- Sweet, tropical and crisp
- Nice bitterness kick you'd expect from a Pale Ale
- A top choice for sitting out in the sun
- Slightly expensive
- Not very common - only retailers the best option here
My first impressions of this can were good; it stood out on the shelf due to its highly quality matte label.
However, what isn’t as noticeable is who is responsible for this beer.
A closer look reveals a few more details – an alcohol free pale ale produced by Brew York and Gweilo.
Some further amateur detective work, revealed some more information behind this pale ale collab:
Brewed with our mates at Gweilo, Lo Rider Pale Ale is a light, citrusy, alcohol-free pale ale. We use Cascade hops to create an intense tropical fruit aroma. This is followed by a crisp, refreshing bitterness which doesn’t linger, resulting in an extremely drinkable alcohol-free pale ale.
From the description alone, it strikes me as something that may be similar to Beavertown’s Lazer Crush, but the test is in the taste. Let’s go.
Brew York / Gweilo Lo Rider Initial Review
After chilling suitably, I cracked open this can and poured it into a glass.
I was greeted to an initial tropical zing, from a liquid that is a light yellow – almost the colour of pineapple juice but less opaque. Poured into a glass it produced a decent head, but this quickly subsided with no trace of this around the rim of the glass.
All I had to do was slightly raise the glass of the table I had it rested on before I got a decent whiff of this pale ale. It certainly had strong tropical notes, followed by faint citrus.
The tropical notes were dominated by pineapple, with some melon not far behind. It definitely smells sweet, and not dissimilar from some fruity fizzy drinks you can buy.
The initial taste matches the aroma almost exactly. There is a sweet, tropical fruit taste, followed by a hoppy and zesty bitter aftertaste. It drinks smoothly, and is enjoyable to drink.
Although slightly on the sweet side of what I would expect from a pale ale, it makes it refreshing that would match perfectly with a warm summer’s day. You could easily drink 2-3 of these back to back, but just be wary if you are trying to avoid consuming too much sugar.
Overall, a great summers AF drink; a perfect one if you are attending a summer BBQ and have to drive home afterwards!
Lo Rider Packaging
An important point to note here in regards to the packaging of this AF beer.
In the below image, you can clearly see that design is bright colours, with a graphic of a car.
More recently, an updated version of this beer has appeared – which couldn’t be any more different to this.
The new can features a black and green design, with almost all resemblance to each other. You can see the new design below:
Where to Purchase Brew York Lo Rider
Unfortunately, I’ve not come across many physical stores that sell this. I did however pick this up from a large Tesco supermarket for around £2.50 – a store that had a wide range of alcohol free beers.
But if you are willing to look online, you have more choice.
Wise Bartender stocks this – in the black and green design – but you can also pick it up from the online stores of Brew York and Gweilo, as well as Light Drinks.
Lo Rider Ingredients, Nutritional Information and Calories
Water, Barley, Hops (Cascade, Columbus, Mosaic, Simcoe), Yeast
Although vegan, this beer is not suitable for those with gluten allergies. Further information in regards to the hops used can be found at the bottom of this review.
| Nutritional Information | Per 100mL |
|---|---|
| ABV | 0.0% |
| Energy (KJ / KCal) | 107 / 25 |
| Fat (g) | 0.2 |
| Of Which Saturates (g) | 0.2 |
| Carbohydrate (g) | 5.9 |
| Of Which Sugars (g) | 3.0 |
| Protein (g) | 0.5 |
| Salt (g) | 0.075 |
