Athletic Brewing focuses on non-alcoholic, hop-infused drinks that may support hydration without any significant alcohol content. The drinks from the brand may help contribute to a social drinking experience without causing the after-effects of a hangover.
The brand's offerings span multiple styles, such as IPAs, golden ales, lagers, and fest-brews. It also provides a mix of curated drinks in bundles under the Variety Packs category, which includes options like the Best Sellers Pack, Gimme the Hops Pack, Bold Explorer Pack, and Daypack Variety Pack.
In this review, we explore the Athletic Brewing brand in detail, including the breadth of its offerings, flavor variety, and taste profile. For more detailed insights, the review also discusses the advantages and potential brand limitations.
Co-founded by John Walker and Bill Shufelt, Athletic Brewing Company initially started its operations in Stratford, Connecticut.
The brand offers non-alcoholic drinks and sparkling water, which might be helpful if you are looking for health-conscious substitutes to alcoholic drinks.
The brand's bestselling offerings include options like the Run Wild IPA, Upside Dawn, Wit's Peak Belgian Style White, Free Wave IPA, All Out, and Atlética. Run Wild is a sessionable IPA with Northwest hops, while Free Wave is a hazy IPA with Amarillo, Citra, and Mosaic hops that may provide it with a juicy, aromatic profile.
The brand also provides Variety Packs, some of which include options like the Light Lovers Pack, Mystery Sampler Pack, Variety Crate, and Members Only Pack.
According to the official site, all drink-based offerings from the brand contain less than 0.5% alcohol by volume, which contributes to their non-alcoholic status. These offerings are non-GMO and are made in facilities that adhere to Good Manufacturing Practices. However, due to the presence of malted barley and wheat, most offerings from the brand contain gluten.
Athletic Brewing offers non-alcoholic drinks that are available in various flavors, covering diverse taste preferences. As per the official site, these may include options like Run Wild IPA, Tropical Reset, Free Wave IPA, Athletic Lite, Upside Down, Atlética, Wit's Peak, All Out, Chelada Amada, Ripe Pursuit, Pedal to Promise, and Oktoberfest. These options usually come in packs of 6 cans (12oz or 355ml), although the Run Wild and Free Wave options are also available in packs of 16 cans (19.2oz).
The brand also provides an exclusive Members Only range that includes Sunset Stoke, First Ride (Dark), Tucker's West Coast IPA, Oktoberfest Dunkel, Downwinder, Apricot Acres, and Members Only Pack.
These non-alcoholic drinks are primarily made from water, hops, wheat, barley, and yeast. Wheat could provide fermentable carbohydrates, fiber, and antioxidants, which may support digestive function and metabolic health.
Barley offers complex carbohydrates and fermentable sugars, possibly contributing to the drink's texture and mouthfeel sensory experience.
Its beta-glucans and polyphenols may help support gut microbiome balance. Yeast may supply B vitamins like riboflavin and niacin, which might support cellular energy metabolism.
Sparkling Water is classified under the DayPack category. According to the official site, Sparkling Water comes in Black Cherry, Blood Orange, Lemon Lime, and Mango variants, alongside a bundled Daypack Variety Pack. These offerings have zero calories and carbohydrates and mainly comprise ingredients like carbonated water and hop oil.
Carbonated water is water infused with dissolved carbon dioxide (CO₂). The mild acidity and effervescence may stimulate gastric mechanoreceptors in your body, which might help improve satiety. Hop oil may provide mild sedative and calming effects by influencing gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) pathways in the nervous system, potentially supporting relaxation.
Athletic Brewing maintains a wide-ranging catalog of non-alcoholic drinks, with 65+ offerings that span multiple craft styles, including IPA, sour, radler, spicy, dark, and cocktail-inspired brews. Some featured offerings in its lineup include the Wit's Peak, Chelada Amada, All Out, Tropical Reset, Atlética, Ripe Pursuit, and Upside Dawn. According to the official site, these non-alcoholic offerings are available in 50+ flavor variations, featuring options such as apricot, cranberry, grapefruit, coffee, hoppy, malt, tropical, vanilla, and tangy profiles.
