Gluten Free Beer: Red Bridge

Red Bridge: Gluten-Free Sorghum Beer (Made without wheat or barley)

Red Bridge: 6-pack, 12-oz. bottles about $8

Any beer lover can tell you that barley is the basic cereal grain used in the beer-making process. Barley is combined with water, hops, malt and yeast. Most beers have the same basic ingredients.

Although barley is most commonly used is making beer, it also contains gluten which means  gluten-free drinkers have to sit out when everyone else cracks open a brew. It's usually difficult to find gluten-free beers. It's almost impossible to find next to your mainstream Bud Light or Budweiser at a local convenience store. BUT! There are some specialty stores where you can find GF beer.




The ingredient label tells you the whole story: water, fermented sorghum, hops and yeast.

One, Red Bridge, which offers you the 6-pack you're used to, or she said they had another single-bottle option. In the spirit of sharing, I opted for the 6-pack.
 

In my search, I called over to Twin Liquors in central Austin and put them to the test. I asked the sales person what their gluten-free selection was and she told me they actually do have two brands.

There's no worry of gluten contamination or having any wheat involved. They post gluten-free all over their packaging, on their bottle and bottle cap, making it very easy to ensure you won't be in doubt. Their slogan, "Beer made with you in mind" says it all. Per their website, redbridgebeer.com, the company mission focuses on ensuring safe processing to avoid wheat allergy by preventing blending or mixing with wheat.

They even have a  partnership with the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness to increase awareness about Celiac disease, as they define it on their website:

"Celiac disease is an auto-immune disease, often hereditary, that causes a chronic reaction to gluten in the small intestine which interferes with the absorption of food and then triggers other seemingly unrelated health conditions. Antibodies eventually attach and destroy the small intestine. Currently, the only known cure is to follow a gluten-free diet."

Without the barley you may wonder what a sorghum beer tastes like. It's surprisingly smooth and doesn't have that bitter taste regular beers usually have.

It has a light taste, not too dark or heavy like some beers that leave you feeling extra-full.

Although it's a saving grace for gluten-free eaters wanting to swig one back, it does have a lightly different flavor than barley beer, which you might notice at first. But, that's not to say it's not good. It has a great flavor and I definitely recommend it!

On their website they even offer a retail locator where you can put in your zip code and find the closest locations to try it out on your own: BROWN DISTRIBUTING COMPANY LTD 8711 JOHNNY MORRIS RD, AUSTIN, TX 78724
(512) 478-9353

Check out Mr. Natural

For gluten-free eaters out there, one of the indulges missed most are pastries. Cupcakes, muffins, cookies. All off limits because of the wheat flour bakers use most of the time.

And, when bakers do venture out into the GF world, the pastry bread can often be tough and lose it's usual fluffy freshness. Therein, lies the problem. Where can you find GF pastries with the usual taste and consistency of wheat-flour bakery goods?? My tip: Check out Mr. Natural.

Mr. Natural's two Austin locations, South Lamar/East Cesar Chavez, offer a variety of baked goods and entrees 100% gluten-free. Source: Mr. Natural.

This 100% vegetarian hotspot uses all-natural ingredients. This unique spot offers a bakery, sit-in restaurant, but also catering, food mailing options, and a health food store offering natural drinks, meat-substitutes and supplements.



The fresh bakery items are labeled Gluten Free with an ingredient list visible for any customer concerned with the contents. These muffins are made of rice, tapioca, fava bean and garbanzo flour--alternatives to wheat.

 You should definitely check this place out during it's Gluten Free Fridays, where they load up their bakery with GF items.

The collection of GF bakery items will definitely leave you with dozens of options with items from cookies, scones, brownies and even seasonal items like pumpkin empanadas.



This rich chocolate donut, under $2 is coated in tasty
sprinkles. The fluffy, bite-sized treat mimicks the classic
Little Debbie donuts with a GF spin and all the taste!



