Gluten-free beer options widening

I found a couple of new gluten-free beers -- at least new to me -- at Total Wine to help me enjoy the first full weekend of football.

I went to Total Wine specifically to find something new, for a change of pace. I found these in the beer singles section, where there were several gluten-free beers available. I really liked the selection there and the fact that they make single beers available, to give me a chance to try out new beers.

I picked out two new beers.The first is Fox Tail beer, which is made by Joseph James Brewing Co.

The interesting thing about Fox Tail is that I bought a can of it. This is the first time I've been able to find gluten-free beer in a can, so I just liked the experience of it.

As it turned out, I wasn't crazy about the taste. According to the Joseph James website, Fox Tail is made from rice and has a "solid hop bitterness" which is "complimented by pear like esters reminiscent of dry cider."

The second beer is a German import called Lammsbrau, that I really liked. I probably liked it because this is one of those beers made from barley. Lammsbrau says on its website that it "uses a unique proprietary technology to remove gluten during the production of this beer."

I know that's controversial. A lot of celiacs are rebelling against beers like this and Omission that are made from barley with a process to remove the gluten, and the brewers say that they fall below the 20 ppm standard. Questions have been raised about the testing of these beers.

I've been drinking them with no problem, but I know other people say these beers make them sick. So I can't really make a recommendation one way or the other.

Speaking of beers like that, I should also mention that I finally returned to Mellow Mushroom over the weekend and had a Prairie Path beer.

You may recall my note a couple of months ago that I was served the wrong beer at Mellow Mushroom when I ordered a Prairie Path, which was a very dangerous situation.

I thought the staff handled it well when I realized I was served the wrong beer, and it was confirmed when I walked in to the restaurant yesterday for the first time in more than two months. The bartender immediately remembered my last visit and assured me that Prairie Path was available and that he would make sure I got the right beer.

So, I feel pretty good that nothing like that will ever happen again at Mellow Mushroom.