Personal Product Reviews
Go Brewing Non-Alcoholic Beer Subscription Review: The Pros and Cons
A few months ago, while visiting my wife’s family in Ohio, I came across Go Brewing in the non-alcoholic beer section of a local grocery store. Upon trying their Not Just Another Story Double IPA (Now known as simply “The Story Double IPA”), I was blown away. When I got home, I looked to see if Go was available anywhere near me, only to find that it was sadly not. Luckily for me though, the company does have an online store — and, after a couple of regular orders, I decided to try their Beer Club subscription as well.
So, what does Go Brewing’s Beer Club subscription entail, what are the options, and what are the pros and cons of the service? Let’s dive into an overview as well as my personal experience so far.
Go Brewing NA Beer Club Subscription: What You Need to Know
What is Go Brewing?
Before I get to the Beer Club membership, I should probably share more about Go Brewing itself. From what I’ve learned as an observer, they are an Illinois-based brewery that only makes non-alcoholic brews. Apparently, the company has also garnered a hefty investment — which may also explain their Instagram ad budget as I see them all over the place there.
In addition to offering the aforementioned double IPA I’ve come to love, Go also features a variety of styles including a pilsner, wheat beer, and various IPA styles. Plus, they have two gluten-free beers — one of which also features adaptogens in it. Personally, I’ve tried the Freedom Cali Pale (now Freedom West Coast Pale) gluten-free beer… but haven’t been brave enough to try the Freedom Amber, which has the adaptogens.
Now is also a good time to note that Go is in the process of redesigning some of its beer cans and names ( I imagine this also has something to do with the influx of capital). Therefore, some of the art in my photos won’t quite match what you will now see on the site. That said, I think the new looks are pretty great.
Beer Club options
At this time, Go Brewing offers three tiers for their subscription: Enthusiast, Believer, and VIP. While each higher tier includes more perks, the basic difference is the number of six-packs each order includes.
Here’s a look at each tier, how many beers it includes, and the pricing:
| Membership Level | Monthly Price | 6-Packs Included | Shipping? |
| Enthusiast | $26.70 | 2 | Free shipping |
| Believer | $36.99 | 3 | Free expedited shipping |
| VIP | $45.50 | 4 | Free 2-Day shipping |
As you can see, the savings increase with each tier, with Go noting that a subscription saves members 30% to 38% off the regular price. For comparison, at the VIP level, the price per six-pack is $11.38 compared to the retail price of $13.99. Meanwhile, the Enthusiast tier is $13.35 per six-pack — although the free shipping adds another $10 in savings (the number of six-packs featured in the Believer and VIP plans would already put customers over the $40 free shipping threshold).
Of course, there are other perks to consider as well. At all tiers, customers get a 10% discount on Go Brewing merchandise. Members also get first access to new brews. However, at the VIP tier, subscribers get access to the Beer Vault. What’s that, you ask? According to the site,”The Vault is where we keep your favorite beers safe and sound. We make sure to never run out of staples and always have new brews ready just for you.”
In case it wasn’t clear at this point, Go’s Beer Club is a monthly subscription. So, after signing up, your membership will automatically renew each month, you’ll be charged, and your beer selections will ship. However, something important to note is that, at all tiers, Go Brewing promises that customers can cancel or postpone an order at any time.
What I choose
To get started, I decided to go all in and do the VIP membership. Thanks to the shipping being included, my total came to $45.50. Actually, the first time I ordered, the default “shipping protection” was still on, so I paid $46.48. But, you can toggle this off if you want.
For my first order, I of course chose my beloved The Story Double IPA as well as the Suspended in Sunbeam Pils, Prophets Hazy IPA, and the Jab Jab Grapefruit IPA. Then, for my most recent order, I swapped the Jab Jab for Burn it Down IPA, partially because the former was no longer available.
My experience with Go Brewing Beer Club so far
As you’ll recall, the VIP tier includes 2-day shipping. Sure enough, my first order arrived very quickly. Unfortunately, when I pulled the order in from my porch, I realized that the box was a bit damp. I thought that this was possibly due to the moisture present on my porch and in the air that day, but I soon found the real culprit: a busted can of Jab Jab.
