Saturday Night Live delivered one of its sharpest commercial parodies in recent memory with a sketch that aired on October 12, 2025, cleverly satirizing the non-alcoholic beverage trend that has swept the market in recent years[1].
The sketch centers on “Non-Non-Alcoholic Beer,” a fictional product that exploits a grammatical loophole to create what the advertisement claims is “the first non-alcoholic beverage that’s over 96% alcohol”[1]. The premise hinges on a double negative—the hyphen between “Non” and “Non-Alcoholic” becomes what the commercial’s fictional spokesman calls “the skeleton key” that makes the entire deception possible[1].
The Premise and Execution
The commercial opens with a relatable scenario: a middle-aged man acknowledging he needed to cut back on drinking and switched to non-alcoholic beer for the sake of his health and family[1]. The twist arrives when he realizes he wasn’t getting drunk, “which is kind of the point, no?"[1] This leads to his discovery of the absurdly high-alcohol “Non-Non-Alcoholic Beer.”
The sketch brilliantly escalates through increasingly ridiculous scenarios. When asked what he’s drinking, the character responds it’s called a “Non,” prompting his friend to comment that his breath “smells like gasoline”[1]. The commercial even suggests the product allows consumers to “finally drink and drive,” culminating in a scene where a police officer attempts a breathalyzer test with disastrous results[1].
Sharp Social Commentary
Beyond the obvious humor, the sketch offers pointed commentary on how marketing language can obscure truth and how consumers navigate increasingly complex beverage categories. The non-alcoholic beer market has experienced significant growth as health-conscious consumers seek alternatives to traditional alcoholic beverages, making this parody particularly timely.
The “double negative” defense employed by the fictional company’s lawyers speaks to broader concerns about deceptive marketing practices and corporate loopholes. As one character explains, “it’s not technically a lie”[1]—a sardonic take on how companies exploit linguistic technicalities to mislead consumers.
The sketch demonstrates SNL’s continued ability to blend absurdist humor with social observation, creating comedy that resonates because it exaggerates real-world trends just enough to expose their inherent contradictions. By taking the concept of non-alcoholic beer to its logical extreme, the writers created a memorable piece that comments on both wellness culture and corporate cynicism simultaneously.
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