Alcohol-free beer is gaining popularity, even at Oktoberfest

MUNICH (AP) — The head brewmaster for Weihenstephan, the world's oldest brewery, has a secret: He really likes alcohol-free beer.

Even though he's quick to say he obviously enjoys real beer more, Tobias Zollo says he savors alcohol-free beer when he's working or eating lunch. It has the same taste but fewer calories than a soft drink, he said, thanks to the brewery's process of evaporating the alcohol.

“You can't drink beer every day — unfortunately,” he joked last week at the Bavarian state brewery in the German town of Freising, about 31 kilometers (19.26 miles) north of Munich.

Zollo isn't alone in his appreciation for the sober beverage. Alcohol-free beer has been gaining popularity in recent years as beer consumption shrinks.

At Weihenstephan, which was founded as a brewery in 1040 by Benedictine monks, non-alcoholic wheat beer and lager now make up 10% of the volume. The increase over the last few years, since they started making alcohol-free drinks in the 1990s, mirrors the statistics for the rest of Germany's beer industry.

“The people are unfortunately — I have to say that as a brewer — unfortunately drinking less beer," Zollo said Friday, the day before Oktoberfest officially started. "If there’s an alternative to have the crisp and fresh taste from a typical Weihenstephan beer, but just as a non-alcoholic version, we want to do that.”

Even at Oktoberfest — arguably the world's most famous ode to alcohol — alcohol-free beer is on the menu.

All but two of the 18 large tents at the festival offer the drink through the celebration's 16 days. The sober beverage will cost drinkers the same as an alcoholic beer — between 13.60 and 15.30 euros ($15.12 and $17.01) for a 1-liter mug (33 fluid ounces) — but save them from a hangover.

“For people who don't like to drink alcohol and want to enjoy the Oktoberfest as well, I think it's a good option," Mikael Caselitz, 24, of Munich said Saturday inside one of the tents. "Sometimes people feel like they have more fun with alcohol, which is not a good thing because you can also have fun without alcohol.”

He added: “If you want to come and drink alcohol-free beer, nobody will judge you.”

This year marked the first time an alcohol-free beer garden opened in Munich. “Die Null,” which means “the zero” in German, served non-alcoholic beer, mocktails and other alcohol-free drinks near the city's main train station this summer but was scheduled to close a few day before Oktoberfest opened.

Walter König, managing director of the Society of Hop Research north of Munich, said researchers have had to breed special hops varieties for alcohol-free beer. If brewers use the typical hops for alcohol-free beer, the distinct aroma gets lost when the alcohol is reduced during the brewing process.

But customers don't care about that, König said Friday as he prepared for Oktoberfest.

“They only want to know that what they are tasting is as good as traditional beers with alcohol,” he said.

Head Brewmaster Tobias Zollo checks the output at the Weihenstephan brewery in Freising, Germany, Friday, Sept. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

Head Brewmaster Tobias Zollo checks the output at the Weihenstephan brewery in Freising, Germany, Friday, Sept. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

Head Brewmaster Tobias Zollo checks the output at the Weihenstephan brewery in Freising, Germany, Friday, Sept. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

Head Brewmaster Tobias Zollo gestures during an interview with the Associated Press at the Weihenstephan brewery in Freising, Germany, Friday, Sept. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

Head Brewmaster Tobias Zollo fills beer at the Weihenstephan brewery in Freising, Germany, Friday, Sept. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

Head Brewmaster Tobias Zollo poses behind non alcoholic beer at the Weihenstephan brewery in Freising, Germany, Friday, Sept. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

HONG KONG (AP) — Asian stocks were mostly higher on Monday, supported by key rate decisions last week from the U.S. Federal Reserve, Japan, China and Britain.

U.S. futures and oil prices were higher.

Chinese stocks got a lift after the central bank lowered its 14-day reverse repurchase rate to 1.85% from 1.95% on Monday after opting to keep key lending rates unchanged last week. Markets had been anticipating a cut.

The Hang Seng in Hong Kong gained 0.8% to 18,403.37 and the Shanghai Composite index added 0.7% to 2,755.89.

Stock markets in Japan were closed on Monday for a public holiday.

Japan’s monetary policy remained in the spotlight after the Bank of Japan announced it would keep its benchmark rate unchanged at 0.25%.

That weakened the Japanese yen, which tumbled back from last week’s peak of around 140 to the U.S. dollar. The dollar was trading at 144.36 yen on Monday.

Elsewhere, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.5% to 8,170.50. The Reserve Bank of Australia begins a two-day policy meeting on Monday.

South Korea’s Kospi climbed 0.2% to 2,599.22.

On Friday, the S&P 500 slipped 0.2% from its record, closing at 5,702.55. The Nasdaq composite fell 0.4% 17,948.32. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, meanwhile, added 0.1% to close at another record high, at 42,063.36.

Last week the Fed cut its main interest rate for the first time in more than four years, with more likely to come, ending a long run where it kept that rate at a two-decade high in hopes of slowing the U.S. economy enough to stamp out high inflation. Inflation has subsided from its peak two summers ago and Chair Jerome Powell said the Fed can focus more on keeping the job market solid and the economy out of a recession.

The Fed is still under pressure because hiring has begun to slow under the weight of higher interest rates. Some critics say the central bank waited too long to cut rates and may have damaged the economy.

Critics also say the U.S. stock market may be running too hot on the belief the Federal Reserve will pull off what seemed nearly impossible earlier: getting inflation down to 2% without creating a recession.

Last week, also, the Bank of England kept its main interest rate on hold at 5% in the wake of the Fed's move.

This week will bring preliminary reports on U.S. business activity, the final revision for how quickly the economy grew during the spring and an update on spending by U.S. consumers.

In other dealings early Monday, U.S. benchmark crude oil rose 59 cents to $71.59 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, added 52 cents to $75.01 per barrel.

The euro edged higher to $1.1164 from $1.1162.

A bus passes the Wall St. subway station on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan)

FILE - People walk in front of Tokyo Stock Exchange building in Tokyo, on May 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, File)