A rise of “sober culture” is leading to increased sales of Guinness 0.0 and other non-alcoholic drinks in Ireland. 

That’s according to ‘The Guinness Guru’ Darragh Curran who said five years ago you’d be considered “mad” to order a non-alcoholic drink in a pub – but that it’s accepted now.

It comes as Diageo has confirmed that sales of their Guinness 0.0 product have increased by 50% over the last year in Ireland.

On Moncrieff today, Mr Curran, who rates pints of Guinness on his social media channels, said attitudes to non-alcoholic drinks have changed in recent years.

“I think, since 2020 to now, so much has changed in terms of it being ‘okay’ to sip on a non-alcoholic drink in a pub,” he said.

“People are drinking a lot less these days and I think that’s spawned from the youth not drinking as much.

“I’m 31 and when I was in my youth everyone was drinking, but now 20-year-olds are not that mad about drinking for whatever reason.

“I think sober culture has become huge in the last few years.”

Mr Curran said he did a blind taste test on Guinness 0.0 when it was first launched as a can-only product in 2020.

“My housemate poured 0.0 in one glass and a normal Guinness in the other – I knew right away which was which,” he said.

“I said [the 0.0] tastes very much like watery Guinness.

“I think I was vindicated because the initial launch of cans was recalled because of a problem with them, so I was glad I said what I said.”

First kegs

The Guinness Guru said he was also unimpressed with kegged Guinness 0.0 when it was first rolled out in 2022.

“I think it was the first day and the guy behind the bar was trying to pour it, but it looked like he poured about eight pints of milk before he was able to give me a proper one,” he said.

“The first full pint was all head and the second was about 90% head – so it still wasn’t great.”

Three pints of Guinness, 2-3-16. Image: Sergio Azenha / Alamy

It wasn’t until 2023, when Mr Curran had “lost all hope,” that things began to turn around for the product.

“I was in Mulligan’s in Poolbeg, which does a stellar pint of normal Guinness, and the bartender said it was going well and to give it a shot,” he said.

“I tried it and I was very much surprised; I thought they had really turned it around since the launch of the first keg and it was now a decent product.

“In different pubs, you could still get a gack pint of the 0.0, but I do think they’ve done a very good job in the last 18 months of improving it and so many people are drinking it now.”

Mr Curran adds that the final piece of the puzzle he’d like Diageo to bring in is a cost reduction to the 0.0 product compared to normal Guinness.

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Main image: Guinness 0.0 cans. Image: mark phillips / Alamy Stock Photo