Tom Holland Talked With Us About His New Nonalcoholic Beer and the Joyful Mission Behind It

Tom Holland is a man of tremendous enthusiasm. This isn't news to anyone who's seen the 28-year-old Spider-Man star fully commit to a fishnet-stockings-clad dance routine to Rhianna's "Umbrella," take a swing in a PGA Celebrity Pro-Am, or tread the boards of a West End theater. Growing up in the U.K., a place he correctly notes as having a "huge drinking culture," it seemed only natural that Holland would embrace drinking pints with similar gusto. That was fine, he thought — until a post-holiday pause for Dry January in 2022 revealed an uncomfortable truth.

"I don't think I realized how big a problem I had when it comes to alcohol until I gave it up," Holland told Food & Wine's Tinfoil Swans podcast in an episode that will air on October 22. Still, when February came, he remained sober and with typical fervor, pushed on through some challenging months. 

It was a struggle at first, he admitted. One that necessitated relying on the very people with whom he'd been imbibing. "It wasn't easy. I'm so lucky that my friends, who are all big drinkers, were massively supportive of me getting sober," he said. "Which might be an indication as to how much of a problem I had."

But the months stacked and Holland found himself stepping up to a milestone. "When I got through to the other side and achieved that first year marker and I felt rid of the hooks that alcohol had in me, I felt so fantastic," he said. 

Being "blessed with this life of celebrity" — and feeling some justified pride in his lifestyle change — he felt an obligation to pay the support forward. First, that meant going public with his sobriety story in the hope that someone who "might need a nudge or a vote of confidence" could find hope and solidarity. Second, he turned that laser focus toward launching Bero, a nonalcoholic beer brand he hopes will help all kinds of drinkers feel enthusiastically and deliciously included.

In the U.K., "Drinking is like breaking bread," Holland said. "It's not about quenching thirst, 'cause quenching thirst is about survival. But drinking is living." 

In the early days of his sobriety, he felt cut off from that life by necessity — at least temporarily. "I definitely had to take myself out of situations that I felt would put me in a compromised place," he explained. "One of the biggest inspirations for Bero was to help people like myself reintegrate into that social environment where they might feel like they're not necessarily welcome."

Like many celebrities, Holland had been approached by spirits brands over the years, but his drink of choice was always beer, and as talented an actor as he is, he didn't care to fake the enthusiasm. "There's this new age of craft ales and that sort of stuff — which is fantastic — but I was really into my lagers and I didn't wanna compete with a Peroni or a Heineken or a Stella. I didn't feel like I needed to," he said. 

Sobriety changed that. "I really felt like this was a market that I could exist in," Holland said. "I felt really passionate about being sober, promoting a healthier lifestyle, making a difference and helping people. My first year of sobriety would have been much easier had I had a product like Bero."

To no one's surprise, Holland went all-in on the project, bringing the idea to people who could help bring his vision to life, and appreciate the fact that he's geeking out on every detail. The can, for instance, is a distinctive, stylish gold rather than the blue that he'd noticed demarcating the majority of nonalcoholic beers in the marketplace. ("I felt like that was slightly unfair to label non-drinkers as like the blue community. Sometimes you just wanna blend in.") Uniquely shaped bottles will hit the market in a few months once Bero's structural engineer advisor finds a shipping-safe form that fits Holland's exacting standards. And the beer itself had to match the ethos of the whole mission: a deliberate and joyful choice and never a compromise.

"It is taking up 99% of my time, which I'm absolutely loving," Holland said. 

Bero is launching with three initial offerings — a crisp Noon Wheat with a citrus-like finish, a bold lager-style Kingston Golden Pils, and a hoppy Edge Hill Hazy IPA — via the brand's website berobrewing.com, and will be available on store shelves and in bars and restaurants in time for Dry January. But there's at least one more starring role Holland would like Bero to play.

"I hope that one day it's on tap in every pub across the country, and then hopefully the world," he said. "Sharing a draft pint is a really special thing. I remember sharing my first draft pint with my dad. That would be a really special thing to be able to do with Bero."