Friday, September 30, 2011

A few words on gluten-free beer

It's nice to know there are a lot of gluten-free beers available. But finding them sometimes...
I've spent a lot of time searching for beer since going gluten-free. The easiest to find is Redbridge, which is made by Anheuser-Busch and is available in just about any supermarket. But it's surprisingly hard to find in bars.
I've been contending that any establishment that serves beer should be able to offer Redbridge. Basically, any place that sells beer likely has a relationship with Anheuser-Busch, so it should be able to get Redbridge from its distributor.
I confirmed that early on by asking the management of my favorite sports bar, Time Out Sports Grill (on Beach Boulevard east of Hodges), to see if they could get Redbridge. They found it was very easy and have been stocking it ever since.
But few other Jacksonville bars offer it, according to Redbridge's web site. It's my goal to convince the world that everyone should be at least offering Redbridge, if not other gluten-free beers.
One of my last accomplishments before leaving The Florida Times-Union was convincing the Jaguars to stock Redbridge at EverBank Field. It is supposed to be available at a few beer stands during Jaguars games, but a Facebook report by glutenfreejacksonville.com's Jennifer Gornto said it was hard to find at the home opener. Hopefully, it will be there this Sunday.
After Redbridge, Bard's may be the next-most accessible gluten-free beer. It's offered at Mellow Mushroom and at at least two European Street Cafe's in the area.
European Street in Jacksonville Beach also has two gluten-free imports available, Green's and St. Peter's. That and European Street's sandwiches on gluten-free bread has made it one of my favorite spots.
I've tried a good number of other beers that I've found at Total Wine, which has a good selection of gluten-free beers: New Grist and New Planet. New Planet is also available at Broudy's Liquors. Broudy's in Jacksonville Beach has a nice gluten-free display stand with a number of beer choices.
The list of gluten-free beers keeps growing.  Hopefully the list of places that offer gluten-free beer will continue to grow as well. I can promise you I'll keep working on it.

2 comments:

  1. First I want to say I need to eat gluten free to avoid diarrhea and stomach cramps. Now if you want a beer you can either be sick or drink gluten free. My opinion on New Grist - I purchased just one bottle @ Wholefood to see how it was: At first swig I almost poured it out, however I decided to keep going and it did get better. By the end I made the decision to go out and buy a few 6 packs. It is different but than so is everything gluten free. I found it light, fruity and (call me a light weight) after 1 bottle I had a buzz.

    If you need to eat gluten free and want a beer; try it with a positive outlook.

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  2. Yeah, people see me drinking a gluten-free beer and they always ask me how it compares to a regular beer. I think I've really forgotten what regular beer tastes like.

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