Beer and Peanut/Tree Nut allergies, a growing problem

Sounds like this is a list that could have purposes beyond just yourself, why not consider sharing it with other people with the same problem so you can all compile a master list together. Maybe even put it up on a website for all to peruse and contribute to. Would seem a worthwhile idea for more ppl than just yourself.

 

Very interesting, and a topic I've wondered about lately. My 4-year-old has an allergy (though not as severe as your girlfriend's) to peanuts and tree nuts (as well as eggs and sesame seeds).

I still drink peanut butter beers in the house, though I also make eggs for breakfast and eat sesame seed bagels, it's just a matter of cleaning up thoroughly in our case.

Another thing you may want to consider is if the brewery has a taproom or restaurant as part of the production facility, do they serve food that contains allergens, as cross contamination from the kitchen to the brewery is possible. I concede it's unlikely, but anaphylaxis is nothing to mess with.

Shy of a website, a google doc would be a great start. If one gets made, please share in the thread.

I'll add Willoughby's, Belching Beaver, Springhouse, Evil Genius, and Terrapin as breweries that routinely brew peanut butter beers, and The Bruery routinely makes tree nut beers.

Goose Island has made Nuthulu a couple times, though I'd imagine they likely would earn the * as I can't imagine an AB facility not being meticulously clean, nevertheless it warrants a call.

 

Apologies. Just trying to help. I haven't had the need to call any of them. I've only heard of a handful of PB and peppercorn beers in over 10 years of beer nerdery.

 

Peanut Butter in particular is growing FAST in popularity.

This only covers beers with "peanut" in the NAME of the beer, not all those with it as an ingredient: http://www.beeradvocate.com/search/?q=peanut but I think it illustrates my point.

 

German imports that claim they adhere to the Reinheitsgebot should have only yeast, water, barley and hops. If nuts are added in anyway they can not be legally claimed in Germany as being brewed under the RHG.

Also, at a personal level, someone suggested exploring spirits and wine. I have never seen a winery, distillery of Irish Whiskey, Bourbon or Malt Whisky that would have reason to use nuts.

 

I will note though that flavored vodkas (and rums, such as Malibu) might, and of course liqueurs such as Amaretto and Frangelico certainly would be offenders.

 

I appreciate your situation, but that line gives me a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. Cleaning regulations could easily mean the FDA or TTB coming in and telling breweries they can't ferment or age in wooden vessels anymore, even though it has been done for centuries. I am sure there would be other possible consequences to such regulation that none of us could foresee. The majority of the breweries in this country are small businesses and could be crushed by the weight of regulation and unnecessary food safety compliance issues. By unnecessary I don't so much mean the allergen stuff as the sort of clean room practices you see in dairy and meat processing which simply aren't necessary in the safe production of beer, but which an overzealous bureaucracy could easily decide to cram down the throat of the industry.

Allergen labeling, on the other hand, is a perfectly reasonable idea. Its easy enough for a brewery to add a statement to a product label warning of the inclusion or possible inclusion of allergens in a product and any brewery brewing with something that could so seriously harm some people should be making sure they disclose that fact to their customers.

Brewers benefit greatly from the fact that beer can't support the growth of pathogens and therefore is considered an intrinsically low risk food product. I think that the brewing industry is largely receptive to the idea of allergen labeling and the like to prevent beer being seen as something that could make people sick. Just be aware that talk of regulation and government enforcement is going to get a cold reception from a lot of people, because anyone who has owned a business has had bad experiences with government bureaucracy. Lobbying for an industry standard of labeling and disclosure is a much more productive way to improve the beer world for people who suffer from these serious allergies.

 

Good addition. I should have gone on to specifically mention avoiding things such as flavored spirits and liqueurs (probably wine coolers as well).

 

I thought the liqueur thing was obvious enough it didn't warrant its own post, but it worked as the back half of my mention of flavored vodka. Flavored vodka is getting really popular, and are flavored god-knows-how, with god-knows-what...

 

I like this post a lot. Even as someone who has a child with allergies, I agree that there has to be a balance somewhere between there being no information available (unsafe) and out-of-control regulations (overly difficult for businesses). I agree that a labeling standard would be (I think) a good compromise. Changing labeling can be challenging for small breweries, but if it were an industry standard I think it wouldn't be too hard to fall in line with such a thing.

 

I would think breweries with no history of added flavorings, and/or a philosophy of brewing with only traditional ingredients, such as breweries specializing in German styles, would be safe.

And don't blame me for encouraging those beer abominations. Never knowingly drink any beers with flavorings. If you can't do it with hops, yeast, water and barley, I'm not interested.

 

If cross contamination were a concern the label could read "brewed at a facility that processes peanuts and/or tree nuts". That would alert the consumer to the possibility of cross contamination.

 

According to the TTB list of Exempt Ingredients and Processes, it appears that nuts of any kind have not yet been included as an ingredient that does not require a Process Approval as a part of the label approval. In theory*, this would mean that any brewery that was in fact using nuts or nut products in their beers would have needed to apply for this extra level of approval. You could call up a brewery that you were curious about and ask if any of their beers have required Process Approval from TTB and they should be able to tell you right away.

*In theory--I have a feeling that many small breweries are not going through this process with some of their more experimental beers, as this list is pretty darn limited and some beers coming out today include everything short of the kitchen sink. Buyer beware.

 

It sounds like you've hit on a solid fix (calling the brewery and finding out if they do or don't.) I honestly have never heard of this being an issue with beer before, so I can't speak to whether or not any labeling changes or government mandates on sterile environments are warranted. Several airlines still offer peanuts, however if you call ahead they'll withhold offering them on your particular flight. As someone who has no peanut allergy, I wouldn't want to incur the cost if a brewery is now hit with additional fees, equipment costs, etc. to cater to a fraction of the population. Labeling something with a "brewed in a facility that also brews w/tree nuts, peanuts, etc.", I have no issue with. Even if they put a warning; "may contain allergens" with a link to their website for more info, would probably suffice.