# Too Many Low Carb Varieties



## petesbrew (6/11/08)

Okay, it seems like everyone's bringing out a new low carb beer every week, Pure blonde, Beach Blonde, Natural Blonde, etc.
Now I know that we're all passionate about drinking beer with FLAVOUR,
but I'm just wondering if anyone's tried any of these, and if there are any worthy of a brewer's fridge? Especially as summer is coming up... parties, etc.

Did a bit of a search and couldn't see if this had already been asked, so feel free to add a link.


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## Katherine (6/11/08)

I had one cascade green last Saturday... I was surprised quite drinkable.... hopped with galaxy... I would drink it again.


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## Adamt (6/11/08)

Mash very dry.. maybe use some rice/corn/sugaz as an adjunct. Nice big handfuls of hops in the kettle late, pitch a good, very healthy starter.

If you're really desperate for the low carbness either stop drinking, get off yer arse and exercise rolleyes or use the dreaded dry enzyme!


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## petesbrew (6/11/08)

Adamt said:


> Mash very dry.. maybe use some rice/corn/sugaz as an adjunct. Nice big handfuls of hops in the kettle late, pitch a good, very healthy starter.
> 
> If you're really desperate for the low carbness either stop drinking, get off yer arse and exercise rolleyes or use the dreaded dry enzyme!


Haha, wasn't after a recipe, as the only blonde I'll be brewing will be a belgian.
Not desperate for low carbness, just curious as there are so many available now. Possibly there's a tasty one out there? 
Actually I read somewhere that Toohey's Old isn't much worse carb/fat/healthwise, than a pure bland.


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## drsmurto (6/11/08)

Its been done to death but here's the calorie (should be kJ.... nasty imperial units...) breakdown

375 mL full strength beer (5.0% abv) = 135 cal + 0.8g of sugar
375 mL light beer (2.2% abv) = 94 cal + 0.4g of sugar
375 mL of low carb beer (4.8% abv) = 110 cal + 0g of sugar


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## SJW (6/11/08)

http://www.fortheloveofbeer.com.au/carbrelief/#/product/

White Stag reckons its only got 3.1 total carbs per serve.
I say.......................Kiss me between the back pockets.......................who cares.
I dont drink it anyway. I can't bring myself to pay good money for crap beer when I have 4 kegs of sensational FULL STRENGTH FULLY CARBED beer at home.

Steve


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## petesbrew (6/11/08)

Do we need a poll?


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## kabooby (6/11/08)

When my sister was working in a country pub in England, she used to get a heap of cyclist in and they would drink Guiness as it was meant to be lower in carbs. The info I could find said it was about the same as a standard beer. Must be the way they make it over there.

Kabooby


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## Millet Man (6/11/08)

kabooby said:


> When my sister was working in a country pub in England, she used to get a heap of cyclist in and they would drink Guiness as it was meant to be lower in carbs. The info I could find said it was about the same as a standard beer. Must be the way they make it over there.
> 
> Kabooby


Low OG of around 1.038 IIRC for Guinness will give it lower carbs.

Cheers, Andrew.


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## SJW (6/11/08)

poll, poll, poll


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## HoppingMad (6/11/08)

h34r: Am ashamed to admit that I have tried Boags Blonde and Pure Blonde. They were in my work fridge so tried one of each out of pure curiosity (honest!).

Boags Blonde is possibly the worst beer ever created. Tasted almost sour. Pure Blonde was tolerable as a hot weather drink and way smoother (best when chilled really cold) but reckon any of the recipes mentioned would probably taste better. Wouldn't be hard to top either for flavour. Haven't tried White Stag. Natural Blonde by Grand Ridge is actually really good though , but not a low carb beer I don't think - believe its more like a summer ale (their website says its a belgian ale but doesn't taste like a Leffe Blonde to me).

Hopper.


