Brewery releases gluten-free beer

MILTON — Gluten-intolerant beer drinkers looking to enjoy their favorite ale without the harmful side effects can now do so thanks to a local brewer.

Later this month, Dogfish Head is set to release its latest seasonal beer, “Tweason’ale.” The beverage will be on store shelves later this month, the first of four releases this year and will sell for approximately $9.99 for a case of four bottles.

Company Vice President Mariah Calagione said the beer has “fruity hints” in it and is something eagerly anticipated by both food writers and bloggers who focus on gluten-free products.

“We know it’s something we and the beer community have been getting requests on, and we said why not try it?” she said. “We don’t know how it’s going to do, but there’s definitely interest in it. I don’t know the numbers of how many people are affected by it, so I don’t know if it’s growing or whether the side-effects are being known.”

Gluten is a protein commonly found in foods made from wheat and related grains such as barley and rye. Gluten intolerance, which is also known as celiac disease, affects 5-10 percent of Americans and causes damage to the lining of the small intestines, preventing them from absorbing parts of food. Symptoms of gluten intolerance range from various intestinal problems, sickness, nausea and other maladies.

The beer, which began production in the summer, was brewed with sorghum, strawberries from Dover-based Fifer Orchards and buckwheat honey, and was a part of a “long and intensive” process according to the company’s website. Dogfish President Sam Calagione said the beer’s inception came from customer feedback.

“The No. 1 request that came from our pub regulars, through our website, twitter and Facebook, was to do a gluten-free beer,” he said. “We’ve gladly responded to the requests.”

Initially, Tweason’ale was tested at Dogfish Head’s Rehoboth Beach brew-pub in order to perfect the recipe. Mariah Calagione said it was easier to experiment with the formula with the pub’s five barrels than risking having to make the changes at its 100-barrel brewery.

“When we play around with the recipe, we serve it at the pub first,” she said. “The main thing we get out of that is we can get an immediate impact from consumers.”

Mariah Calagione said with the beers in the process of shipping, it will take time to find out whether the drinks will catch on with consumers who are not affected by gluten intolerance.

“When we began selling it at the brewery we had a guy come in and buy four cases,” she said. “He was ecstatic because he loved beer and hadn’t been able to drink it because of his diet. It will be interesting to see whether people who can drink our regular beers with no problem will gravitate to this.”

All About Beer with Bill & Sheila

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