Gluten-free beers

A list of known gluten-free or low gluten beers

Features April 26, 2007
Written by SilkTork

Southampton, ENGLAND -

While beer may be made from any starch-based material, notably grains, the most common ingredients are barley and wheat. Unfortunately some people have an intolerance to gliadin found in wheat and hordein, the "gluten" of barley. Such people only drink gluten-free beer otherwise they might suffer from abdominal pain or malnutrition.

<table border=0 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 align=right> <tr><td> </td><td class=beerfoot align=center><IMG border=0 SRC=/images/features/45798.jpg>
GFA - a well-distributed British gluten-free beer</td></tr></table>
Gluten-free beer is made from non-barley and wheat ingredients, such as rice or sorghum.
The rules for labeling a beer "gluten-free" vary around the world, with levels varying from zero gluten to as much as 20 parts per million. Some brewers such as Anheuser-Busch and Sapporo have argued that their lagers which contain rice and in which the barley has been converted into non-harmful amino acids are safe for gluten-intolerant drinkers to consume, but this argument is strongly debated.

This is a list of the gluten-free beers of which I am aware. There are also the sorghum based beers of Africa, but they are largely unobtainable outside the region in which they are produced. Nigerian Guinness while using sorghum, is based on a barley wort supplied by the St. James’s Gate brewery in Dublin, and so is not gluten free.

Let me know of any other gluten-free beers and I will add them to the list.

<TABLE border="1"
>
<CAPTION><EM>A simple list of beers which are known to be gluten free or gluten low.</EM></CAPTION>
<TR><TH rowspan="2">Beer
<TH rowspan="2">Type
<TR><TH>Brewery<TH>Country<TH>ABV<TH>Comment s
<TR><TH>Aztek Gold<TD>Pale Ale<TD>Silly Yak<TD>Australia<TD>4.5
<TR><TH>Bards Tale Dragons Gold<TD>Pale Lager<TD>Gordon Biersch <TD>USA<TD>4.7
<TR><TH>Bi-Aglut 76<TD>Pale Lager<TD>Birra Dreher <TD>Italy <TD>5
<TR><TH>BeerUp Glutenfrei <TD>Unknown <TD>Grieskirchen <TD>Austria <TD>4.5
<TR><TH>Billabong Ginger Beer<TD>Unknown<TD>Billabong<TD>Australia<TD>4.5

<TR><TH>German Hirse Premium <TD>Pale Lager <TD>Schnitzerbrau <TD>Germany <TD>5
<TR><TH>Glutaner <TD>Pale Lager <TD>Huyghe <TD>Belgium <TD>5.2
<TR><TH>Greens Discovery <TD>Strong Pale Ale <TD>Huyghe <TD>Belgium <TD>6
<TR><TH>Greens Endeavour <TD>Strong Brown Ale <TD>Huyghe <TD>Belgium <TD>6
<TR><TH>Greens Explorer <TD>Strong Dark Ale <TD>Huyghe <TD>Belgium <TD>6
<TR><TH>Greens Herald <TD>Pale Ale <TD>Huyghe <TD>Belgium <TD>4
<TR><TH>Greens Pilgrim <TD>Unknown <TD>Huyghe <TD>Belgium <TD>4.7
<TR><TH>Greens Pioneer <TD>Pale Lager <TD>Huyghe <TD>Belgium <TD>5
<TR><TH>Greens Trailblazer <TD>Pale Lager <TD>Huyghe <TD>Belgium <TD>4.7
<TR><TH>GFA <TD>Pale Ale <TD>Hambleton <TD>UK <TD>4.2
<TR><TH>GFL <TD>Pale Lager <TD>Hambleton <TD>UK <TD>4.8
<TR><TH>Koff I <TD>Pale Lager <TD>Sinebrychoff <TD>Finland <TD>2.5<TD>Very low gluten
<TR><TH>4.1 Taytelainen Kevyt Olut / Saxon <TD>Pale Lager <TD>Sinebrychoff <TD>Finland <TD>4.1<TD>Very low gluten
<TR><TH>Kukko Pils III <TD>Pale Lager <TD>Laitilan <TD>Finland <TD>4.5
<TR><TH>Tumma Kukko <TD>Dark Lager <TD>Laitilan <TD>Finland <TD>3.8
<TR><TH>New Grist <TD>Unknown <TD>Lakefront <TD>USA <TD>5
<TR><TH>La Messagere <TD>Pale Ale <TD>Nouvelle-France <TD>Canada <TD>4.7
<TR><TH>O’B Pale Ale<TD>Pale Ale<TD>O’Brien <TD>Australia <TD>4.5
<TR><TH>O’B Premium <TD>Pale Lager <TD>O’Brien <TD>Australia <TD>4.5
<TR><TH>Passover Honey Beer <TD>Mead <TD>Ramapo Valley <TD>USA <TD>5.2
<TR><TH>Redbridge <TD>Pale Lager <TD>Anheuser-Busch <TD>USA <TD>4.8
<TR><TH>Schlafly Gluten-free Ale <TD>Pale Ale <TD>Saint Louis <TD>USA <TD>
<TR><TH>Sorghum Molasses Brown <TD>Brown Ale <TD>Outer Banks <TD>USA <TD><TD>Low gluten
<TR><TH>Toleration <TD>Pale Ale <TD>Hambleton <TD>UK <TD>4.4
<TR><TH>Blonde<TD>Pale Lager<TD>Billabong<TD>Australia<TD>4.5
<TR><TH>Apple Beer<TD>Unknown<TD>Billabong<TD>Australia<TD>5
<TR><TH>Residenz Bio-Reis-Gold<TD>Pale Lager<TD>Liebharts <TD>Germany<TD>4.3
<TR><TH>Residenz Bio-Reis-Gold Dunkel<TD>Dark Lager<TD>Liebharts<TD>Germany<TD>4.3
<TR><TH>Estrella Damm Apta Para Celíacos<TD>Pale Lager<TD>Damm<TD>Spain<TD>5.4<TD>6 ppm
<TR><TH>
</TABLE>

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Some brewers such as Anheuser-Busch and Sapporo have argued that their lagers which contain rice are safe for gluten-intolerant drinkers but this argument is strongly debated

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