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## Muggus (6/11/08)

DrSmurto said:


> Its been done to death but here's the calorie (should be kJ.... nasty imperial units...) breakdown
> 
> 375 mL full strength beer (5.0% abv) = 135 cal + 0.8g of sugar
> 375 mL light beer (2.2% abv) = 94 cal + 0.4g of sugar
> 375 mL of low carb beer (4.8% abv) = 110 cal + 0g of sugar


Does that mean if a low carb beer was a full 5.0% abv, it'd be almost 135 cal anyway?

And isn't alcohol a carb anyway!?


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## Bribie G (6/11/08)

Low carbohydrate beer has been around for a generation or two - XXXX dietale since the 70s but I don't think they still make it since Lion Nathan brought out the Hahn and Tooheys varieties. In the UK in the 70s there was a German lo carb in all the pubs, forget what it was called (Hofbrau or Hofmeister or something like that). Being a German import it tasted far better than the crap three percent pommy lagers like Harp and Carling Black Label so most people used to drink it purely as a premium lager although it was aimed at diabetics.
Stella and genuine Heineken etc hadn't come on the market yet so it was a good beer to get pissed on.


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## daemon (6/11/08)

A don't have a problem per say with the "low carb" beers, but the big problem is the cost! Simpler ingredients (and probably less depending how they do it) yet it's sold as a premium cost beer. For $40-45 a carton I'd rather buy Coopers, at least it has some flavour and I can even steal reculture the yeast


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## Kai (7/11/08)

Katie said:


> I had one cascade green last Saturday... I was surprised quite drinkable.... hopped with galaxy... I would drink it again.



This was the first one that sprang to my mind, I've consumed a few greens and quite enjoyed them. They're not cheap though.


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## Thirsty Boy (7/11/08)

People get the low carb thing all wrong - its not particularly meant to be lower in calories... its meant to be lower in carbs, which in beer means dextrins. This is for people who are on low carb diets... its not the lack of calories they are primarily interested in, its the lack of carbohydrates.

This I know from 8months and 23kg shed on the CSIRO low carb diet.

Whether you think thats all bollocks or not is an entirely different story, but the beers _are_ as advertised, signficantly lower in carbohydrates than standard beers.

The cacade green is actually quite nice, and most of the other "blond" beers I have tasted are, well... inoffensive. The one I am most familiar with is Pure Blond (seeing as I help to make the stuff) and it is pretty much the beer I will choose if i am limited to mega brews.

Not a lot of flavour, well... none really. But its clean and crisp and it does have a reasonable hallertau hoppiness to it. Not great, but not terrible, and thats all you can ask for in a mega beer.

TB


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## flattop (7/11/08)

Daemon i believe the words to use are "recycle waste product from the bottom of the bottle" or perhaps "disposing of non conforming bacteria before recycling the bottle"...
After all recycling centers prefer you wash bottles before returning them.

Dietale, i had almost forgotten, my mates father had a fridge full of it, i preferred Carlton Draught. Never really saw the point, it's not the beer making me fat, its all the crap food i eat when i've been drinking....


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## petesbrew (7/11/08)

Poll Added... let me know if I've left any out.

found that thing on Tooheys old
"A traditional beer such as Tooheys Old contains 156 kilojoules per 100 millilitres - only 30 kilojoules more than Hahn Super Dry at 126 kilojoules per 100 millilitres. Tooheys Old also has a lower alcohol content, which nutritionists say is far more important than the carb content."
myth-of-the-lowcarb-beer


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## vicelore (7/11/08)

Id rather piss on my feet than drink Pure blonde.


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## PostModern (7/11/08)

petesbrew said:


> Poll Added... let me know if I've left any out.



Skinny Blonde


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## drsmurto (7/11/08)

Thirsty Boy said:


> People get the low carb thing all wrong - its not particularly meant to be lower in calories... its meant to be lower in carbs, which in beer means dextrins. This is for people who are on low carb diets... its not the lack of calories they are primarily interested in, its the lack of carbohydrates.
> 
> This I know from 8months and 23kg shed on the CSIRO low carb diet.
> 
> ...




Not sure there is anything significant about 0.8g vs 0g. I'l let the stats gurus argue that one...... T test anyone?

