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26 Flavorful (and Potentially Healthy!) Beers for Older Adults
Celebrate National Beer Day with a tasty brew that could be good for you, too
Many beers have “components that are valuable to bodily health,” says Charlie Bamforth, a distinguished professor emeritus of brewing sciences at the University of California, Davis.
Noah Fecks
After a long day, what’s more refreshing than a frosty glass of beer? The only problem is, as we get older, our bodies start to react differently to booze. We get drunk faster, the hangovers become more intense, and it’s just generally not as much fun. It can also be unhealthy if done to excess, which is why the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that adults 65 and older limit their alcohol consumption to one drink per day, and no more than seven drinks per week.
“Pace yourself with drinking beer when you get older,” says Kenneth Koncilja, M.D., an internal medicine physician at Cleveland Clinic. “The effects of binge drinking are worse in late life.”
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The sad fact is, age and alcohol don’t mix. But that doesn’t mean you have to give up beer forever.
We asked three beer sommeliers — yes, that’s an actual career — to recommend their favorite beers for older adults. Not just beer that’s less likely to leave you feeling sluggish and gross the next day, but beers that taste delicious, are designed for sipping rather than gulping, and might even offer some health benefits.
If you want to celebrate National Beer Day on April 7 but would rather avoid the splitting headache tomorrow, we’ve got just the tasting menu for you.
Look to local breweries for the freshest beers possible, says Matt Simpson, a beer sommelier in Atlanta.
Noah Fecks
I want a beer with the freshest ingredients
You can’t go wrong with a craft beer made by your neighborhood brewery. “Craft beers are usually made locally, so they don’t need to travel very far,” says Matt Simpson, a beer sommelier from Atlanta. “You’re getting the freshest product possible.” Most craft beers are made with malted barley, which may support digestive health and may promote healthy cholesterol levels, as well as high contents of phenolic compounds, which are antioxidants found in plant-based food and beverages that may improve digestion, brain function and blood sugar levels. “They’ve got more flavor, more character, and if you get the right styles, they’re not as overpowering,” Simpson says.
If you don’t live near a craft brewery, Simpson suggests shopping for smaller-batch beers.
What to try: Kirkland Lager, distributed by Costco and made by Deschutes Brewery in Bend, Oregon — “one of the best craft breweries in the world,” Simpson says. Or try Prima Pils from Victory Brewing Company in Pennsylvania, and United Craft Lager from the New Realm Brewing Company in Atlanta.
These low-calories brews won’t have you reaching for the aspirin tomorrow.
Noah Fecks
I want a beer that tastes great without the hangover
It can sometimes seem like the only options are low-calorie/low-alcohol beers that taste like water, or more flavorful beers that have a high enough ABV (alcohol by volume) level to knock you on your butt.
“The trick is to find something with an ABV of 6 percent or under, but it still has enough interesting flavor and character without becoming overpowering,” Simpson says. “It’s what we old-timers in the industry call ‘beer-flavored beers.’”
An India Pale Ale, or IPA, is perfect for those who want a beer rich in flavor and full of nutrients. Because they’re high in hop and malt content, they’ve also got lots of naturally occurring antioxidants called polyphenols. These compounds give the beer its flavor and color, but they also have a host of cardiovascular benefits. That’s the good news. The bad news is that most IPAs are super boozy. “They tend to run between 6 and 7.5 percent alcohol,” says Cliff Mori, a sommelier and owner of BREW-ed in Asheville, North Carolina.
He suggests trying a hazy IPA, a style of India Pale Ale characterized by low bitterness, a cloudy appearance and fruity flavors. “It has all the great flavors but a little less punch,” Mori says.
Whatever beer you choose, just make sure to check out its alcohol content “so the effects can be safely and responsibly discussed or recognized,” says Koncilja. Remember, a strong craft beer needs to have a smaller pour — 8 ounces of 7.5 percent ABV is equal to 12 ounces of a 5 percent ABV beer.
What to try: Lo-Pitch Hazy IPA from Hi-Wire Brewing in Asheville. Mori describes it as “bright citrus flavors and a moderate bitterness wrapped up in a 5.5 percent ABV package.” Other great hazy IPA options include Stone Brewing Co.’s Neverending Haze IPA (4 percent ABV) and One-y 100 Calorie Hazy IPA from Oskar Blues (4 percent ABV).
