I've had good success substituting a good quality non-alcoholic beer such as Kaliber (made by Heiney I think) or something similar.
Did an Octoberfest for a local Baptist church last year and used the near beer and was quite pleased with results.
Build a 3" layer of sliced red or yellow onions in the bottom of a large stock pot . Toss in 10 or 12 slightly bruised juniper berries, a tablespoon or less of whole black peppercons and pour in enough beer (near beer) to cover .
Bring this to a boil, reduce heat and add Bratwurst, applewurst or other bold flavored tube steaks. Cook gently till cooked through.
Remove meat and grill over low heat just to get some color and crispness to the skin.
Stick 'em on a potato roll (yeah!) Smear with some good German Mustard.
Reach down into the pot w/your tongs grab some of the onion mixture (Ididn't say this was healthy) and top this gem and enjoy.
Happy New Year!
