What Happened To Dad Strength Brewing After Shark Tank?

Alcohol-free beer has existed for a while now — O'Doul's, one of the best-known brands, was brought to market in 1990. But what about "low alcohol" beer? This is the unique category that Dad Strength Beer finds itself in. The premise of the company is that dads like to sip on a few beers and enjoy themselves without getting drunk. The founders brought their idea to the stage of "Shark Tank" on the first episode of season 17 to try to get an investment and boost their business.

Dad Strength Beer was developed, naturally, by two dads, Ryan Kutscher and Craig Carey, who are based in Washington, D.C. Their idea began when they were mixing non-alcoholic beer and regular beer to reduce the alcohol content of what they were drinking but keep the flavor. If you've ever had a non-alcoholic beer before, you know that some brands can have somewhat of an off flavor. Enter Dad Strength Beer: A line of IPAs with a 2.9% ABV IPA, which is actually probably closer to the milder, original IPAs. Today double or triple IPAs can have a high ABV of 5%-9%.

Kutscher and Carey came on stage with a product that has strong branding and a compelling narrative. As they explained, when they became dads and found themselves in their late thirties and forties, they couldn't drink beer like they used to. Although they loved the flavor of craft beer and IPAs, the high alcohol content would give them hangovers.

Dad Strength Beer addresses a multitude of problems. It allows one to drink multiple beers without getting drunk or feeling hungover the next day. This means for those who aren't completely sober, they can continue drinking a few beers in social settings and at happy hours without worrying as much about the next day. The founders partnered with an already existing brewery, Atlas Brewery, to guarantee that the low ABV beer still had a great flavor. Their ask to the Sharks was $250,000 for 5% of the company, and the shared that they had sold $200,000 worth of beer in 10½ months. 

The Sharks sampled the IPAs and all agreed that they enjoyed the flavor. Lori Greiner, in particular, enjoyed the beer, and Robert Herjavec, a dad, appreciated the concept. Herjavec and another Shark, Rashaun Williams, jumped and made a deal, offering an investment of $250,000 for 10% of the company. Greiner also wanted in, and after negotiating with a counteroffer, the final deal that the founders accepted was $300,000 for 12% of the company, divided between three Sharks.

The Shark Tank episode that featured Dad Strength Brewing aired recently in September 2025, so there has not been a ton of news from the company in the past four months at the time of writing. The company itself is quite young, first bringing its product to market in Washington D.C. in 2024. The beer lineup is the same that debuted on Shark Tank, a standard IPA, a hazy IPA, and a juicy IPA.

Outside of Washington D.C., the beer is available only in five states on the East Coast, including Tennessee, Virginia, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. One Midwest state, Michigan, also carries the low-strength beer. In the grocery and liquor stores that stock Dad's Strength, you might find the founders offering samples of the beer to customers; they post about the challenges of getting the public to warm up to their idea on the company's Instagram.

Despite the company's youth, Men's Health named the Dad Strength IPA the best light IPA of the year, finding it impressive that it was a hoppy beer under 4%. Dad Strength Beer has also been featured on CBS and The Beer Connoisseur, as well as Axios, which described drinking the low ABV beer as being "like micro-dosing alcohol."

The success of Dad Strength Beer seems to ride on whether or not customers see the value of a mid-range beer — after all, the company calls itself the "first mid-range" beer in the country. This beer doesn't work for those who are intentionally sober, so the beer isn't directly competing with alcohol-free liquors, wines, and beer. Therefore, the target market is those who want to drink, but not necessarily get drunk and hungover.

Reddit users discussing Dad Strength Beer on the r/SharkTank thread argue that it's not a good business idea, considering that the craft brewing industry is already struggling and has seen a number of closures in the past few years. That said, it could also be perfect timing, as more and more consumers jump on the sober-curious train or simply opt to drink less for health reasons. The alcohol-free company Ghia, which makes an herbal apértif, found success on Shark Tank and with expansion after the show — so hopefully Dad Strength follows this pattern. 

They have a "Dadbassador Program" to bring on ambassadors who will conduct tastings throughout sales outlets and expand brand awareness. The company's website encourages customers to request where the beer should be sold next — so it appears the company is actively looking to expand.