This has to be one of the best new gluten free beers to hit the market in a while … well, at least the most unique.   Jelly Belly is one of the few gluten free candies on the market and they have just released a craft beer bean which I HAVE to try!

Gluten Free Beer in the Making

This week I was privileged to review of Gluten Free Homebrew from the future q-Brew brewery.  q-Brew made this beer with a passion and excitement for gluten free beer that they want to build into a gluten free brewery with some funding support.  If you have an interest in being an investor in a gluten free brewery, either comment on this review below or email the Association and we will get you in touch with q-Brew.

The beer I sampled is Orange Blossom Honey “Wheat” Ale but no worries, there is NO wheat in this beer.  Now I get to review a lot of beers which of course I enjoy.  In doing so, not all of the beers will be to my taste liking but I can almost always see a value in each beer. If the beer is just bad, I will tell you and thankfully, that is certainly NOT the case here.   q-Brew tells me that they use a secret ingredient as the base of their beer so someday we will all know when the brewery opens.

I found the aroma of this beer to be sweet and slightly grainy.  The color is a hazy unfiltered honey gold. It poured with a nice white head, some what persistent with slight lacing.  This beer has a very light mouth feel with a light flavor, slightly hoppy with a bitter hop after taste.  I found the beer to be very mild and refreshing, not a lot of flavor with a slight citrus and sweetness and a little tart.

This beer would pair excellently with a salad, mild fish or chicken or on the other hand a very spicy dish would pair nicely.  Some what of a palate cleanser.  If you like a strong beer, this is probably not the best choice for you.  If on the other hand, you don’t like a strong flavored beer or this time you just want a lighter taste, you will definitely be able to enjoy this beer.  I would definitely recommend this beer in the right situation and certainly on a hot day as a cooling refreshment.  I would be glad to drink this beer again.

Green’s gluten free beers have added a new option to their already outstanding lineup.  The latest addition by Green’s is the Dry-Hopped Lager.

Dry hopping is the process of adding hops to the brewing process after the wort is cooled down so the hops do not cook.  Most folks tell you that the reason to dry hop is for aroma ONLY, I beg to differ.  Yes, dry hopping gives a nice hoppy floral aroma to the beer but it also adds a floral, fruity flavor to the beer as well.  It is almost impossible to add aroma to any type of food without adding an additional flavor and this beer has done just that.

The Green’s Dry-Hopped Lager has a very nice light, crisp aroma.  It pours with a clear straw yellow color and a nice persistent white head with medium lacing.  The beer has a VERY light mouth feel with a hint of citrus (grapefruit) flavor.  The finish is both fruity and hoppy and very refreshing.  Green’s makes this beer from millet, buckwheat, rice and sorghum but  somehow they have managed to create a VERY drinkable beer without the bitter after taste of sorghum.

If you are an IPA, strong hops drinker, this beer is probably not for you.  If on the other hand, you like a nice refreshing beer that will pair well with salads, chicken and seafood then this beer is absolutely for you.  I personally really enjoyed this beer and would love to keep it on hand in my fridge for one of those beer nights!

Well done Green’s!  You have added an excellent beer to your already excellent line up.  To find out if this beer is available near you, check out the importers site, Merchant du Vin and try this beer for yourself.  We would love to hear your review in the comments!

Cheers!

To date I have sampled two of Omissions Low Gluten Beer offerings, the Pale Ale and the Lager.  Omission makes a very nice low gluten (free) beer but if you are Celiac, sample before drinking just to make sure that this de-glutenized beer is okay for your system!

Here is what I found in my beer review of the Low Gluten (Free) Pale Ale Beer by Omission.

The beer poured with a large off white persistent head and minimal lacing.  There was not a lot of noise to the beer but for me that doesn’t always mean anything.  The beer was a clear red golden color with minimal carbonation in the glass and a bit hazy.  It has a test of slight oatmeal and maple flavor.  This gluten free beer is definitely my favorite of the two offerings that I have sampled from Omission.

In this video I took this beer to a home brewers club meeting.  None of these people are gluten free so it is interesting to see what their opinion is of this low gluten (free) beer.

Here is what I found in sampling the Low Gluten (Free) Lager by Omission.

The beer poured with a white head that dissipated fairly quickly and slight lacing.  There was a definite yeasty nose to the beer.  The beer was a clear golden color with minimal carbonation in the glass and a bit hazy.  This beer has a very light mouth feel and light taste. It has a slight after taste of hops as a beer should.  This gluten free beer definitely tastes like beer and for me is a very drinkable beer and another good offering from Omission.

Omission had a vision to brew a great craft beer that happens to be gluten free.  By current ATF guidelines, Omission cannot be labeled as gluten free because it is brewed with malted barley and de-glutenized with a proprietary process.  With the new FDA gluten free guidelines, Omission now has a chance of being able to be labeled gluten free once again.

At the Gluten Free Beer Association we love to hear your opinions, let us know in the comments below what you think about Omissions fine beers!

Cheers!  Thank you to Omission and Widmer Brothers for broadening our options in the Gluten Free Low Gluten Beer market!

Glutenberg has made some excellent gluten free beers!  In this video I sat down with a local beer brewing club, none of which are gluten free, to get their opinion in this gluten free beer review.  The result is interesting and shows the diversity of tastes.

Cheers Glutenberg!  To a job well done from the Gluten Free Beer Association!

