For those of you who count calories or if you’re just looking for a lower alcohol content beer, here is some helpful information to help you understand how having a few beers may affect your waistline!
Calories in alcohol are a product of two things…the percentage of alcohol and amount of sugar in the product. On average, a light beer has about 100 calories per 12 ounce serving and regular beer is about 150 calories per 12 ounce serving. Microbrews, especially stouts and porters can average between 150-200 calories per 12 ounce serving.
Over the past couple years, a new line of beers have hit the shelves that are brewed to be low calorie and low alcohol. Many people have been looking for these styles because they are diet conscious or like the flavor of beer, but don’t want as much alcohol. I guess you could classify these beers as “extra light.”
There are three beers in particular that are on the market that have had some success and are worth a try:
BUDWEISER SELECT 55: Brewed by Anheuser Busch, this is the lightest beer available on the market. At only 55 calories per 12 ounces, it has almost half as many calories as the typical light beer and almost 4 times less calories than the typical microbrew. Alcohol content is only 2.4% which is also about half the alcohol of a typical beer. The flavor is very light with a very clean, beer taste.
MILLER GENUINE DRAFT 64: Brewed by Miller/Coors MGD 64 has only 64 calories per 12 ounces serving and 2.8% alcohol. A little more flavor when compared to Budweiser Select 55, but overall there is not a huge difference.
BECK’S PREMIER LIGHT: Beck’s Premier Light from Germany was actually the first extra light on the shelves a few years ago! Beck’s Premier Light has 64 calories and 2.3% alcohol per 12 ounces. Beck’s Premier Light has more flavor than the previous two beers mentioned.
For those of you who prefer wine or distilled spirits….
On average distilled spirits like whiskey, gin, and vodka that are 80 proof, will have about 100 calories per 1.5 ounces. Of course, if you buy flavored spirits or mix in any juice or soda, the calorie count will go up.
Red wine and white wine will vary depending on varietal and alcohol content, but on average you can estimate wine to be about 20 calories per ounce.
Below you will find a chart with most major breweries and styles for you to compare how your favorite brew stacks up against the “extra light” beers!
| BRAND | ALCOHOL | CALORIES/12 oz | CARBS |
| Anchor Porter | 5.60% | 209 | * |
| Anchor Steam | 4.90% | 153 | 16.0g |
| Bard’s Gold (Gluten-Free) | 4.60% | 155 | 14.2g |
| Big Sky I.P.A. | 6.20% | 195 | * |
| Big Sky Moose Drool | 5.20% | 177 | 15.6g |
| Big Sky Scape Goat | 4.70% | 163 | 13.9g |
| Big Sky Trout Slayer Ale | 4.70% | 163 | 13.9g |
| Blue Moon | 5.40% | 171 | 13.7g |
| Bud Ice | 5.50% | 123 | 8.9g |
| Bud Light | 4.20% | 110 | 6.6g |
| Bud Light Lime | 4.20% | 116 | 8.0g |
| Budweiser | 5.00% | 145 | 10.6g |
| Budweiser Select | 4.30% | 99 | 3.1g |
| Budweiser Select 55 | 2.40% | 55 | 1.9g |
| Busch Beer | 4.60% | 133 | 10.2g |
| Busch Light | 4.10% | 95 | 3.2g |
| Carta Blanca | 4.00% | 128 | |
| Coors Light | 4.15% | 104 | 5.3g |
| Coors | 4.91% | 149 | 12.2g |
| Corona Extra Beer | 4.60% | 148 | 13.99g |
| Dos Equis XX Imported Beer | 4.70% | 149 | |
| Dos Equis XX Special Lager | 4.90% | 156 | |
| Foster’s Lager | 5.10% | 156 | 11.0g |
| George Killian’s Irish Red | 4.98% | 162 | 14.8g |
| Grolsch | 5.00% | 145 | 9.5g |
| Guiness Draught – Bottle | * | 126 | 9.9g |
| Guinness Extra Stout | 4.27% | 153 | 17.4g |
