Behind the Brew
We brew real craft beer — mash, boil, hops, full fermentation — and only then remove the alcohol. No shortcuts, no fake beer. Here is the whole process.
Six Steps, Zero Shortcuts
Milling & Mashing
Indian and imported barley malt is milled, then steeped in hot purified water. Enzymes convert grain starch into fermentable sugars, producing a sweet liquid called wort. The malt bill differs per beer — pale malt for the Lager, oats and wheat for the IPA, wheat for the Belgian Wit, roasted barley and chocolate malt for the Stout.
The Boil & Hopping
The wort is boiled and hops go in. Early additions build gentle bitterness; late additions layer in aroma. We import all our hops — noble European varieties for the Lager, Citra and Mosaic from the US for the IPA, English Fuggle for the Stout. The Belgian Wit gets orange peel and coriander in the whirlpool.
Fermentation
Our proprietary ale yeast ferments the beer completely, exactly like a full-strength craft beer. This is the step most NA beers skip — and the reason they taste like sweet malt water. Fermentation is where beer develops its esters, depth, and character.
Vacuum Distillation
The finished beer enters a vacuum still. At reduced pressure, alcohol evaporates at around 35-40°C instead of 78°C — gentle enough that hop aromatics and fermentation flavors stay in the beer while the alcohol leaves. We run it until the beer tests below 0.5% ABV.
Re-Carbonation & Dry Hopping
Dealcoholization flattens the beer, so we re-carbonate it to style. SOMA IPA gets a second dry hop at this stage, restoring the fresh hop aroma at the last possible moment before packaging.
Packaging & Lab Testing
The beer is filled into 500ml aluminium cans. Every single batch is tested for ABV verification, microbiological safety, and taste consistency against our reference batch before it ships. Lab reports available on request.
Why Brew Full-Strength First?
There are two ways to make beer without alcohol. The cheap way is to stop fermentation early — or skip it almost entirely — so alcohol never forms. The result tastes like sweet, wet cereal, because fermentation is where beer becomes beer.
The hard way is to brew the beer completely and remove the alcohol afterwards. It needs specialized equipment and it costs more per batch. It is also the only way to get real craft beer character at <0.5% ABV. That is the way we chose.
Vacuum distillation is the gentlest removal method available: lower the pressure, and alcohol boils off at roughly body temperature instead of 78°C. The flavor compounds barely notice the trip.
Quality Control
Every batch tested for ABV, microbiological safety, taste consistency.
ABV verification confirms every batch is below 0.5%. Microbiological testing confirms it is safe — important for NA beer, which lacks alcohol's natural preservative effect. A trained taste panel compares each batch against our reference to catch drift before you ever taste it.
The brewery operates under FSSAI certification. Lab reports for any batch are available on request — email getsoma.store@gmail.com.
The Ingredients
Four ingredients, the same ones in the German purity law of 1516. The craft is in what we do with them.
Water
Purified Bangalore municipal water
Multi-stage purified before it touches the mash. Water chemistry is adjusted per style — softer for the IPA, harder for the Stout.
Malt
Indian + imported barley malt
The soul of the beer: color, body, and sweetness all start here. We blend Indian barley with imported specialty malts.
Hops
Imported (US/EU varieties)
Noble hops for the Lager, Citra and Mosaic for the IPA, Fuggle for the Stout. Flown in cold and used fresh.
Yeast
Proprietary ale yeast strain
Our house strain, banked and re-propagated for every batch. It is the one ingredient nobody can copy.
Brewery tours coming soon
We are opening the Bangalore brewery for tastings and tours later this year. Want in early? Join the waitlist and pick “tour” when we ask what you are here for.
Join the WaitlistTaste the process
All that work fits in a 500ml can. ₹199 (MRP ₹249), delivered in Bangalore.
Order SOMA