The Drop Bear Beer Company – whose tagline is drop the alcohol not the flavor – is looking to develop Wales’ first alcohol-free brewery by raising funds through Crowdcube.

The Swansea-based company is looking to raise £500,000 – with £300,000 raised since the funding call went live on January 1.

Currently, Drop Bear Beer offers four beers – Tropical IPA, Yuzu Pale Ale, Bonfire Stout, and New World Lager. Drop Bear’s 100 percent natural beers feature vibrant flavour profiles with below 0.5% ABV, vegan, gluten-free, and low-calorie offerings.

“We are looking at sites along the M4 corridor, between Carmarthen and Cardiff, and plan to open in October 2021,” said Drop Bear’s sales and marketing director, Joelle Drummond. “It’s been a challenging year for everyone, but creating the Drop Bear Brewery was always part of our plans. The change to our business model due to Covid-19 has only reinforced our belief that this is the right move for Drop Bear,” continued Drummond.

“Our sales have grown by 2,000% this year and the alcohol-free sector has continued to grow. Drop Bear is well established as a major player in the alcohol-free industry and having our own craft brewery will help us to gain a bigger share of that market through increased margins and further adaptability. It will be the first alcohol-free brewery in Wales, and only the second in the UK.”

While relatively new to the predominantly male-dominated world of brewing, Joelle and partner Sarah McNena have aimed to ‘disrupt’ the traditional view of the non-alcoholic beer market. To that end, they have been successful and have received several prestigious beer awards including a Great British Entrepreneur Award and two Welsh Start Up Awards.

Plans for the brewery to be fully functional are by the end of 2021.