Craft Beer While "Dieting"

If you’re like me, you love beer. And if you’re like me, possibly the worst part about cutting calories is not being able to have craft beer without going significantly over your calorie goal.

But actually, that’s not quite the case. In my quest for finding craft beer that fits easily into my day, I have made up the following list of beer that is under 200 calories per 12 oz. Some of you with higher daily goals may be able to have beer slightly higher in calories, but for those of you can't and also for those who would like to have more than one or two delightful craft beers after work, under 200 calories is pretty amazing. I’ve broken it up into categories by type of beer so you can drink your favorite type to your heart’s content. In the interest of brevity, I’ve only included IPA, stout, porter, lager, and ale varieties, with honorable mentions to some decent commercial beers.

*** Please note that some of these may be local to me and not available in your area. If that’s the case, I recommend using RateBeer.com to find the calorie content on any craft beers you may be considering. This list is, of course, not all inclusive, so if I missed one of your lower calorie favorites, feel free to add it in reply. I also realize that a couple of these may not technically be craft beer, but they’re still pretty decent and I like them so they made it to the list.

***** Please also note that if you suggest MGD 64, Coors Light, Corona Light, or especially Natty Light I will report your post.

IPA

Lagunitas IPA – 186 cal, 6.2% ABV
Full Sail IPA – 180 cal, 6% ABV
Speakeasy Big Daddy IPA - 195 cal, 6.5% ABV
Nectar Ales Nectar IPA - 201 cal, 6.7% ABV
Bridgeport IPA – 165 cal, 5.5% ABV
Deschutes ChainBreaker White IPA – 168 cal, 5.6% ABV
Big Sky IPA – 186 cal, 6.2% ABV
Alaskan IPA – 186 cal, 6.2% ABV

Stout

Deschutes Obsidian Stout - 178 cal, 6.4% ABV
Alaskan Stout – 171 cal, 5.7% ABV
Sierra Nevada Stout – 175 cal, 5.8% ABV
Mad River Steelhead Extra Stout – 195 cal, 6.5% ABV
Shipyard Blue Fin Stout – 141 cal, 4.7% ABV
Coronado Blue Bridge Coffee Stout – 162 cal, 5.4% ABV
Rogue Chocolate Stout – 189 cal, 6.3% ABV
Anderson Valley Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout – 171 cal, 5.7% ABV
Bison Organic Chocolate Stout – 183 cal, 6.1% ABV

Porter

Deschutes Black Butte Porter – 156 cal, 5.2% ABV
Anchor Porter – 168 cal, 5.6% ABV
Sierra Nevada Porter – 168 cal, 5.6% ABV
Butte Creek Organic Porter – 177 cal, 5.9% ABV
Eel River Porter – 174 cal, 5.8% ABV

Lager

Full Sail Session Premium Lager – 153 cal, 5.1% ABV
Full Sail Session Black Lager – 162 cal, 5.4% ABV
LandShark Lager – 141 cal, 4.7% ABV
Anchor California Lager – 147 cal, 4.9% ABV
Kona Longboard Lager – 138 cal, 4.6% ABV
New Belgium Shift Pale Lager – 150 cal, 5% ABV
Omission Gluten Free Lager – 138 cal, 4.6% ABV
Third Shift Amber Lager – 159 cal, 5.3% ABV

Ale

Firestone Double Barrel Ale – 150 cal, 5% ABV
Lagunitas Censored – 202 cal, 6.75% ABV
HeBrew Genesis Dry Hopped Session Ale – 168 cal, 5.6% ABV
Big Sky Montana Trout Slayer Ale – 150 cal, 5% ABV
Speakeasy Prohibiton Ale – 183 cal, 6.1% ABV

Decent Commercial Beers

Sam Adams Boston Lager – 141 cal, 4.8% ABV
Blue Moon Belgian White Ale – 162 cal, 5.4% ABV
Shock Top Belgian White – 156 cal, 5.2% ABV
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale – 150 cal, 5% ABV
Guinness Draught - 123 cal, 4.1% ABV