Beyond its core lineup, the brand extends its catalog to include a Sparkling Water range, providing options like Lemon Lime, Black Cherry, Blood Orange, and Mango. The brand also produces seasonal and limited-edition releases, which include options like Chelada Amada, Pedal to Promise, Tropical Reset, and Oktoberfest. Such diversity from the brand might help reduce the risk of flavor fatigue, provide flavor options that may suit different occasions, and help you explore new styles.
As per the official site, Athletic Brewing holds a Certified B Corporation status. The certification may indicate that the brand meets established standards of transparency, ethical sourcing practices, and legal accountability. The brand's brewing facilities and supply chain processes follow these strict standards to ensure the certification criteria are consistently met. The B Corp commitment is applied across the company's entire portfolio of non-alcoholic drinks. For example, both the Upside Dawn Golden Ale and Run Wild IPA are produced under sustainable brewing practices and ethical sourcing policies. This shows that the certification reflects a brand-wide philosophy, rather than a single product or line.
Athletic Brewing emphasizes transparency in terms of its sourcing practices, brewing process, and brand values. However, the brand does not publicly disclose any independent laboratory reports verifying the safety, purity, or chemical composition of its offerings. It does not provide access to Certificates of Analysis from accredited labs to confirm whether its brews are free from contaminants like heavy metals, pesticides, or microbial pathogens.
Without such transparency, the brand may create a gap in trustworthiness and regulatory reassurance. The lack of third-party verification may be a deciding factor, especially if you are looking for brands that maintain transparency in visible testing data and follow strict compliance rules.
Based on the customer feedback from Reddit between 2024–2025, Athletic Brewing's offerings appear to suffer from a lack of distinctiveness across their lineup, particularly in their IPA range. Multiple users noted that the majority of the brand's IPAs share the same base formula, with only minor tweaks between variants like Run Wild or Free Wave.
The taste profile across the brand's non-IPA selections has also been criticism. Some users highlighted that offerings like the Wit's Peak and Copper Atlética failed to capture the authentic flavor expected from these variants. Recurring complaints included descriptions of watery textures, excessive bitterness, or an artificial “chemical” taste.
Such previous experiences of flavor repetition and variations may leave you with a sense of monotony, which might cause you to look for alternatives from other brands that offer fresher or more differentiated taste profiles.
Both Partake Brewing and Athletic Brewing Co. provide non-alcoholic craft drinks that may support hydration and complement social drinking experiences. However, the brands differ in aspects like their offering range, core focus, and app integration ecosystem.
Partake Brewing maintains a more focused lineup that includes non-alcoholic brews and sparkling water. Some featured offerings from the brand include options such as Pale, Pilsner, Belgian White, IPA, Blonde, Peach Gose, and Hop Twist. Depending on the variant, these offerings come in packs of 12, 24, or 48 cans, with the 12-can pack costing between $27.99–$29.99 as part of a one-time purchase.
On the other hand, Athletic Brewing Co. has a more diverse lineup that includes more than 65 offerings that come in 50+ flavor variants. The brand's catalog includes non-alcoholic dark, sparkling water, non-alcoholic light variant, and Variety Packs. Some featured offerings from the brand include the Run Wild IPA, Atlética, Ripe Pursuit, Athletic Lite, Wit's Peak Belgian Style White, Chelada Amada, and All Out Extra Dark. These non-alcoholic drinks typically come in packs of 6 cans, which are priced in the range of $13.99 and $14.99.
Beyond the differences, both brands meet the same baseline standards that define their non-alcoholic status, as all the drinks across their lineups are brewed to contain less than 0.5% ABV (alcohol by volume).
Moreover, both Partake Brewing and Athletic Brewing Co. hold the Certified B Corporation status. However, it is important to note that all offerings from Partake Brewing are vegan. Meanwhile, Athletic Brewing states that most of its offerings are vegan-compliant, although the brand is not entirely vegan-friendly.
