I Washed My Hair With Beer, Here’s What Happened

July 26, 2017 / By Rachel Ritlop

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Thank you BRÖÖ for sponsoring this post. As always, all thoughts, opinions, and experiences are my own.

Apparently washing your hair with beer is a thing. Seriously, google “beer for hair” and over 123 million results will come up! When I first heard about BRÖÖ, I was skeptical. I don't drink and am super sensitive to the smell of alcohol. The thought of walking around with my head smelling like a brewery left me… well less than excited.

After some reading about the benefits of beer for your hair (even Catherine Zeta Jones does it to get her pretty locks), I decided to try BRÖÖ's craft beer for your hair! They are a US based company, using natural ingredients to offer beer based shampoo and conditioner. Even better, BRÖÖ is cruelty free and vegan. Looking through the ingredients (or lack thereof) I was highly intrigued. They don't use sulfates, parabens, phthalate, silicones, dyes, artificial fragrances and a bunch of other scary looking chemicals that I can't pronounce. Seriously, did you guys know all of this stuff was going onto your head, seeping into your scalp, so close to your brain?!?

How It Works

The key ingredients in beer, barley, hops, yeast and water, are what make your hair shiny, healthy, and strong. During the brewing process, natural chemical reactions occur between these ingredients, allowing the makers to skip all the previously mentioned harsh and harmful chemicals, #winning! Since this post isn't a science experiment… well it kind of is... you can read more about the roles of the ingredients here.

Initial Thoughts

The box of samples arrived on a hot South Florida summer day. When I unboxed them, I was taken by how cute the packaging is! I love the clean lines and bold contrasts of color. It felt gender neutral (which it is) and on trend. I guess I wouldn't expect anything different though considering the first ingredient in each bottle is craft beer.

I picked one up to smell test, the bottle was warm from traveling in the sweltering heat. When I cracked it open to get a whiff, I immediately recoiled. I sniffed each one and they all smelled like alcohol to me. I hoped it was just because of traveling in the heat and once they had a chance to cool down it would get better.

The Moment Of Truth

I only wash my hair once ever two weeks. I eagerly let the days roll by until it was finally time to try some of them. When I squeeze a dollop in my hand, I was immediately pleasantly surprised! The previous alcohol smell was totally gone. The texture of the shampoo looks almost like honey, and the conditioner is like a creamy whipped caramel butter. Now that each bottle had cooled off I could actually get an idea of how they smelled, and it was amazing!

BRÖÖ's Thickening (yellow):

This was probably my favorite smell with its hints of orange, grapefruit, and vanilla creme, it screams summer.

Does it thicken? YES! Both my husband and I noticed a difference with this stuff! However, we both have super thick hair and living in humid South Florida we are often trying to reduce the size of our hair, not get it to look more voluminous. So we probably wouldn't use this regularly.

How does it smell after a wash: Like faint citrus. Absolutely no beer smell. Honestly the beer smell went away from that initial heated smell test for all of these.

BRÖÖ's Moisturizing (blue):

This is probably the hardest smell to describe, it says “hops flowers” and I can definitely get a whiff of floral but really it just smells good. I kept asking my husband to describe the smell and he just kept saying, “I don't know but its good.”

Does it moisturize? YES! I think what's most noteworthy, with all the shampoos, but this one especially, is that you can actually feel your hair being moisturized. For instance, when I use a lot of shampoos, during the rinse, I can actually feel my hair get “squeaky” clean, dried out, and stripped of all the natural oils. With this, my hair felt soft and hydrated right away. I rinsed it twice as long as I normally would, just trying to get that “dry” feeling, but it really never came.

How does it smell after a wash? Neutral. My hair smelled clean, but not like anything in particular.

BRÖÖ's Invigorating (green):

This is probably my all around favorite! Made with peppermint, my husband said it smells like a “candy cane” and I have to agree.

Does it invigorate? YES! We typically use a tea tree based conditioner, so I was interested if the peppermint would have a similar “tingly” effect. Initially, when I stared to massage it into my head, I thought, “well by now my head would normally start tingling with my other conditioner,” and began to question whether or not this was going to really “invigorate” my scalp.

I always let my conditioner set for a few minutes when showering, and sure enough, a minute later the tingle started! Normally, my tea tree products will start tingling right away and then the tingle wears off, this is more of a delayed tingle, and the tingle is stronger and lasts much longer. Honestly, I think I prefer it and can't wait to cover my head in it and hit a sauna and steam room session with it in, I think it'll be like aromatherapy mixed with conditioning! #DoubleWin!

PRO TIP: If you ever go to saunas or steam rooms, douse your hair in conditioner and tie it up in a bun, it's like a hot conditioning treatment!

How does it smell after the wash? Minty! I really love all things mint, so I couldn't stop smelling my hair the next day.

Giving Back

Aside from my hair feeling great, and supporting a US based company, BRÖÖ actually gives back with their Shower the World Foundation. They support clean water and hygiene initiatives worldwide, so every time you buy BRÖÖ, someone else gets clean too.

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Would I keep washing my hair with beer?

YES! I would definitely keep using beer for my hair! I think my personal magic combo is the moisturizing shampoo and invigorating conditioner. But I love that they give a few options to meet everyone's unique hair needs. My husband and I both agreed, all of the shampoo's lather way better than traditional ones and you can actually feel the difference in BRÖÖ's clean ingredients versus other shampoos with their harsh chemicals which strip your hair.

After the first wash, my hair really did feel softer and looked shinier. I will say though, I read a bunch of reviews before trying it and found a few that said to rinse your hair longer than usual to make sure you get all the excess out. When using the products, I could tell why, they definitely feel richer than your everyday shampoo or conditioner. So I rinsed twice as long as I normally would (I usually like to leave a little conditioner in my hair) and my hair came out amazingggg! I had way less frizz than usual. The first time my husband did not rinse super well and his was puffier than he normally likes. So rinse thoroughly!

Plus any company that's using natural ingredients, based in the US, gives back, and lives up to their promises is good in my book! You can pick up all of the shampoos and conditioners at Walmart now!