[dilettantesteph]

I just thought I would share with you all that I got a positive test for gluten with New Grist beer. It was with an EZ Gluten test from ELISA tek. The test goes to 10 ppm and the positive was a weak one. Glad I saved myself from getting glutened. Hope I save some others tool

[Lisa]

Are these the same test strips that ShayFL tested (at her own expense) for us and determined a lack of accuracy?

http://www.celiac.com/gluten-free/index.ph...52627&st=75

RESULTS ARE IN!! Read EVERYTHING I write here BEFORE you make up your own mind.

Bottom Line For Me: A Waste of Money

Why? Both food items that were known gluten-free tested NEG as expected. Whole Wheat pasta tested High POS as expected. BUT the Wheat based Soy Sauce tested NEG. The WHOLE point of these tests is to detect minute amounts of gluten (they claim down to 10 ppm). Wheat based soy sauce was expected to be POS, but was NEG. That makes them completely useless to me. I am looking for "hidden" gluten, so the fact that it gives whole wheat pastas a POS doesnt help me at all. The fact that it gives a NEG for items that are known gluten-free doesnt help me either (they were the controls in this experiment). The fact that it gives wheat based soy sauce a NEG, makes them (the test strips) dangerous for me to depend on.

Many in here have gotten sick from soy sauce. Many.

"One drop of soy sauce or strand of spaghetti sets off an auto-immune reaction, and antibodies start destroying the nutrient-absorbing capability of the gut."

"regular soy sauce contains 40-60% wheat"

Here are my pictures:

www.terracegallery.com/Nongluten1.jpg

www.terracegallery.com/Nogluten2.jpg

www.terracegallery.com/Nogluten3.jpg

www.terracegallery.com/Gluten1.jpg

www.terracegallery.com/Gluten2.jpg

www.terracegallery.com/Gluten3.jpg

I followed the directions to a T. I am the most anal person in the world. Yes, I admit it. I cleaned the surface area, washed my hands and put on new gloves for each test. I used their little measuring spoon to put the exact amount into the extraction solution (.05 g). I then shook the vials for 2 minutes. I set a timer. Sat them down and left undisturbed for 5 minutes. Again I used a timer. Took exactly 10 drops from the upper 1/8 inch (clearest sections per the instructions) and put them into the test tube and then put the EZ Gluten test strip in arrows pointing down and left undisturbed for 10 minutes. I timed it. I removed the test strips and compared them to the results card.

The instruction pamphlet says: For FOOD TESTING ONLY (They must have a reason for this). It also states that a negative result does not necessarily indicate a complete absence of gluten in the product being tested. This statement alone makes them worthless to me. The whole point is to detect gluten. It goes on to say ELISA Technologies, Inc. makes no warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, except that the materials from which its products are made are of standard quality. (i.e. they do not guarantee that they are accurate, only that they use quality materials to produce the strips.) Buyer assumes all risk and liability resulting from use of this product.


MIKE: I know you REALLY believe in these test strips and I suggest you KEEP believing. There is great power in what one believes. If you feel they are valid and work for you, they are likely to continue to do so. But for me - NO - they did not prove valid.

EVERYTHING I have written here is the result of my own experiments with 4 EZ Gluten test strips using 2 known gluten foods and 2 known gluten-free foods. My OPINION is that they are a waste of money. You might have a different experience with EZ Gluten test strips. You might draw a different conclusion/opinion than I did. It is entirely up to you to decide whether these test strips are right for you. I have nothing against nor any affiliation with ELISA Technologies, Inc.

[dilettantesteph]

The guy who developed the tests said that they don't pick up the gluten in soy sauce because it has been broken down into too many little pieces by hydrolysis to be able to be recognized by the test. The test is not accurate for soy sauce. It can, however, detect the presence of gluten in 99% of other foods.

[GFLisa]

My husband was glutened by New Grist a few times (same batch). He had one beer and then a fairly quick reaction. He wasn't certain it was the beer, but he didn't drink anymore. A few days later he tried again and had the same reaction. He contacted them and they sent a courier to our house to pick up the beer for testing. I don't remember if he heard back from them about that... I'll have to ask him.

[lobita]

GFLisa, on Feb 1 2009, 04:08 PM, said:

My husband was glutened by New Grist a few times (same batch). He had one beer and then a fairly quick reaction. He wasn't certain it was the beer, but he didn't drink anymore. A few days later he tried again and had the same reaction. He contacted them and they sent a courier to our house to pick up the beer for testing. I don't remember if he heard back from them about that... I'll have to ask him.

*Gasp* Super scary! Glad my bf is making mead and gluten-free beer now.

[cynicaltomorrow]

dilettantesteph, on Feb 1 2009, 07:10 AM, said:

I just thought I would share with you all that I got a positive test for gluten with New Grist beer. It was with an EZ Gluten test from ELISA tek. The test goes to 10 ppm and the positive was a weak one. Glad I saved myself from getting glutened. Hope I save some others tool

I've never had a reaction.. but I can't stand New Grist. The bitterness is too much. Just like Redbridge. If you want a good gluten-free beer, try Green's from Belgium. They're made with sorghum, millet, buckwheat and rice, I think. No bitterness!

[dilettantesteph]

cynicaltomorrow, on Feb 3 2009, 11:55 AM, said:

I've never had a reaction.. but I can't stand New Grist. The bitterness is too much. Just like Redbridge. If you want a good gluten-free beer, try Green's from Belgium. They're made with sorghum, millet, buckwheat and rice, I think. No bitterness!

