Wheat free & gluten free alcohol
If you have a wheat allergy or gluten intolerance what alcohol can you drink?
The problem is that a lot of alcohol is made from grain, so knowing which ones are safe and which are not can be confusing, and not everyone wants to go teetotal. However wine is usually considered a safe bet and there is certainly a varied selection of sparkling, red, white and rosé wines to suit most palettes.
Are you a beer drinker that thinks the world has ended since your diagnosis? Fear not. There are wheat and gluten free beer, lager and stout alternatives available.
So what wheat & gluten free beers are available in the US?
- Bard's Tale Beer - Dragon's Gold, made from sorghum, yeast, hops and water. Bard's Beer was America's first craft-brewed gluten-free beer.
- Ramapo Valley Brewery - Honey Beer, made from honey, molasses & hops. This beer is also Kosher certified for Passover.
And how about Canada?
- La Messagère is a pale ale brewed from rice, buckwheat and hops, with a bouquet of honey and citrus fruits.
The UK is not left out either.
- Green's produce 9 different gluten free beers, lagers and ales, including an Old Style Cherry Beer. They have an online ordering service, so you can order direct from them. However if you are outside the UK you will need to contact them first to discuss as they do have global distributors.
- Heron no longer produce their wheat and gluten free beer although they didn't give us the reason why.
Of course not everyone drinks champagne, wine or beers, so what about wheat and gluten free spirits?
Vintage Rootsand Vinceremos used to stock organic gin and vodka that is not wheat based, it's not readily apparent from their websites which they are. or whether they are still stocking it, so it may be best to ring or email them to enquire.
Brandy, Cognac, Grappa, Mead, Ouzo, Rum, Sake and Tequila should all be wheat free, however manufacturers do change their ingredients without notice, so it is always advisable to double check at regular intervals with the manufacturer.
Finally, what about the supermarkets? Most of them have their own brand wines and spirits, and some of them even list the ingredients.
- Sainsbury's
- Waitrose
- Asda
- Co-op
- Tesco - will not allow access to their products on the Tesco website unless you sign up for online grocery shopping
And don't forget to check out our FAQ pages for more details of wheat & gluten free alcohol.