Buckler

Buckler has been around long enough to have its own mythology. Heineken launched it in 1988, at a time when the alcohol-free beer category barely existed in any meaningful sense. Most mainstream brewers were not interested. Heineken backed it anyway, and Buckler became one of the first widely recognised non-alcoholic lagers in international markets, sold across dozens of countries.

It had an eventful early life. A Dutch comedian mocked it mercilessly in 1989, causing enough reputational damage in the Netherlands that the brand eventually disappeared from Heineken's home market. In the United States, it picked up an unusual endorsement when Joe Biden chose it at the famous 'Beer Summit' in 2009 — a moment that briefly made Buckler more famous than it had been in years.

The beer itself is a straightforward pale lager, brewed at Heineken's Zoeterwoude facility in the Netherlands. Light malt character, gentle hop bitterness, clean finish. The 0.0 version brings the ABV to effectively zero, as opposed to the original's 0.5%. It is not complex and makes no claim to be. It is the lager equivalent of a reliable car: gets you where you need to go, nothing flashy about the journey.

In the UK market, Heineken 0.0 has become the default Heineken AF option and gets the promotional weight behind it, which has left Buckler in a quieter corner of the portfolio. It remains available through specialist alcohol-free retailers rather than taking up shelf space in the major supermarkets.

If you grew up in the 1990s or 2000s, there is a decent chance Buckler was the first alcohol-free beer you ever encountered at a family gathering. It still tastes much as it did then.

The Collection

0.0 Lager