Coconut Bavarian: Delicious combination of flaky crust coated in dark chocolate. Stuffed with light, sweet cream and coconut shavings. At $2.50 this tasty treat is enough for two!

   

What makes this place exciting is the wide range in products, gluten-free products you don't usually find in a local bakery. And, although when I walked out of Mr. Natural with two donuts, a Bavarian and these  two beautiful chocolate muffins below, I shelled out over $10, it's not a stretch in cash when you consider the hefty prices local cupcakeries charge and well-worth it when you consider the lower-carbs and all-natural ingredients made fresh.



Dark chocolate muffins, pecan topped: $2 and incredibly rich. This one will leave you reaching for the milk. Soft and moist, this muffin is unlike the gf cakes you might find at other places that can be dry and flaky. Worth your while!

 Check out their menu and locations: MrNatural-austin.com

Sneek Peak into one Austin wheat-free bakery

Most bakeries thrive on using wheat in all their products, they almost always have no other choice than using flours that include wheat. But, for those allergic to wheat it's not an option. Even if you don't have an allergy, wheat alternative flours like rice or tapioca, can cut calories and carbs.




From cookies to tiramisu, Wild Wood Art Cafe has 100% gluten/wheat free foods. They have fine-tuned their process to include a one-of-a-kind original bread made in house daily. The gluten-free breads made of alternative flours have the same identical consistency of "normal" breads, the soft, fluffy texture you're use to.

Next time you're looking to check out an "Austiny" place, bypass the usual Waterloo or Trudy's and check this place out and their delicious lunch specials. http://www.wildwoodartcafe.com/


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Gluten Free beer alternatives inspired by Oktoberfest in NY

Beer. Unfortunately for those of you out there on a gluten-free diet, it's not a regular option. Normally, gluten is an ingredient. But, luckily, with the coming of Oktoberfest, I've read a recent article that features four gluten-free beers.

An article from yesterday featured on the Gothamist website includes popular beer alternatives.

Reigning Champ: Estrella Damm Daura
ABV: 5.4% Price: $ 9.99 /4 pack
The Spanish-based brew was recently named “World’s Best Gluten-Free Beer” at the World Beer Awards for the second year in a row - and for good reason. Daura manages to retain the same taste and properties as traditional beer by using a progressive method of brewing that still uses barley (rather than rice, sorghum, buckwheat etc.), but polishes away the gluten from it - giving it a very different taste.
Drinkable: Green's Beers
ABV: Endeavor 7%, Mission 6%, Quest 8.5%, Pathfinder 7%. Price: $5.99 /16 oz. bottle
Inspired by strong European beers and brewed in Belgium since 2004, Green’s offers three gluten-free beers in the U.S. market: Discovery Amber Ale, Endeavour Dubbel Ale, and Quest Tripel Ale. Each variety has its own unique flavor palate and is more widely available than Daura.
Fruity Alternative: New Grist
ABV: 5.7% Price: $9.99 /6 pack
Our taster refers to New Grist as the gluten-free cousin of Magic Hat. A very fruity beer produced using sorghum by a small private brewery in Milwaukee, New Grist has been described as sweet, carbonated, earthy and possessing a foul aftertaste. For those of you who enjoyed Magic Hat before your unfortunate diagnosis, this is the beer for you.
Steer Clear: Redbridge
ABV: 4.8% Price: $8.99 /6 pack
Anheuser-Busch's entry into the GF marketplace, Redbridge tastes like the product it is: mass-produced cheap, light beer. Lacking any real hops flavor, Redbridge is the beer to be avoided unless absolutely necessary. It is, however, pretty much the only GF beer you'll ever come across in a bar.

Personally, I have tried Estrella. Over the summer, I was in Spain and I'll have to say, I didn't even know it was even a gluten-free beer until I read this Gothamist article. It's that good! It has the same taste as regular beer. In Spain, it's one of the cheapest beer, and very common. I'd say if you can find it here in the states, you should definitely try it! Check out the article and let me know if you've tried these or other GF beers before and let me know: @melissaayala12

Happy Oktoberfest!