It’s no secret that the market on carb-free and low-to-no alcohol has been booming over the last few years. Everyone wants to corner the market on this sector, especially as a lot of people have moved over to more healthy options post-pandemic.

Toffelmire was in his late-twenties when he took on the job at Toronto’s craft brewery, Ace Hill. He was working on a venture and needed some feedback on a carb-free beer, developed in a 10-gallon lobster pot on his stovetop.

He hosted a focus group (mainly consisting of his friends) to see what was working and what wasn’t. In the first round, On that first batch, his friends complained of a strange spiciness.

Two and a half years later, Toffelmire, the amateur brewer and vice-president of operations at the Ace Beverage Group, thinks he’s figured it out. Last month the company launched Ace Hill Carb-Free in Ontario, one of the few beers on the market with zero carbohydrates, four percent alcohol and only 80 calories.

Earlier this year Anheuser-Busch launched its own carb-free product in the United States, called Bud Light Next, which took almost 10 years to develop. The product has 80 calories and zero carbs and sugars, compared with regular Bud Light’s 110 calories and 6.6 grams of carbs. But Ace Hill has the upper hand on Bug Light Next because it isn’t available in Canada. Bud Light spokesperson Tamar Nersesian said the Canadian office is currently monitoring how the product performs in the United States.

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Photo courtesy of Ace Beverage Group