Can CBD be mixed with beer? Apparently, it can! And, spoiler alert? CBD beer is gooood.
In fact, brewing companies have spent years developing a beer that brings all of the benefits of CBD to the table while still maintaining that hops and barley taste we love. Some CBD beers even incorporate the flavors of hemp into their brew. With so many options, it’s only natural we decided to ring in the new year by making a list of the best CBD beer options for 2020.
More studies still need to be done on how CBD and beer interact, but there are many beer lovers that have joined the trend of getting their CBD in the form of the foamy libation they love!
The History of CBD Beer
The story of CBD beer in the United States starts with Dad & Dudes Breweria, which was the first brewery to get into the CBD beer market. Though they attracted a ton of attention from the press and built a large community around their product, Dad & Dudes closed in October of 2019. That said, a few breweries in the United States as well as in the United Kingdom, luckily, have begun to move into the market for high-end CBD beer.
While CBD beer is getting more and more popular, there are still a limited amount of United States-based beer companies that have managed to navigate the legal maze around cannabis and develop delicious CBD beers. For example, it’s only legal to sell CBD beer in the state it was produced in, and many states don’t even allow the sale of products that contain a combination of alcohol and cannabis–even those made with non-psychoactive cannabis extracts like CBD.
Looking Forward to the Future of CBD Beer
Unfortunately, many Americans will have to wait for the law to catch up to this new trend before they’re able to try out CBD beer, unless they’re in a state where it’s not prohibited.
Even though CBD beer is newer and less common than other products like CBD oil, or CBD gummies and candies, more and more of them are popping up. It wouldn’t be surprising if beer became one of the main ways to consume CBD once it’s legal to sell everywhere.
What are the Best CBD Beer Options for 2020?
Though it’s true that there aren’t many CBD beers on the market, the ones that are available come from high end breweries. So, if you’re a fan of good beer, read on to see our list of the three best CBD beer options for 2020.
1. Two Flowers IPA by Coalition Brewing
Two Flowers IPA is exactly what it sounds like. It’s made from two plants: hemp and hops. Rather than simply masking the taste of the CBD extract, this brewery embraces hemp’s flavors by adding hemp juice to augment the bitterness of the hops.
In addition to providing a quality product, Coalition Brewing’s website is well designed and it gives consumers a great idea of what to expect when they try CBD beer.
The brewery was named the Best Brewery of 2010 by The New School Beer and it’s also highly rated by beer enthusiasts around the web. This, in addition to the way they blend hemp and beer flavors, makes Coalition Brewing’s beer an easy choice to place in the top spot for the best CBD beer options of 2020 and on the CBD beer market in general.
Pros:
- All-natural ingredients
- Contains zero percent THC
- Light IPA that embraces the flavors of hemp
- Great website with lots of information
- CBD sourced from US-grown hemp plants
Cons:
- Only available in the Oregon area
2. High Flyer Session IPA by Green Times Brewing
Green Times Brewing’s High Flyer Session IPA is another CBD beer that is attracting a lot of attention from the press–and for good reason. It’s made from organic ingredients and is mixed with full-spectrum CBD. The high concentration of CBD combined with the delicious, refreshing citrus aftertaste makes High Flyer Session a great choice for any beer lover in the United Kingdom that is interested in trying one of the best CBD beer options for 2020.
Pros:
- High concentration of CBD
- Organic ingredients
- Light flavor with delicious citrus aftertaste
- Uses full-spectrum hemp extract rather than just CBD isolate
Cons:
- Only available in the United Kingdom
3. Easy Times IPA by Hop and Hemp Brewery
Last but certainly not least on our list of the best CBD beer options for 2020 is Hop and Hemp Brewery’s Easy Times IPA, which brings together a variety of light flavors–such as lemon and biscuit–into a non-alcoholic IPA. Despite the fact that it has a high CBD concentration of 8mg of CBD per bottle, there is little to no hemp taste with this CBD beer. If you’re in the United Kingdom and you’re looking for a flavorful but non-alcoholic CBD beer, this is the right pick for you.
Pros:
- Delicious fruity flavor
- Non alcoholic for people looking to try out CBD beer without getting tipsy
- Reasonably high CBD concentration
Cons:
- Only available in the United Kingdom
- Return policy only lasts 14 days and doesn’t apply to partially used products
What are the Effects of Mixing CBD and Alcohol Together?
Though there isn’t enough research to draw any conclusions about CBD beer, the research that does currently exist can give us some idea about how the two elements seem to interact.
In a study done with rats, CBD was shown to slow down the neurodegeneration caused by alcohol over prolonged periods of time in rats. Another study with rodents suggested that CBD, if ingested a few minutes before alcohol, can reduce oxidative damage in the liver.
It also bears mentioning that, on its own, CBD is generally considered very safe as it is a natural remedy with very minor potential issues or side effects.
CBD Beer: Conclusion
Though there is currently a lack of breweries in the CBD beer market, especially in the US, it’s a rising trend that is getting more and more popular as time goes on, so check back frequently to see if any new CBD beers overtake the ones on our list. If you’re a beer lover looking to try CBD beer in the states where it’s not available, keep your fingers crossed for the legal hurdles to get figured out so you’ll be able to find one available nationwide.
