Aussie duo Peking Duk launch non-alcoholic lager to combat music’s booze culture

ARIA-winning duo Peking Duk have launched a non-alcoholic lager in a bid to combat the music industry’s booze culture – and it features a type of edible mushroom

Australian duo Peking Duk are leading the charge to change the drinking culture surrounding the music industry.

A year after they began championing non-alcoholic beverages on social media, the ARIA Award-winning duo and music festival favourites have collaborated with Gold Coast company Sobah to release their own non-alcoholic lager, made with a type of edible mushroom.

“I remember there was one night where I might have drank like a case of them, it was outrageous. Adzy (Adam Hyde) put it up online and I think from there it solidified that, yes we are publicly into this,” Peking Duk’s Reuben Styles said.

Peking Duk’s Adam Hyde and Reuben Styles have launched a non-alcoholic lager in partnership with Queensland's Sobah Beverages.

“We’re fortunate enough to not have any push back. But in this climate and in this time it’d be weird if someone does, that’s on them. That’s ridiculous. Yeah Aussie culture has been very heavily a drinking cultured country but you are still welcome to do as you please.”

Hyde said dance and electronic music as well as music festivals was always attached to a heavy drinking culture, which they hoped to change.

“It’s a bad thing for sure – any time that something is thrown upon someone without their consent is a f****d up thing, full stop,” he said.

“A lot of the time we’ll be labelled as, ‘oh yeah you’re those party guys, I got you a round of shots and there’s ten beers right there for you’.

“It’s like thank you that’s a really nice gesture, I really do appreciate that, but I haven’t told you I want to get completely out of my mind so please don’t throw that onto us right now.

He continued: “It goes hand-in-hand with the culture of music festivals and night clubs and partying. I think to shift that narrative towards, ‘hey we can still have fun and dance and be in these settings but we don’t have to get drunk’, I think that’s a great thing and to see younger generations getting behind that already and seeing a wide array of non-alcoholic beverages across the world really starting to boom is a beautiful thing.”

Peking Duk with Dr Clinton Schultz of Burleigh’s Sobah Beverages.

Dr Clinton Schultz, founder of Sobah Beverages, a First Nations owned and led business on the Gold Coast, subsequently reached out to the duo with an offer to collaborate on their own product.

After months of collaborating they have now released Peking Duk’s Fake Magic Lager, a limited-edition brew which is named after the duo’s song and enriched with lion’s mane mushroom, at their request.

All proceeds will go back to Sobah to support its work promoting First Nations’ culture, arts, language, and history.

“We’ve loved collab-ing with Peking Duk on this awesome project that will help us do more good and give back to grassroots organisations,” Dr Schultz said.

“Every single beer we sell, helps us on our mission to champion Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture and reduce the stigma around socialising sober.”

The beer is available at ING Good Finds.

“We hope people enjoy the beer as much as we enjoy it and it spreads the awareness that it’s also cool to not drink. The more people doing that the better,” Hyde said.

“If people enjoy it then we’re happy chappies.”