How Gluten-Free Non-Alcoholic Beer Is Made (And Our Favorite GF NA Beers)

January 12, 2024
By: Chrystabelle

About the Author

Chrystabelle is a non-alcoholic drinks expert who has tasted and reviewed hundreds of non-alcoholic beers, non-alcoholic wines, hop water, and non-alcoholic spirits. Her journey to being sober curious and discovering non-alcoholic options began when she realized she had a tendency to binge drink. Reach her at chrystabelle@oneclubsober.com.

If you follow a gluten-free diet, then you likely have been avoiding many non-alcoholic beers because the grains that are used to brew beer contains gluten.

With many alcoholic beer companies now offering gluten-free alcoholic beers, we are glad to see some non-alcoholic beer brands releasing gluten-reduced beers.

In this guide to gluten-free non-alcoholic beer, we share our favorite gluten-free non-alcoholic beers and more about how breweries are making gluten-free beers.

The Best Gluten-Free Non-Alcoholic Beers

Not many non-alcoholic beers are gluten-reduced or gluten-free, and even less taste good. Here are six of our favorite gluten-reduced non-alcoholic beers.

Each of these NA beers have been tested to contain less than 20PPM of gluten per drink.

Best Tasting: Bravus Oatmeal Stout – Gluten-Reduced

bravus oatmeal dark review

Bravus Oatmeal is my favorite gluten-reduced non-alcoholic stout with a smooth and velvety mouthfeel and notes of chocolate, caramel and roasted coffee.

However, this NA beer is not gluten-free. Instead, it is brewed to reduce gluten and has less than 20PPM (like most gluten-free non-alcoholic beers).

For me, the oatmeal flavor comes through nicely, and a lingering chocolate, malt, and toffee aftertaste gives this NA stout a really delicious finish.

Read our full Bravus Oatmeal review here.

Ingredients: Water, malted barley, hops, yeast

Order direct from Bravus (within the United States). 


Best In The UK: Big Drop Galactic Milk Stout – Gluten-Reduced

Big-Drop-Brewing-Galactic-Milk

This is a delicious gluten-free non-alcoholic stout option if you live in the United Kingdom.

Big Drop Galactic Milk Stout tastes decadent, good bodied, with a balance of bitter chocolate and dark-brewed coffee notes.

If you are looking for a non-alcoholic stout that is also gluten-reduced at less than 20PPM, we cannot rave enough about this stout.

Ingredients: Water, Barley, Oats, Rye, Hops, Yeast, Lactose (Milk), Cocoa Nibs.

Order from non-alcoholic drinks retailer ZeroZilchZip (within the United Kingdom). 


Grüvi Golden Lager – Gluten-Reduced

Reviewing the Gruvi Golden Lager

Grüvi Golden is a gluten-reduced, low calorie non-alcoholic lager that reminds me of a classic lager: light, crushable, and malt-forward with notes of honey.

Besides this NA lager, Grüvi also has other gluten-reduced drinks that I find equally tasty (like their non-alcoholic sangria).

While it is not Gluten-Free certified, it is gluten-reduced and has less than 20 ppm, which is the celiac threshold.

Read my full review of Gruvi Golden here.

Ingredients: Water, barley, wheat, malt, hops (American Mosaic, Australian Ella & Vic Secret), yeast

Order direct from Grüvi (within the United States). 


BrewDog Elvis AF – Gluten-Reduced

Reviewing the Brewdog Elvis AF non-alcoholic beer

BrewDog’s Elvis AF is the non-alcoholic version of the brewery’s signature BrewDog Elvis Juice.

It is a grapefruit-infused non-alcoholic IPA, and I found Elvis AF to be crisp and refreshing with robust grapefruit and citrus hop flavors.

Like the other non-alcoholic beers on this list, it is gluten-reduced to less than 20 ppm.

Read our full review of Elvis AF here.

Ingredients: Water, barley, oats, wheat, hops, and yeast

Order from non-alcoholic drinks retailer Proof No More (within the United States). 


Omission Good to Go Golden – Gluten-Reduced

Omission Good to Go Golden

Unlike other breweries, Omission focuses their marketing message on being gluten-reduced. In fact, gluten intolerance was why the founder decided to create Omission.

What I like about Omission is their dedication to creating only gluten-reduced beers. They use the brewing enzyme Brewers Clarex, and each batch of beer is tested internally and by an independent lab for gluten content.

Every batch of Omission measures at levels less than 20PPM.

Ingredients: Barley malt, hops, water and yeast

Order from non-alcoholic drinks retailer Proof No More (within the United States). 


Asahi Dry Zero Free – Gluten-Reduced

Asahi DRY ZERO FREE

If you’re looking for an Asian beer, then Asahi Dry Zero Free is a great gluten-reduced Japanese non-alcoholic beer from the largest brewery in Japan.