I want a flavorful beer without the bitterness
A hoppy IPA can pack a lot of flavor, but many people find them overly bitter. For a beer that won’t make you wince, Anne Becerra, a beer sommelier from New York, suggests trying a wheat beer, like a hefeweizen or Belgian witbier.
“Flavorwise, it lends a nice creaminess and an almost bubblegum-like tang,” Becerra says. “They also contain things like fiber and folic acid, plus lots of vitamins and minerals.” A witbier — the Dutch word for “white beer” — is “bright, juicy and often infused with spices, most commonly bitter orange peel and coriander,” says Becerra. “Orange peel has been known to help fight an upset stomach, congestion and fatigue, as well as aiding in maintaining blood sugar. Then coriander is packed with benefits like antioxidants and can even help with the liver and pain management.” How much of these benefits you’ll actually get from a beer is up for debate, she concedes, but the taste alone will make you happy you picked it.
Bethany Agusala, M.D., an assistant professor of Internal Medicine at the University of Texas Southwestern (UTSW), reaffirms that this type of beer isn’t a good source of these nutrients, and you’d get better benefits consuming them in a nice curry, for example.
If your palate isn’t especially adventurous, Simpson thinks an American wheat beer is your best game plan. “They have a little more American hop aroma and flavor than Belgian witbiers, with more citrus and earthy notes, but still relatively light and dry,” he says. “It’s like the bland next-door neighbor that you're just glad to have around ’cause they’re nice and quiet.”
What to try: Becerra recommends Allagash White and St. Bernardus Wit for a truly tasty brew without any bitterness. Simpson suggests a Kellerweis hefeweizen from Sierra Nevada, and the Gumballhead American wheat from 3 Floyds Brewing Co.
They’re no replacement for fruits and veggies, but these beers just might help cut down on inflammation.
Noah Fecks
I want a beer that may help with inflammation
Reducing inflammation is especially important as you get older, but evidence is somewhat mixed on whether a beer would help. A 2022 research review published in the Journal of Functional Foods found that the hops in some beers could help reduce inflammation in the mouth, which is thought to be a contributor to health problems throughout the body, including heart disease and possibly dementia.
“For centuries, hops have been used to help fight countless ailments and conditions,” says Becerra. “Known for their mild sedative properties, hops have been attributed to helping to improve blood circulation and anxiety.”
Hoppy beers may also help with hot flashes. A research review published in 2018 in the journal Molecules found that a special ingredient in hops called phytoestrogens, which are natural plant compounds that seem to mimic human estrogen, could help alleviate hot flashes. However, another research review, published in the journal Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity in 2017, suggests that the jury is still out on whether beer or hops supplements are the best way to get phytoestrogens. For many women, alcohol can exacerbate menopause symptoms. So as always, moderation is key or try a non-alcoholic beer made with hops.
What to try: Most breweries offer a wide variety of super-hoppy IPAs, but Becerra believes you can’t go wrong with anything from Lawson’s Finest Liquids in Vermont. “Their Sunshine series — which includes beers with names like Sip of Sunshine and Triple Sunshine — features a range of ABVs and hop levels so you can find the IPA that’s perfect for you,” she says. Some other lighter, lower-calorie IPAs include Bell’s Light Hearted Ale (3.70 percent ABV, 110 calories), Deschutes WOWZA! (4 percent ABV, 100 calories) and the appropriately named Odell Good Behavior (4.0 percent ABV, 110 calories).
When the days get warmer, these beers will keep you refreshed and cool.
Noah Fecks
I want the perfect summer beer
Nothing says summertime like a cold glass of beer. But capturing that perfect summer taste is like capturing sunshine in a bottle. It needs to be full of flavor but not overpowering, light and crisp but not a bore for your taste buds. It should also have a low alcohol content and flavors reminiscent of summer, like citrus and herbs. “You want that familiar flavor of beer but don’t want to reach for a watered-down lager from one of the big guys,” says Mori.
Nothing says summertime like a cold glass of beer. But capturing that perfect summer taste is like capturing sunshine in a bottle. It needs to be full of flavor but not overpowering, light and crisp but not a bore for your taste buds. It should also have a low alcohol content and flavors reminiscent of summer, like citrus and herbs. “You want that familiar flavor of beer but don’t want to reach for a watered-down lager from one of the big guys,” says Mori.
