Non-alcoholic beers are finally good (and they're not just for Dry January)

For years, non-alcoholic beer required a sacrifice: to lose the buzz, you also had to lose the flavor. But that has changed in recent years, thanks to new technology that lets brewers make beer that tastes great, without the alcohol.

"The non-alcoholic beers of the past tasted like punishment," as beer expert John Holl put it.

That's changed in recent years. For beer fans who want the deep flavors of IPAs and porters without the baggage of alcohol, the new brews are hitting the spot.

The shift is due to a culmination of factors, including innovations in vacuum evaporation, filtration and other techniques that let brewers extract alcohol from beer while leaving its flavor largely intact.

"They've really been able to make it taste like regularknow: she's a beer chemist who owns the , which analyzes beer and other fermented drinks.