms Brewery
Pointer, made by Woodland Farms Brewery in Kittery, is Maine's first nonalcoholic IPA, in a niche that's growing quickly nationwide.
A week after Woodland Farms Brewery launched Maine's first nonalcoholic craft beer, all signs are pointing upwards for its place in a small but growing niche nationwide.
The new brand, called Pointer, is made in Kittery, where Patrick Rowan and his wife, Michelle Rowan, operate the brewery on a former dairy farm operated by the Rowan and Perry families until the mid-1970s.
"We sold out online in four days," he told Mainebiz on Friday. That was on top of 150 cases sent out for distribution statewide, with another 200 cases slated to be available for online sale as of April 5.
"We're so excited about the response," he said. "People really like the beer!"
The brewer, which employs a total of six people making lager as well as New England IPAs and barrel-aged sour ales, had its sights set on making nonalcoholic beer for some time.
Patrick Rowan told Mainebiz that getting into nonalcoholic beer production had been a passion project of his for some time, inspired by an uncle who is also a business partner. A teetotaler, the uncle gained an appreciation for alcohol-free beer during travels to Germany, which like the rest of Europe has very strict laws against drunk driving.
Rowan later went to Germany himself to learn more about the process from experts in Munich, then decided it would be more cost-effective to experiment on his own.
"The recipe [for Pointer] was about two years in the making," he explained. "We really wanted to target that Maine-style, New England-style IPA — juicy, soft and sweet but still really hoppy. That just doesn't exist anywhere in the market."
Like its other beers, Pointer is sold exclusively in cans, but Rowan doesn't rule out offering it on draught if there is demand. He said the name is a nod to Kittery Point, where he grew up, and that the ultimate plan is to sell the nonalcoholic beverage on amazon.com.
Sean Sullivan, executive director of the Maine Brewers' Guild honored on the Mainebiz Next list in 2016, said he wasn't surprised by Pointer's strong debut given that it's the first of its kind in the state.
"It's in demand and a great offering," he said.
Small but growing niche
Nationally, the niche is small but growing quickly, according to Bart Watson, chief economist of the 4,500-member Boulder, Colo.-based Brewers Association.
He told Mainebiz that in volume share, nonalcoholic beer's share of the market is up to 0.49% as of March 21, up from 0.41% a year ago, 0.33% two years ago and 0.32% three years ago.
Noting that the big jump was from 2019 to 2020, he said, "We've kept that momentum through the pandemic."
Watson also cautioned that the growth numbers are skewed by COVID, noting, "Since we basically overnight stopped drinking in bars and restaurants and started buying a lot more everything at packaged stores, all the numbers are up, so the growth numbers look bigger than they might be."
He said he expects the niche to remain a limited one, given the expensive production process behind nonalcoholic beer, "all of which require different processes from normal beer production to either remove the alcohol or keep it in the first place.
"This is a growth market but it's a very small one," he said. "While a few players are going to see growth here, it's probably not going to be huge for the average craft brewer."
Growth on tap
Rowan says Woodland Farms Brewery, founded four years ago, has an annual production volume of 1,000 barrels. But he expects capacity to be in the 3,000-5,000 barrel range within the next 18 months after the size of the brewhouse is tripled.
Pointer beer, made from Maine-grown malt and 80 calories per serving, is billed as having modern hop flavor and a hazy appearance
He declined to share any production details about Pointer beer, insisting, "It's a little bit of a trade secret."
And while he thinks it's a plus to be the first out of the gate in Maine with a nonalcoholic beer, he said he hopes others will follow suit, adding, "more power to them."
Still true to its agricultural roots, Woodland Farms uses all of the spent grain to feed the cows that are on its property. Its new nonalcoholic beer retails for $10.99 for a four-pack of 16 oz. cans, compared to $12.99 for four cans of its Galaxy Pale Ale or its Rowanbrau Dortmunder-style lager.
"Part of our ethos or creed is that we make enough money to keep the lights on and pay our employees," Rowan said, "not to gouge people on prices."
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments