NOTE: A REVISED AND UPDATED VERSION OF THIS ARTICLE  IS AVAILABLE. IT FURTHER EXPLAINS WHY BUDWEISER IS NOT GLUTEN FREE AND PROVIDES ALTERNATIVES FOR THE BEER DRINKER. CLICK HERE IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO MOVE TO THAT ARTICLE.

 5/15/07 I researched this article to prove a point to a celiac friend when I saw him drinking a Bud Light. I didn’t realize the question was so complicated. Anyway, here is what I learned:

It is possible to brew a beer that is wheat free but not gluten free. Barley is the offending grain in this case. The issue began with the “Reinheitsgebot”, the world’s oldest food purity law, which was adopted in Germany in 1516 and specified that beer must be prepared using barley, hops, yeast, and water. (I threw this comment in for the benefit of gluten free trivia buffs.)

The Anheuser Busch site does not suggest that any of its products other than Redbridge is gluten free. Redbridge beer ferments sorghum rather than barley.

  I’ll summarize this with something I copied from a site called Hop Talk.com:  "Why not let us know what you think by adding your own comment! Your opinion is as valid as anyone elses, so come on… let us know what you think."

What do I think? Why take chances? Anheuser Busch has given us Redbridge. We now have a tasty gluten free beer that is available nationally at a reasonable cost.

 P.S.: I showed this article to my friend and gave him a bottle of Redbridge. He is now a convert. If you need more information about celiac-friendly beer, visit my article “Gluten Free Beer”.

 This is the first article I have written to address a specific question. I like it! But in order to do more articles of this sort, I’ll need more questions. If I can help, e-mail me at gfceliac@gmail.com or add a comment at the end of this article.