New Planet Amber Ale

This beer has a brown rich amber color, very slight to no head and no lacing, the nose is almost imperceptible with a slight citrus aroma, medium mouth feel, nice flavor with a nice depth, toasted caramel and citrus flavor, citrus on the finish. A nice balance of bitterness and I would say better balance then many gluten free beers. This beer is made with sorghum and brown rice extract, molasses, tapioca maltodextrin, hops & yeast.

This beer has a medium complexity with a well rounded flavor.  This is a well balanced Gluten Free Amber Ale that I would recommend if Amber is your style or you want something that is richer and more flavorful than a Pale Ale. The lack of bitterness makes this a very refreshing beer.  The beer would pair well with bar-b-que or anything off the grill.  New Planet Brewery has done a good job with this beer; I will  definitely drink and enjoy this beer again.

New Planet Belgian Ale

Light golden straw color, clear and bubbly, no head what so ever, yeast and bread nose, light mouth feel, very mild flavor with not much depth of flavor but crisp and refreshing. Not as bitter as many gluten free beers made with sorghum. This beer is made with sorghum and brown rice extract, honey, orange peel, cinnamon powder, vanilla extract, hops & yeast.

The is not a very complex beer but the combination of the orange, cinnamon and vanilla give it a nice flavor.  I would say this is a Belgian Pale Ale style in its truest form and when I asked Pedro Gonzalez, the founder of New Planet, he told me it was created around a Belgian Goldenstyle gluten free beer. The Golden style is recognized by some and not by others, it is a lighter version of the Belgian Pale Ale or Pilsner style which is the most widely drunk beer style there is. The lack of bitterness makes this a very refreshing beer.  It will pair with any light meal, seafood or Mexican food come to mind.  This is a beer I will definetly drink again with pleasure.

]]> http://www.glutenfreebeer.org/new-planet-gluten-free-belgian-ale/feed/ 0 http://www.glutenfreebeer.org/new-planet-adds-to-lineup-of-gluten-free-beer/ http://www.glutenfreebeer.org/new-planet-adds-to-lineup-of-gluten-free-beer/#respond Thu, 23 May 2013 01:45:12 +0000 http://www.glutenfreebeer.org/?p=376

New Planet Brewery started out as a gluten free brewery and for the last three years they have stood toe to toe swinging AND winning!!!  I did my first review of New Planet in March 2011 and the three beers I reviewed then; Tread Lightly Ale, 3R Raspberry Ale and Off Grid Pale Ale have stood the test of time.  This year, New Planet has a new look, new packaging and two new beers … so far.  Come back for my reviews of New Planets two new offerings.  I can’t wait to share!

Harvester Brewing brings the DUBBEL Gluten Free Beer!!!

I just got this today from John Dugan of Harvester Brewing.  I cannot wait to get my hands on this new product seeing as Dubbels are probably my personal favorite style of beer!!

Harvester Brewing Releases St. Denny Dubbel Style Ale April 12th

Harvester Brewing is pleased to announce the latest release out of their dedicated gluten-free brewery in the Experiment Ale series, a Dubbel style ale made with Belgian candi syrup.

Similar to Harvester’s other beers, the Dubbel is made using roasted chestnuts but is differentiated by the addition of dark Belgian candi syrup. It’s lightly hopped with Styrian Goldings, and fermented with a blend of two gluten-free Belgian yeast strains.

When Harvester founder James Neumeister was starting out as a homebrewer, he contacted homebrewing legend Denny Conn and asked him where he could learn to brew using the batch-sparge method that Denny advocates when homebrewing. Denny invited James over that weekend and after a day of brewing under Denny’s tutelage, his word quickly became the rule when James was homebrewing, prompting his other brewing partners to start referring to Mr. Conn as ‘Saint’ Denny. This background, combined with the common practice of Belgian style beers having ‘Saint’ names, led to the name St. Denny for this beer.

St. Denny Dubbel style ale will be released at Harvester Brewing this Friday, April 12th at an event from 3:30 to 7pm.  A very limited amount of the St. Denny Dubbel will be available on draft, only at the brewery.  Bottles will roll out to store shelves next week and are available to order through Harvester’s online store now for shipment starting April 15th.

About Harvester Brewing

Harvester Brewing is a dedicated gluten-free craft brewery founded in 2011. Harvester Brewing’s facility is entirely gluten-free; no gluten is allowed on the premises. Their beers are distributed in OR, VT, WA, Northern ID, and online at http://store.harvesterbrewing.com/

715 SE Lincoln St. Portland, OR 97214 – www.harvesterbrewing.com – www.facebook.com/harvesterbrewing

This is a review of Harvester Brewing’s Experiment IPA gluten free beer, one of the first 100% gluten free craft breweries in the US.

I am making my third review in this series with the 3rd beer in the Harvester Brewing line up; the IPA.  The IPA is brewed with roasted chestnuts, gluten free oats, sorghum, cane sugar and hops as are all three of the beers we have reviewed.

This is a sweet smelling beer with citrus, chestnuts and honey that pours very yellow with a medium white head that disipates quickly with very light lacing.  In true India Pale Ale style, this beer has a bitter hoppy flavor with a light mouth feel.  What you get that you may not expect is the slight citrus and smooth after taste.  If you are an IPA fan, this is a bit of a twist on the traditional IPA flavor and one worth giving a try.

If you find yourself in Oregon or Washington then there are a number of places you can buy Harvester Brewings beers. Check them out at www.harvesterbrewing.com.