"Gluten reduced" beers

You can possibly get a good tasting gluten reduced beer. That is only my opinion since I have not had one.

 

The brewers that use the phrase "gluten-reduced beers" have gone a lot more than half way. "Gluten reduced" usually means that a specialty enzyme was used in the brewing process that alters and neutralizes the gluten somehow so that it does not have a negative effect on most gluten sensitive people who consume the beer (can't say all of these people). There is still a scant amount of gluten present in the beer so that a person who suffers from Celiacs disease still cannot consume these beers, but from what I've read, gluten-sensitive people do not feel the effects of that scant amount.

These 'gluten-reduced' beers use the same barley or other grains that produce gluten in regular beers, so it is a 'normal' beer taste. (Gluten probably has no flavor anyway, but that's a guess.) I've had a couple beers that use the enzyme and I couldn't tell the difference at all. The alternative for the Celiac's consumption is to brew beer with sorghum or other natural food alternatives that never come close to tasting like a beer. So go ahead and make the trip to the brewery and I don't think you'll be disappointed. Afterall you already know that you like what your friend has brought you.

 

If it weren't for the demand created by fad-dieting folks that mistakenly think low/no gluten is healthy, there wouldn't be so many options for those that actually need it. For that, we should thank gullible fad-dieting sheeple.

 

This Seattle brewery https://ghostfishbrewing.com/ brews only GF beers, and their entire menu is GF.

As mentioned, there's an enzyme that gets gluten down to levels that make the beer safe for the overwhelming majority of gluten avoiders, but brewers aren't allowed to call the beers "gluten free", thus the gluten reduced tag.

 

Some would suggest that gluten is not the problem, rather the chemical glyphosate that is sprayed on wheat and other crops is the real culprit, but that’s another story. Regarding beer, Glutenberg Brewery in Quebec is actually doing a decent job of making gluten free beers. They are the best I’ve tried.

 

Many of the products that are labeled "gluten reduce" use White Labs Clarity Ferm. Many brewers use it as a clarity agent and some do not even advertise that their beers are gluten reduced, even thought they are.

 

For those who have an "intolerance" to gluten, these beers accomodate them.

For those who have an allergy, these beers likely don't.

 

You gotta understand the math here: a slice of bread contains something like 0.8-1 g of gliadin, the protein that is the main culprit in the celiac disease. A bottle of typical beer, regular, not gluten-free/reduced beer, contain something on the order of 3-7 mg. So drinking a bottle is roughly equivalent to taking a tiny pinch from a slice of bread. Is it enough to cause a reaction in someone who is intolerant to gluten in a bad way? Yes, but they are a small minority, they are on strict diets, and they don't go anywhere near beers. For the majority of people with the celiac disease these levels are tolerable. So you have to conclude that these statements are largely aimed at the latest-health-fad-conscious consumers.

 

Really good beer. Didnt know they were gluten free and was given samples. They brew all styles. Very impressive stuff

 

I haven't been overly impressed with the packaged stuff, it's decent enough though, but some of the brewery only draft stuff has been really goid. Food is good there too.

 

Well, the flavor wouldn't be affected by the enzyme. Where you get "odd" flavors is more in brewers using other grains, that don't generally get used in brewing. If you go look the Ghostfish site I linked to above, you'll see that they use a variety of different grains, which don't carry gluten.

 

https://www.stonebrewing.com/beer/year-round-releases/stone-delicious-ipa Stone Delicious is one of the major beers that have been brewed with Clarex that @PapaGoose03 referred to in his post. Now I cannot say that they taste different, or if clarex strips out any hop residue, but I have had Stone Delicious several times and enjoy it. It is rocking a 3.93 which in my mind makes it a pretty good beer. I believe Clarex was created to remove unwanted proteins and other things from the beer to improve shelf stability and also clear out the haze. Guessing they realized that when they did this, it actually reduced the gluten.

 

Sufferfest Brewing Company is another gluten reduced brewery that I just found in town. Chico California brewery.

 

Yeah seeing them locally here in Texas since Sierra Nevada bought them.

 

I’m a big fan of glutinized beers and whiskies, obviously I’m not allergic so I can enjoy a nice Westephaner Hefe, or a Makers Mark.

 

Odd13 does this with most of their beers and they make great beer. You'd never know.

 

Filling a niche, I suppose.