In terms of digital integration, there are some differences between the brands. For example, Partake Brewing keeps its digital ecosystem limited to its website, without integrating app-based engagement. Meanwhile, Athletic Brewing Co. invests in a dedicated mobile app that may help with subscription management, provide exclusive content, and support order tracking.
When comparing Best Day Brewing and Athletic Brewing Co., the brands diverge in aspects like the diversity of their product lineup, certifications, core focus, and pricing structures.
Best Day Brewing has a curated and restricted lineup that primarily comprises non-alcoholic drinks and bundle packs. Some featured offerings from the brand include Kölsch, West Coast IPA, Hazy IPA, Electro-Lime, White, and Galaxy Ripple. The brand also features curated bundles, such as the 3 Six-Pack Bundle and Variety Twelve Pack.
Meanwhile, Athletic Brewing Co. has a more expansive lineup that includes sparkling water and non-alcoholic drinks alongside categories like IPAs, goldens, lights, darks, Mexican-style ales, and seasonal options such as radlers and goses. Some featured offerings from the brand include the Run Wild IPA, Free Wave IPA, Upside Dawn Golden, Athletic Lite, Atlética, All Out Dark, Pedal to Promise, and Oktoberfest. Beyond these, the brand also provides a diverse lineup in its variety packs, including options like the Best Sellers Pack, Daypack Variety Pack, Gimme the Hops Pack, and Bold Explorer Pack.
In terms of brewing transparency, there are some differences between the brands. Best Day Brewing details its brewing process, which involves brewing to full strength before gently removing alcohol content at temperatures no higher than fermentation levels to preserve aromas and flavors.
On the other hand, Athletic Brewing Co. emphasizes a proprietary method that brews drinks without alcohol during the initial brewing process, highlighting innovation but offering less specific detail on temperature controls or exact steps in brewing.
In evaluating Athletic Brewing, we looked at the brand's origins and reputation across independent review forums. Co-founded by John Walker and Bill Shufelt, the brand was built on the idea of creating flavorful non-alcoholic drinks suited to active lifestyles, while looking to replicate the flavor complexity of alcoholic drinks.
On the Better Business Bureau, the brand holds an “A+” rating, which may indicate the brand's commitment to ethical business standards and customer service responsiveness. However, it is important to note that the brand is not BBB-accredited.
Meanwhile, TenereTeam has provided a 4.0 out of 5 rating to the brand, although the rating is based on a small number of reviews on the platform.
Most users on TenereTeam praised the brand's range of flavors and styles in non-alcoholic drinks, such as IPAs and golden ales. However, a few users highlighted that the carbonation in the drinks was milder than expected.
When evaluating the user reviews for Athletic Brewing, both Free Wave Hazy IPA and Run Wild IPA appear most frequently as points of comparison. Across customer ratings on Amazon.com, both drinks average around 4.6–4.7 out of 5 stars, with most reviews falling in the four- or five-star range.
Users of Free Wave Hazy IPA often mention a citrus-forward flavor, including grapefruit notes, along with a hazy, hoppy character. Run Wild IPA is described as resembling a traditional West Coast IPA, with noticeable bitterness and depth.
Some users have tried switching between Free Wave and Run Wild depending on preference for fruit-forward or bitter styles, while others mention pairing them with food.
Athletic Brewing offers low-calorie and low-carb drinks that come in multiple formats and craft profiles, such as IPAs, ales, sours, and sparkling water options. These offerings are formulated to potentially replicate the visual appeal, flavor profile, and texture of standard craft drinks, but without contributing to any alcohol content.
However, the brand does not provide publicly accessible third-party testing results or COAs for any of its offerings, which may reduce transparency regarding their purity, safety, and composition.
Before opting for Athletic Brewing, you should consider how the consistency of taste, bitterness, or carbonation with the brand's offerings aligns with your own expectations for non-alcoholic drinks.
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