I got a positive with them too: Discovery Amber Ale. Again, probably below 20 ppm for the not very sensitive types.but not good for the more sensitive ones. I tasted the New Grist and I agree, it wasn't very good.

[Russ Klisch]

In response to dilettantesteph posting about using the EZ Gluten test from ELISA tek and receiving a positive test to New Grist I'd like to comment that it is not possible to test a fermented product and receive an accurate response. Just as you commented about the gluten in soy sauce (which is a fermented product) being broken down by hydrolysis, the same is true with the gluten molecule in barley. The only way to test for gluten in beer is to test the beer before it is fermented. Each batch of beer that has ever been brewed from day one has had an unfermented sample tested by FARRP at the University of Nebraska, and we have never tested positive for gluten. I have the results at the brewery and if you would like to get a copy of any batch, please call me at 414-372-8800 ext. 131 and I'll fax you a copy of the results.

Sincerely,

Russell J. Klisch
President - Lakefront Brewery, Inc.

[dilettantesteph]

Russ Klisch, on Mar 3 2009, 09:37 PM, said:

In response to dilettantesteph posting about using the EZ Gluten test from ELISA tek and receiving a positive test to New Grist I'd like to comment that it is not possible to test a fermented product and receive an accurate response. Just as you commented about the gluten in soy sauce (which is a fermented product) being broken down by hydrolysis, the same is true with the gluten molecule in barley. The only way to test for gluten in beer is to test the beer before it is fermented. Each batch of beer that has ever been brewed from day one has had an unfermented sample tested by FARRP at the University of Nebraska, and we have never tested positive for gluten. I have the results at the brewery and if you would like to get a copy of any batch, please call me at 414-372-8800 ext. 131 and I'll fax you a copy of the results.

Sincerely,

Russell J. Klisch
President - Lakefront Brewery, Inc.

To what ppm level is it tested?

[modiddly16]

I think Bards is the best gluten-free beer that is on the market.

[Jestgar]

Russ Klisch, on Mar 3 2009, 08:37 PM, said:

In response to dilettantesteph posting about using the EZ Gluten test from ELISA tek and receiving a positive test to New Grist I'd like to comment that it is not possible to test a fermented product and receive an accurate response. Just as you commented about the gluten in soy sauce (which is a fermented product) being broken down by hydrolysis, the same is true with the gluten molecule in barley. The only way to test for gluten in beer is to test the beer before it is fermented. Each batch of beer that has ever been brewed from day one has had an unfermented sample tested by FARRP at the University of Nebraska, and we have never tested positive for gluten. I have the results at the brewery and if you would like to get a copy of any batch, please call me at 414-372-8800 ext. 131 and I'll fax you a copy of the results.

Sincerely,

Russell J. Klisch
President - Lakefront Brewery, Inc.

There are no gluten ingredients in this beer, and, apparently, they test the mash before brewing to test for cross contamination, because post brewing tests would give a false positive.

I don't know what part of the gluten molecule the testing strips test, but it IS possible that during fermentation, some proteins could be broken down to a piece that cross-reacts with what the strips are designed to test.

It's also possible for the alcohol, or the pH of the beer to invalidate the test strips. I don't know anything about these strips, but as a general comment on ELISAs, accuracy is dependent on pH, salt, the kind of salt, the amount of protein you start with, etc. It's possible to generate a false positive just by starting with too much protein.

[janetw]

dilettantesteph, on Mar 4 2009, 08:00 AM, said:

To what ppm level is it tested?

I certainly trust FARRP's official labratory analysis over the EZ Gluten test strip. Lakefront is a responsible company who takes their gluten-free products seriously.

[ravenwoodglass]

Russ Klisch, on Mar 3 2009, 08:37 PM, said:

In response to dilettantesteph posting about using the EZ Gluten test from ELISA tek and receiving a positive test to New Grist I'd like to comment that it is not possible to test a fermented product and receive an accurate response. Just as you commented about the gluten in soy sauce (which is a fermented product) being broken down by hydrolysis, the same is true with the gluten molecule in barley. The only way to test for gluten in beer is to test the beer before it is fermented. Each batch of beer that has ever been brewed from day one has had an unfermented sample tested by FARRP at the University of Nebraska, and we have never tested positive for gluten. I have the results at the brewery and if you would like to get a copy of any batch, please call me at 414-372-8800 ext. 131 and I'll fax you a copy of the results.

Sincerely,

Russell J. Klisch
President - Lakefront Brewery, Inc.

I have had New Grist a couple of times with no issues. I don't use the test strips and have no interest in using them as they have been shown to be not only really expensive but also unreliable.
I do have a question out of curiosity though.
The results from the soy sauce was a false negative, as we saw. Can you or anyone please explain how fermenting would cause this to be a false postive if you don't use gluten ingredients? You mention that it is because of the fermenting process, do you use Brewer's yeast for the fermentation? And if so do you test the yeast for gluten content before adding it to the other ingredients. I am not saying that New Grist is not safe I am just wondering how the fermentation of a beverage could make gluten test postive.

[lovegrov]

The EZ gluten test strip test is so unreliable that it's ridiculous to base any decisions on it. New Grist is gluten-free.

richard

[janetw]

Per their website they use gluten-free yeast grown on molasses.