What to try: Mori’s favorite summer seasonal lager is Sierra Nevada Summerfest. “It’s got herbal hops, bready malts and a crisp finish, making it the perfect summertime companion,” he says. As for Simpson, he prefers a German-style helles, a golden lager (“helles” means “pale in color”) that’s perfect for a hot summer day. “They’re refreshing, relatively light with biscuity, malty notes, and just a touch of bittering hops to balance the light sweetness,” he says. Options like Bierstadt Helles from Bierstadt Lagerhaus, Smoke Control from Burghers Brewing and Bring It Home from the Soul & Spirits Brewery have “more flavor and presence than the macro-industrial wannabe lagers like Budweiser,” Simpson says.
I prefer wine for the antioxidants, but I guess I’ll try a beer
If you drink wine only because you think it’s healthier than beer, or at least a better source of antioxidants, you may need to rethink that worldview. Beer has more selenium, B vitamins, phosphorus, folate and niacin than wine, says Charlie Bamforth, Ph.D., a distinguished professor emeritus of brewing sciences at the University of California, Davis. The antioxidant content in beer is also similar to wine; the only difference is that beer’s antioxidants come from flavonoids in barley and hops rather than grapes. And unlike wine, the antioxidants in beer — compounds like ferulic acid — are more easily absorbed by the body.
But what if, even with all that evidence, you still prefer the taste of wine?
What to try: Leave it to the Belgians to help. Gueuze, a unique beer style from the region surrounding Brussels, is perfect for “wine drinkers interested in exploring beer’s more complex offerings,” says Mori. It’s spontaneously fermented — think sourdough, but with beer — then aged for years in oak barrels before being carefully blended to create the final product. “The drinker can expect notes of lemon, fresh hay and vanilla, with an effervescence similar to champagne,” says Mori. He suggests trying Oude Geuze Boon, or Classic Gueuze from Brasserie Cantillon, a small family brewery in Anderlecht, outside Brussels. “Cantillon’s is only 5.5 percent alcohol, so you can drink it and still feel great in the morning,” he says. If you prefer a more fruity option, reach for Lindeman’s Framboise, with a very low 2.5 ABV and notes of raspberries and sweet herbs.
Think dark beers are always heavy? Don’t believe the hype!
Noah Fecks
I want the healthiest beer possible
Irish stout beers get a bad rap. “Everyone thinks, ‘Oh, it’s a dark beer, it’s gonna be heavy.’ That’s so not true,” says Simpson. “Guinness is one of the lightest beers made in the entire world, at just 4.3 percent ABV.” It also has 125 calories per 12 ounces, which means it has fewer calories than a Budweiser, Coors or Heineken. Guinness Draught only seems heavier because it’s made with a process called nitrogenation, which creates the beer’s iconic velvety texture. But it’s no different than a nitro cold brew coffee, which tastes silkier and heftier than regular cold brew but doesn’t have the extra calories.
Bamforth has done extensive research on imported beers, and he’s found that Guinness contains the most folate — a B vitamin whose deficiency is associated with depression and dementia in older adults — with many stouts containing up to 12.8 micrograms, or 3.2 percent, of the recommended daily allowance. The unmalted barley in Guinness also contains more fiber than malted grain, making it quite possibly the only beer with any amount of fiber.
What to try: You already know the answer, don’t you? It’s Guinness. Although other stout beers, like Left Hand Brewing’s Milk Stout Nitro, which is somewhat sweeter than Guinness, and Murphy’s Irish Stout, can offer similar benefits. But if you want the healthiest beer experience possible, Mori suggests trying Guinness 0.0. “It’s based off of the classic Guinness recipe but processed in a way to remove all of the alcohol,” Bamforth says. “Expect all of the rich, roasty, chocolatey notes of Guinness, but with zero chance of a hangover in the morning.”
If Guinness isn't your thing, Koncilja suggests exploring other non-alcoholic beer options.
“NA beers or beers with less than 0.5 percent alcohol have greatly improved in taste and quality over the last five years,” he says. “The brands have exploded and I have recently enjoyed Best Day Brewing’s Kolsch and Athletic Brewing’s variety of IPAs. Gone are the days where we had only O’Doul’s, which I can't stand the taste of. As our society has become more aware of the negative health effects of alcohol, we are recognizing the need for improved taste and quality in NA beers.”
Koncilja adds that it’s more than fine to mix things up — drink a regular beer and then follow it up with an NA beer. “NA beer can help someone pace themselves so they don’t drink as much alcohol,” he says.
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