Gluten-Free Beers and other Alcohol Options for Celiacs or Gluten-Sensitive Folk

Nothing is as refreshing as a cold one on a hot summer day.

For the increasingly many who are either gluten-sensitive or suffer from celiac disease, options may seem limited for enjoying a drink on the patio with friends. But fear not...there are actually a good selection of options available.

Firstly, wine, and its fortified counterparts (sherry, port) are all safe. As a general rule, there are no gluten containing ingredients used in wine production.

Secondly, essentially any pure distilled spirit such as whiskey, rye, vodka and gin will lose its prolamin (celiac-aggravating proteins that include gluten and gliadin) content during the distillation process. As a result, it does not matter whether the initial fermentation uses gluten-containing grains such as wheat, rye or barley, as long as the final product is a result of distillation. The only caveat to this is if there is some gluten-containing ingredient added after the distillation process (ie. in some kind of weird mixed drink concoction).

Beer on the other hand, is fermented from barley malt or a mix of other grains (rye, wheat, oats)with barley. Because these standard grains contains gluten and this is not broken down or extracted in the fermentation process, beer is sadly excluded as an option for those with gluten sensitivities. The great news is that there are an increasing number of breweries that are catching on to this predicament, and are producing gluten-free beer options.

Rejoice, celiacs!

Keep in mind that because they are brewed from non-standard grains, they have a slightly different taste, but not difficult to get accustomed to. It is still beer after all.

For Canadians, there is the health-conscious Quebec brewery, Les Bieres de la Nouvelle France, which has not one but TWO gluten-free and preservative-free beer options. La Messagere and La Messagere Red Ale are both derived from buckwheat and rice and are available across Canada.

Albertans give us Bard's Beer, founded by Craig Belser and Kevin Seplowitz, both diagnosed celiacs who could not stand a miserable life without beer, and brought us their popular beer derived from sorghum.

American beer-makers, Lakefront Brewery, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, also has a gluten-free beer available. Their beer is called New Grist, which is brewed from rice and sorghum (a gluten-free grain from the grass family).

Brewing giant, Budweiser, has gotten on the bandwagon by partnering with the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness and providing us with Redbridge Beer, another sorghum-based gluten-free beer, available widely in the States, but unfortunately not yet to us Canucks, as far as I know.

Cheers!