Carlsberg swaps old 0.0% beer for Nordic alcohol-free Pilsner

Danish brewer Carlsberg has once again swapped out a member of its beer portfolio for a new Pilsner, this time without the alcohol.

Liam Newton, VP Marketing at Carlsberg UK, said the AF category “has seen huge growth in the last few years as consumers seek to moderate their consumption without comprising on the taste of their beer.

“As a result, more people are opting for alcohol-free drinks, but they don’t want their choices to be limited. That’s why we are delighted to bring them a new choice for 2020 that is uncompromising on taste, quality and enjoyment.”

Newton added the alcohol-free beer has already had a successful launch in Denmark, “so we are confident it will be equally successful in the UK.”

Replacing the existing Carlsberg 0.0 brand, Carlsberg Nordic will be listed in over 170 Tesco stores across the UK starting this week, with wider roll out planned later in the year. The launch will coincide with a social and digital campaign running across Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

The beer swap echoes a £20 million marketing campaign Carlsberg launched last year when the brewer discontinued its flagship lager and replaced it with a “Danish Pilsner”.

The beer giant attracted attention in April by promoting a series of tweets from its brand account likening the original lager to “stale breadsticks” and “p*ss”, and followed up with a marketing campaign that highlights a focus on “quality, not quantity.”

Carlsberg launched its original 0.0% beer in 2015. A spokesperson said it is likely to be phased out by mid-2020.