BUT NOW THERE ARE OPTIONS!
I was never a big beer drinker before, but I definitely enjoyed one occasionally. It's just something that fits well with a BBQ or a warm evening after a day on the beach.
When I first eliminated gluten, I wrote a post on discovering a gluten-free beer at the liquor store, but being too afraid to try it. There are some terrible replacement products out there on the market- and I feared trying to replicate beer would just end in sadness.
However,
New Grist is pretty good!
It's an American beer that sits at 5.7%. It's quite "light", so I would compare it to something like a Corona. In fact, New Grist is fantastic with a wedge of lime!
It's brewed completely without wheat or barley- so it's definitely, without a doubt, 100% gluten-free.
They've replaced the wheat and barley with sorghum, rice, hops, water, and yeast.
It definitely tastes like beer, but the only difference I found that really didn't bother me that much, is that it's mildly less carbonated than a standard beer.
I've found it at various BC liquor stores in Vancouver- just ask where to find it- it's definitely not sitting along with the regular beers. It's usually with the specialty single beers- the fruit beers, etc.
It's sold in bottled 6-packs- and again- grab yourself a lime.
I've also found it at the following restaurants in Vancouver: (list to be updated as I discover more places!)
- The Irish Heather (Gastown)
- Chill Winston (Gastown)
- The New Oxford (Yaletown)