| Hamm’s Beer | 4.70% | 144 | 12.1g |
| Hamm’s Special Light | 3.90% | 110 | 8.3g |
| Harp | 4.55% | 142 | |
| Heineken Lager Beer | 5.00% | 150 | 11.5g |
| Heineken Special Dark Beer | 5.10% | 170 | |
| Heineken Special Light | 3.80% | 99 | 6.8g |
| Icehouse | 5% | 132 | 8.7g |
| Keystone Light | 4.13% | 103 | 5.0g |
| Keystone Premium | 4.43% | 111 | 5.8g |
| Kirin Beer | 6.80% | 188 | |
| Kronenbourg Beer | 5.10% | 153 | |
| Leinenkugel Amber Light | 4.14% | 110 | 7.4g |
| Leinenkugel Honey Weiss | 4.92% | 149 | 12.0g |
| Leinenkugel Red | 4.94% | 166 | 16.2g |
| Leinenkugel Sunset Wheat | 4.90% | 165 | 16g |
| Michelob Amber Bock | 5.20% | 166 | 15.0g |
| Michelob Golden Draft | 4.70% | 152 | 14.1g |
| Michelob Golden Light | 4.10% | 110 | 7.0g |
| Michelob Honey Lager | 4.90% | 175 | 17.9g |
| Michelob Lager | 5.00% | 155 | 13.3g |
| Michelob Light | 4.30% | 113 | 6.7g |
| Michelob Ultra | 4.10% | 95 | 2.6g |
| Mickey’s Fine Malt Liquor | 5.60% | 157 | 11.2g |
| Miller Chill | 4.20% | 110 | 6.5g |
| Miller Genuine Draft | 4.70% | 143 | 13.1g |
| Miller Genuine Draft “64” | 2.80% | 64 | 2.4g |
| Miller Genuine Draft Light | 4.20% | 110 | 7g |
| Miller High Life | 4.70% | 143 | 13.1g |
| Miller High Life Light | 4.20% | 110 | 7g |
| Miller Lite | 4.20% | 96 | 3.2g |
| Milwaukee’s Best | 4.30% | 128 | 11.4g |
| Milwaukee’s Best Ice | 5.90% | 144 | 7.3g |
| Milwaukee’s Best Light | 4.20% | 98 | 3.5g |
| Milwaukee’s Best Premium | 4.30% | 128 | 11.4g |
| Molson Canadian Beer | 5.10% | 153 | |
| Molson Light | 2.41% | 82 | |
| Moosehead | 5.00% | 153 | |
| Natural Ice | 5.90% | 157 | 8.9g |
| Natural Light | 4.20% | 95 | 3.2g |
| New Belgium 1554 | 5.60% | 205 | 25g |
| New Belgium Abbey | 7.00% | 200 | 18g |
| New Belgium Fat Tire | 5.20% | 160 | 15g |
| New Belgium Mothership | 4.80% | 155 | 15g |
| New Belgium Trippel | 7.80% | 215 | 20g |
| O’Doul’s non-alcohol | 0.40% | 70 | 13.3g |
| Old Milwaukee Beer | 4.50% | 146 | 12.9g |
| Old Milwaukee Light | 3.80% | 114 | 8.3g |
| Olde English 800 | 5.90% | 160 | 10.5g |
| Olde English High Gravity | 8.00% | 220 | 14.6g |
| Pabst Blue Ribbon | 4.65% | 144 | 12.01g |
| Pilsener Urquell | 4.20% | 160 | 14.7g |
| Red Dog | 5.00% | 147 | 14.1g |
| Red Hook ESB | 5.77% | 179 | 14.15g |
| Red Hook IPA | 6.50% | 188 | 12.66g |
| Red Strlpe Lager Beer | 5.00% | 153 | |
| Rolling Rock Extra Pale | 4.60% | 142 | |
| Sam Adams Boston Ale | 4.94% | 160 | 19.9g |
| Sam Adams Boston Lager | 4.75% | 160 | 18.0g |
| Sam Adams Cherry Wheat | 5.20% | 166 | 16.86g |
| Sam Adams Cream Stout | 4.69% | 195 | 23.94g |
| Sam Adams IPA | 5.93% | 175 | |
| Sam Adams Light | 4.05% | 124 | 9.7g |
| Sam Adams Pale Ale | 5.25% | 145 | |
| Sierra Nevada Porter | 5.60% | 194 | 18.4g |
| Sierra Nevada Stout | 5.80% | 225 | 22.3g |
| Sierra Nevada Summerfest | 5.00% | 158 | 13.7g |
| Sierra Nevada Wheat | 4.40% | 153 | 13.1g |
| Spaten Munich Special Dark | 6.60% | 185 | |
| St. Pauli Girl Beer | 4.90% | 148 | 8.7g |
| St. Pauli Girl Dark Beer | 4.80% | 150 | |
| Steel Reserve Six | 6.00% | 160 | 11.0g |
| Stella Artois | 5.20% | 12.78g | |
| Stroh’s Beer | 4.60% | 149 | 12.0g |
| Stroh’s Light | 4.40% | 113 | 7g |
| Tecate | 4.40% | 146 | |
| Tsingtao Beer | 4.79% | 153 |
Do you have Tecate Light in a can? And in your Bismarck location?
Hi Jeff! Sorry, but we do not have any locations in Bismarck! But, if you make it to Grand Forks…we stock Tecate Light in 12 pack cans! Thanks
Do you carry Budweiser Select 55 at all your stores? Or which ones do in Fargo?
All of our stores carry Select 55 in 24 pack cans. Thank you