But gluten-free beer drinkers get ready: Some manufacturers are now making “gluten-removed” beer, which uses an ingredient already standard in brewing, Brewers Clarex, or a patented enzyme that prevents haze from forming in chilled beer and, incredibly, also breaks down the gluten in malted barley. Genius. Gluten-removed beer tastes like beer—and pretty good beer at that. I’ve sampled gluten-removed lagers from Craft Brew Alliance’s Omission in Portland, Oregon, and Barcelona, Spain-based Estrella Damm’s Daura Damm. If you were handed either at a party, you’d almost certainly not notice anything out of the ordinary. That’s the very good news. The bad news is, if you’re a celiac sufferer, it may or may not be OK to drink. What? If the gluten is removed, why can’t all the gluten-allergic and gluten-intolerant people among enjoy a good brewski? Here’s why: Beer labeling is regulated by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, which doesn’t have a gluten-free categorization. The FDA, which has gluten-free rules, regulates beer made with alternative ingredients. So, gluten-removed beers can’t legally be labeled gluten-free, just marketed as “processed to remove gluten” if they include the caveat that, “this product may contain gluten.” Legal hubbub not withstanding, is gluten-removed beer safe for those with celiac disease? Tricia Thompson, MS, RD, a National Foundation for Celiac Awareness scientific and medical advisory council member, says no. “It remains my belief that individuals with celiac disease should avoid these types of beers,” she writes on her website, Gluten Free Watchdog. The problem is in how much gluten these beers actually do or don’t contain, she continues—a problem because companies such as Omission haven’t fully released that data. In its defense, Omission reps say the data is not theirs to release—it’s owned by the testing companies and, thus, up to them how and when to release it. MORE: What’s Better: Organic or Heirloom? Meanwhile, the Celiac Support Association takes a different stance. The organization gave Craft Brew Alliance a Recognition Seal in its Innovation category for Omission’s lager and pale ale, indicating the beers meet testing and product-safety metrics developed by the CSA and have a gluten concentration equivalent to fewer than 5 parts per million. Despite a seal, because Brewers Clarex breaks down gluten proteins yet still leaves fragments, it doesn’t mean the beer is completely safe for celiac sufferers, according to Mary Schluckebier, CSA executive director. However, the most prevalent leftover fragments have never been implicated in the disease, she says, adding that, anecdotally, many celiac sufferers have no problem with gluten-removed beers.