In effect you are eating 1/4 a tsp of sugar every full strength beer and 1/8 every light beer.

Not knocking those on low carb diets, thats a legit thing (altho dont get me started about those psuedo scientists at CSIRO....grumble...bastards...grumble....)

An alcohol isnt a carbohydrate, its an alcohol....... 

There are more calories per g of alcohol than there are per g of carbs hence the info i posted above.

Low carb diets are legit as i said, drinking low carb beers as part of any diet is 110% bollocks. No diet advocates the drinking of beer. If you wanted to cut down drink low alc beer which has significantly lower calories and half the sugar of a full strength beer.


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## petesbrew (7/11/08)

hmm. looks like I can't edit a poll. oh well. it's only low carb


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## Thirsty Boy (7/11/08)

DrSmurto said:


> Not sure there is anything significant about 0.8g vs 0g. I'l let the stats gurus argue that one...... T test anyone?
> 
> In effect you are eating 1/4 a tsp of sugar every full strength beer and 1/8 every light beer.
> 
> ...



Oh I agree with that 100% - Thinking that you are OK to drink these things on a diet is foolish - but there was a lovely market slot for all things "low carb" and these beers fill it nicely and despite the rhetoric that some people throw around... honestly. They are what they say they are.

Its just that what they are is pointless


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## drsmurto (7/11/08)

Thirsty Boy said:


> This I know from 8months and 23kg shed on the CSIRO low carb diet.
> 
> 
> 
> TB



:icon_offtopic: 

How religiously did you stick to this diet and how much exercise was included? Did you slow down the booze consumption?

I dont have 23kg to lose but since retiring from footy (Aussie rules - not to be confused with that other game we seem to be debating) i have added a few extra kgs that arent really needed.

Was offered a copy while i worked for CSIRO but left there in not too flash circumstances so told them as subtly as i could what they could do with said book.....

Got a copy of it online anyway..... suckers.


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## HoppingMad (7/11/08)

vicelore said:


> Id rather piss on my feet than drink Pure blonde.



Maybe that's how they make it!


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## MarkBastard (16/11/08)

On topic: I don't mind Hahn Super Dry as a session beer. Boags Blonde is good but can sometimes taste salty and hard to drink a lot of because of this. Bondi Blonde is great but there's a bit of variation I find. Sometimes it's a bit too watery but sometimes it has a nice malty flavour. Either way it's a great beer to drink in the sun at a bbq.

Low card beers are good as 'session beers' I find. Like if you're planning to drink half a carton of something then they're a good choice.

Off topic: I too lost about 20kg on the CSIRO diet. This was before the low carb beers were very popular. I wasn't drinking much at the time. I did however change from being a coke-aholic to a coke-zero aholic (about the time coke zero came out) and I think that was a pretty good move.

The thing with diets is not that you shouldn't have any bad things at all, but that if you're going to have bad things you may as well have the best of the bad things, so low carb beers and 'diet' soft drinks. No one actually thinks that low carb beers are going to make people lose weight.


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## Thirsty Boy (16/11/08)

DrSmurto said:


> :icon_offtopic:
> 
> How religiously did you stick to this diet and how much exercise was included? Did you slow down the booze consumption?
> 
> ...



Stuck to it religiously for about 3 months and was averaging 1-1.5kg weight loss per week. Very little exercise during that period. A bit of walking maybe. we allowed 1 bottle of wine between myself and SWMBO (both on diet) per week - no beer at all except for the occasional breakout.

After that it was more of an "in the spirit" thing. Still maintained a pretty strict attitude towards carbs, but less so with portion control and booze. Mind you, didn't go wild or anything, just less full on. But having said that, I joined a gym and exercised like hell as well. Slowed down to 0-0.5kg a week (ish)

Of course, I hurt myself exercising - couldn't exercise anymore and now several years later, I'm back to being a lard arse. Brewing does not help!!

Keep meaning to get back to being fit - will one of these days. Just have to work up the enthusiasm for the discipline required

TB


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