Fungtn alcohol-free beer
Well, this is certainly a new one for me … a beer that uses the power of mushrooms! Welcome to the scene FungTn!
Fungtn is an award-winning UK brewer who has gone on to produce three alcohol-free beers infused with three different types of mushrooms. There’s the shiitake dark malt lager, the Reishi citra hop beer, and Lions Mane IPA, the one I tried today.
I’ve reviewed different drinks in the past that along with them being non-alcoholic have also added benefits and FungTn’s collection of beers certainly tick that box. Their beer not only contains classic beer ingredients such as good quality hops but also has adaptogens (aka fungi) which contain adaptogenic properties (which can help with balancing hormones and your immune system).
This particular beer, Lions Mane IPA, uses cascade and challenge hops to create punchy IPA flavours, and as the name implies it also contains an extract of lions mane mushroom (used to help improve nerve development).
So the question is is there going to be mush room (boom boom) left on the bar shelf for this beer or is it one destined for the sink? Well, you’ll just need my review below to find out.
Is Fungtn alcohol-free beers any good?
Taste
I’m not going to lie. I was quite nervous when I saw the word mushroom when it came to this beer as I simply do not like the taste or texture of them. As such I was greatly relieved that it neither tasted or smelled like mushroom. In fact, the taste of Lions Mane is of a good quality bittersweet IPA. I certainly get some bitterness from the hops but there are also interesting fruit flavours to that come out. Overall this was a very alcohol-free beer that I very much enjoyed.
Aroma & Appearance
As with other IPA beers this one has heady hop aromas that fill the air as soon as can is opened. In the glass Lion’s Mane poured with a dark amber colour and low frothy head.
Bonus points
This particular beer is a multi-award winner (including silver at the AF awards 2023 and bronze at the world’s best beers). It is also gluten-free and suitable for vegans so ticks those boxes. Not going to lie, I didn’t feel any different after drinking this beer but to be honest the taste made up for the lack of it. Availability-wise it may be tricky to hunt down outside of the UK and Europe.
Buy Fungtn beer
At the time of writing, your best bet to find a can of this beer is from the stockist below or alternatively check out Fungtn’s own site.
Wise Bartender is a very well-respected alcohol-free retailer with a great selection of booze-free drinks and an easy-to-use site.
COST (at time of publication) – £3 per can
Use of image courtesy of Fungtn.com
Key information
Type – IPA
Brewery – Fungtn
Alcohol content – 0.5%
Ingredients – Water, Hops, Barley, Malt, Oats, Yeast, Lion’s Mane
Calories – unknown
Vegan friendly? – yes
Gluten-free? – yes
Availability UK/ EU – medium
Availability US/ CAN– hard