I find that it resembles the original Asahi Dry even without the alcohol, although it does not offer the same full-bodied mouthfeel. That said, I still found it enjoyable with its crisp and refreshing taste.

My only gripe is that Asahi Dry Zero Free contains artificial sweetener, which I am not a fan of.

Ingredients: Water, Dietary Fibre, Soybean Peptides, Hops, Flavouring, Acidulant, Caramel Colouring, Antioxidant (Vitamin C), Sweetener (Potassium Acesulfame).

Order Asahi Dry Zero Free from Amazon United States.


Quick Look At The Role Of Gluten In Beer

Gluten is found naturally in wheat, rye, or barley – the three ingredients commonly used for brewing beers.

Since beer is usually brewed from malted barley which is a source of gluten, most alcoholic and non-alcoholic beers contain gluten.

Wheat and rye, which are two other common ingredients used during brewing, also contain gluten. Sometimes, the yeast used can also contain gluten if it was reused from other brews.

Whether you choose a light beer like a pilsner or a heavy beer like a stout, you can’t escape gluten in beer unless the beer is brewed with gluten-free ingredient alternatives or goes through a gluten-reduction process before bottling.

BrewDog-brewing-Cashmere-hops

How Gluten-Free Non-Alcoholic Beer Is Made

Method One: Switching To Gluten-Free Grains (Gluten-Free)

Instead of using malted barley, wheat and rye, an option to brew gluten-free beer is to use grains like quinoa, rice, corn, millet, or sorghum.

However, this is a challenging process even for experienced brewers, which is why hardly any breweries switch to gluten-free grains to brew gluten-free non-alcoholic beer.

This method is not popular in the non-alcoholic beer industry. While I have seen a few traditional breweries like ALT Brew and New Grist using alternative grains to brew gluten-free beers, I have not seen a non-alcoholic brewery doing the same.

Also Read: Is Non-Alcoholic Beer Low FODMAP?

Method Two: Applying A Treatment To Break Down Gluten (Gluten-Reduced)

The more common way of brewing gluten-reduced non-alcoholic beer is to continue using ingredients like malted barley, wheat and rye, but apply a treatment during the fermentation stage to break down the gluten.

Most brewers use an enzyme like Brewers Clarex® or White Labs Clarity Ferm at the start of the beer fermentation process to break apart the gluten protein chain. Brewers Clarex® enzymes cut the gluten proteins and break them down into harmless peptides.

Also Read: Is Non-Alcoholic Beer Bad For Your Stomach?

woman with a glass of beer

Is Gluten-Free Beer Actually Gluten Free?

Not all beers that claim to be gluten-free are actually gluten-free.

Truly gluten-free beers should be brewed with 100% gluten free ingredients, using ingredients like buckwheat, corn, or rice as a substitute for barley or wheat.

However, many gluten-free beers are actually gluten-reduced – which means they have some trace of gluten and could therefore trigger an immune response. 

In the US, the FDA classifies a product as “gluten-free” if it contains “less than 20 parts per million of gluten”, since levels under 20 are harder to detect accurately. This is the same requirement in the UK as well.

Here are some key facts you need to know about gluten-free beers:

  • Levels under 20 is generally safe for those with coeliac disease, although we always recommend checking with your doctor especially if you have severe gluten allergy.
  • The consumption of gluten-free beer is still controversial even amongst doctors, and according to Beyond Celiac, the current consensus between doctors is that gluten-removed beers are not yet safe for those with celiac disease.
  • While some beers have test levels of less than 20, they still have had contact with gluten-containing ingredients. This is why those beers are often referred to as “gluten-removed” or “gluten-reduced” since legally they cannot be labeled “gluten-free” if they are brewed from gluten-containing ingredients.

Recent research has also shown that the ELISA gluten test is unable to accurately measure gluten in beer. So that “gluten-free” beer might not be gluten free after all.

Conclusion

There are a lot more gluten-reduced than gluten-free non-alcoholic beer options. If you have coeliac disease, you might find that even the gluten-reduced options aren’t suitable for consumption.

For those with milder allergies to gluten and have no reaction to small traces to gluten, you’ll be glad to enjoy the ever-growing gluten-reduced options.

Also Read: Is Non-Alcoholic Wine Gluten Free? (+7 Gluten Free Non-Alcoholic Wines)

About the Author

Chrystabelle is a non-alcoholic drinks expert who has tasted and reviewed hundreds of non-alcoholic beers, non-alcoholic wines, hop water, and non-alcoholic spirits. Her journey to being sober curious and discovering non-alcoholic options began when she realized she had a tendency to binge drink. Reach her at chrystabelle@oneclubsober.com.

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