Meet the Mid-Strength Beer | The Wall Street Journal

Over the last year or so, I've been watching the emergence of the "mid-strength" category of beers that deliver big flavor while also minimizing alcohol. The beers, which include pilsners and IPAs alike, typically weigh in around 2 to 3 percent ABV, providing a compelling option for cutting back without cutting out booze.

“I really like drinking beer, but I don’t always want a beer that’s more than 6% ABV,” Fred Matt, president of Saranac parent company FX Matt Brewing in Utica, N.Y., told me for my latest article in The Wall Street Journal.

Unlike NA beers, producing these mid-strength doesn't require pricey equipment or high-tech techniques, letting more breweries participate, either for taproom specialties or packaged beers.