While this was a bit of a bummer, the rest of the beers were fine. In fact, I initially wasn’t going to bother saying anything to Go (although I naturally hoped for better the next time around). But, a few days after my order arrived, I got an email from Go asking me to follow up on my order and let them know about any issues. So, I took the opportunity to note the busted can but said I was looking forward to drinking the other 23 cans. Later that same day, someone from Go responded to me apologizing and provided me with a $5 gift card for use on a future order.
The good news is that my subsequent order was perfect. Following my inspection, I found no damaged cans or other issues. Hopefully that’s the case going forward as well.
While I’m sharing the minor downsides, I do also want to note some of the verbiage on the site that sounds more exciting than it is. When I’m logged into my Beer Club account, there’s a banner that reads, “We’re sending you something extra special with your next order. Thank you for being a Beer Club member.” Seeing that after placing my first order, I was a little disappointed to only see a sticker — but then thought maybe they were referring to my next order as opposed to the one I’d just placed. Alas, when that one arrived, there was a bigger sticker… but a sticker nonetheless.
Having said that, as I look at my pending third monthly order, I see that there’s a fun-looking Coozie Jacket in my cart. This leads me to believe that the stickers were the previous surprises but that more interesting gifts will arrive from time to time. That’s completely understandable as I don’t expect them to give me a large gift off the bat or anywhere near every time — but I feel like the banner overpromises a bit (at least for newbies like me who don’t know what to expect).
As for the good stuff, well, there’s the beer! I’m a big fan of each of the brews that I’ve had. Plus, as someone who likes to mix it up, I love that I can have several different styles and flavors on hand so I don’t burn out on one favorite. On that note, while I’d still put The Story at the top of my list, Burn it Down and Suspended in Sunbeam are also great. In fact, I have yet to have a beer from them I don’t like (although, as mentioned, I haven’t tried that Freedom Amber).
True to their word, I’ve also found that rescheduling, postponing, or skipping shipments is easy on Go. That’s great news since I’m not always ready for a refill or might be traveling when another order is due. Similarly, I love how easy it is to swap out selections so that I can try new things while also ensuring that my top staples stay in place.
Go Brewing Beer Club vs. Athletic Brewing
Previously, I’ve also reviewed Athletic’s subscription plan. Since writing that review, two things have happened: 1) they’ve made some changes to the program and 2) due to some weird glitch, I essentially deactivated my membership and haven’t made an effort to restart it. Nevertheless, I think it’s worth looking at the similarities and differences between the programs.
First, if looking at both sites, you might be shocked to see that Athletic’s subscriptions only offer discounts of 5%, 10%, or 15% compared to Go’s 30%, 35%, and 38%. However, it’s important to point out that Athtletic’s stated discounts refer to the retail price of the beers themselves whereas Go takes the shipping into account. Athletic’s memberships also include free shipping, so the math isn’t as dramatic as it may seem.
Another difference between the two programs is that Athletic’s lowest tier starts at three six-packs whereas Go’s starts with just two. But perhaps the biggest differentiator is that Athletic now has an option to pay $29 a year in order to claim Member Pricing — which then still requires you to buy at least four six-packs. To be honest, I’m confused too.
Based on that alone, I’m inclined to say that I’m enjoying Go Brewing’s Beer Club more than whatever Athletic’s membership is these days. That said, there are some downsides to Go — namely in terms of selection. Currently, Go does have nearly a dozen beers (and a seltzer) on its site, which isn’t far behind what Athletic shows on its landing page. However, some of Go’s offerings are currently sold out and, in the time that I’ve been observing them, I’ve only seen three seasonal offerings pop up. Compare that to Athletic, which introduces or re-releases three to four limited-run beers on a monthly basis. Basically, it feels as though there’s always something new to try with Athletic, while that’s not currently the case with Go.
On the bright side, Go’s core beers are great. Still, as the company grows, I do hope that they’ll be able to up their output of new and limited edition brews. In the meantime, though, there’s enough variety that I don’t think I’ll be getting bored.
Overall, I’ve become a huge fan of Go Brewing and am glad to now be a VIP Beer Club member. At $45.50 a month for four six-packs, I’m spending less than I would if Go were stocked at my local grocery or liquor store (which, again, it’s currently not). Meanwhile, I love how easy it is to move, cancel, change, or do whatever to my order so that it fits my needs both in terms of timing and selection. So while I do look forward to the company hopefully introducing some new beers to up the variety, the stellar The Story Double IPA and other Go staples are definitely worth having on hand.
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