Gluten Free Beer?

 (This Article is a 3 Minute Read)

   

Before you went gluten free were you a beer drinker? I was. I love beer! In fact, my husband and I were really into quality craft beers and were always on the search for something new. We even tried our hand at home brew. After I went gluten free he kept the hobby going – so I jealously look upon his array of options hoping and wishing someone would take gluten free beer to a quality craft level.   

Improving my health meant letting go of happiness. Ok maybe that is overstating things a bit, but I did hang my head low when I was told regular beer was out.  Knowing all of this, my Natural Health Practitioner recommended I try RedBridge. It is a gluten free beer put out by Anheuser-Busch. I found that it was a good option for a light tasting beer. It’s also good for making tempura recipes. However, since I was in the market for a more complex taste, it wasn’t really satisfying. I rather have nothing than drink it.

 That was a few years ago and now there are many options. My favorite is Bard’s. It is made from ingredients that work well with my diet and the taste and color are really satisfying. The one thing I noticed is that if I have more than one within a 24 hour period, I get a headache. I need to investigate that, but I highly recommend trying it.

New Planet has several types of brews. I’ve tried the ones I could, but I didn’t care for the taste. However, if in your pre-gluten free life you liked IPA beers, you may like these.

For me the list is more limited because I do not eat rice or oats - so beers made with these ingredients are off my list. Also I do not like fruit flavors in my beer. I keep trying them and it’s just not working for me.  

I do however, like hard ciders.  Even though I don’t drink these regularly, many restaurants have them on the menu and they are a good option - especially when everyone else at the table is drinking enviable drafts.

A Thought on Gluten Removed Beers

Some say that these are not truly gluten free. Therefore, they aren’t good options if you suffer from Celiacs or are gluten intolerant. If you are gluten free because you just want to be, then you might be able to get away with drinking these occasionally. 

I have many more brews to try out there. Local availability makes this a bit challenging – but don’t worry – I will keep working at it. Until next time no need to give up beer totally - you can now have it gluten free!