Weed-infused beer is now available

A new cannabis-infused, non-alcoholic beer has been created by the former brewer of Belgian wheat beer Blue Moon.

The beer, launched by Ceria Brewing Co based in Colorado, is named Grainwave Belgian-Style White Ale and has been brewed by Keith Villa, who has a Ph.D. in brewing from the University of Brussels and formerly brewed for MillerCoors.

According to local reports, Villa said: “Alcohol is being consumed less and less by young people, and they’re looking for an alternative that tastes great, has fewer calories, and doesn’t give you a hangover.”

Villa revealed that he got the idea due to having children in their 20s who had no interest in alcohol and explained: “With this generation of young adults, no one wants to lose control and end up seeing their image on Facebook or Instagram.”

Villa reportedly left MillerCoors in 2018 to start his cannabis beer company Ceria in Arvada, Colorado.

The innovation involved micro-dosing nonalcoholic beer with five milligrams of THC per bottle and, according to Villa, Grainwave provides the familiar ritual of drinking and the taste of beer yet offers it in a way that is more socially acceptable than vape pens.

Grainwave’s flavour is being positioned as similar to a typical Belgian white, and yet because the THC is in liquid form, it is reportedly absorbed faster than a standard edible, which can otherwise take up to an hour to be felt. Villa revealed that consumers will start to feel the effects in about 15 minutes, similarly to how quickly alcohol is absorbed.

Federal agency The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) legally prohibits making beer that includes both alcohol and THC. But a nonalcoholic beer isn’t regulated by the TTB, plus, In Colorado, it is regulated by the state’s Marijuana Enforcement Division (MED).

Ceria beers are available at 50 Colorado dispensaries and a 10oz bottle retails for US$9. However, Villa also added that the plan is got it to soon become available in other states where recreational marijuana is legal. San Diego’s Two Roots Brewing Co director of product development Kevin Love revealed that Two Roots already has five styles of nonalcoholic THC beer available in California and Nevada. According to Love: “The whole goal is to get away from alcohol and to have a healthier alternative.”

Similarly, Napa-based Saka Wines has reported plans to offer rosé infused with both CBD and THC to California dispensaries from March. Plus, also in Napa, CannaVines has said that online orders for its CBD-infused red, white, and rosé wines will also begin soon.

Villa wants to see the stigma removed around cannabis use and has said he thinks beer is the way to bridge that gap. The THC and CBD beers that are available now must be bought in their home states, he explained to local reporters and highlighted that if people wanted to try one then they would need to go to Colorado, Oregon, Washington, California, or Nevada. But, Villa observed that the pace is picking up and insisted “by 2022, we think we’ll be federally legal”.

This year, Ceria will also launch an American light lager with 2.5 milligrams of THC per bottle, and an IPA with 10 milligrams per bottle, to offer a range of dosage options to consumers.

Villa added: “I want to see people taking Ceria beers to family functions, to get-togethers for the Super Bowl. That’s the day we’re really looking forward to. I think beer is going to make cannabis more and more acceptable, to where we see the stigma gone in the next five years.”