New Gluten Free Beer ?

[WayneB]

I recently read on the web that Anheuser Busch is coming out with a gluten-free beer called "Red Bridge Sorghum" !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[eKatherine]

I recently read on the web that Anheuser Busch is coming out with a gluten-free beer called "Red Bridge Sorghum" !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If it achieves general distribution, I'll buy it. It would be nice to have an occasional beer.

[VegasCeliacBuckeye]

Open Original Shared Link

A-B Readies a Gluten-Free Beer

Has registered name “Red Bridge Sorghum Beer.”

In its ongoing quest to mine micro-niches for growth, Anheuser-Busch appears close to rolling out a beer made with sorghum.

The brewer on July 31 filed a brand label registration with the state of Missouri for a product called Red Bridge Sorghum beer. A-B previously had filed a trademark application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

A-B appears intent on jumping on a small bandwagon of brewers making beer with sorghum instead of barley. The dominant industry leader already has demonstrated its commitment to attacking tiny niches by rolling out organic beers.

Beers made with sorghum can be consumed by people with a condition called celiac disease. Exposure to gluten -- a protein found in barley -- triggers digestive problems in people with the disease.

Lakefront Brewery, a Milwaukee craft brewer, recently launched a gluten-free beer called New Grist to great success, as described by this story from the July 3 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The beer is available in one-third of the country and has been picked up by big natural food retailers such as Whole Foods Market Inc. and Wild Oats Markets Inc., according to the story.

That article noted the King was interested in this niche:

The gluten-free market also is drawing attention from St. Louis- based Anheuser-Busch Inc., the nation's largest brewer. People with celiac disease attending a support group in the St. Louis area were recently given samples of an experimental gluten-free beer developed by Anheuser-Busch, according to Segura, of Lakefront.

Anheuser-Busch has not begun test marketing a gluten-free beer, "although the category is of interest to us," said Pat McGauley, vice president of innovations/new products, in a statement.

The possibility of Anheuser-Busch's entry into the gluten-free market doesn't worry Segura. Such a move would raise the level of awareness for all gluten-free products, including New Grist, he said.

Once again, Brew Blog is working on a story about innovation. Drop us a line with your thoughts on the best recent innovations in the beer business.

UPDATE: The Brookston Beer Bulletin has a thoughtful take on gluten-free beers. Short story: expect to see more of them. Brookston calls gluten-free beer the "next big little niche."

[par18]

If it achieves general distribution, I'll buy it. It would be nice to have an occasional beer.

Hopefully at a "reasonable price". Imports are cheaper than most gluten-free beers ,that is if you can even get the gluten-free beer.

Tom

[Daxin]

I will also keep an eye out in my local beer store!! YEAH!!!