My number one concern when I thought I had to give up gluten? Beer.

And I'm not alone. Most beer-drinking adults would agree that you can take away their pasta, their Wonder bread --- but hands off the beer.

You see, beer is made by malting and brewing grains. Malting begins by soaking grain (usually barley) in water long enough to begin germination. The grain is then heated to stop germination and develop enzymes, which break down starches into sugars. Other grains, such as wheat, rye and oats can be malted and used in the brewing process to develop a variety of styles of beer. That kind of leaves out a big (and growing) population of those who can not digest gluten.

Well, lift up a frosty mug and get ready to fill it with a new brew. It turns out, there are many companies using an alternative to gluten-bearing malting ingredients, such as the most common: barley. New Grist, for instance, is brewed from sorghum, hops, water, rice and gluten-free yeast grown on molasses. "These ingredients are carefully combined to form a crisp and refreshing "session ale" sure to be popular among those with Celiac Disease, but really brewed for anyone with an appreciation for great tasting, handmade beer," its Web site claims.

A trip to the local Whole Foods produced three brands of beer free of gluten. Bottled among the microbrews were a small variety of gf options. I grabbed a case of Redbridge to sample. It was cleverly packaged, so I didn't notice the Anheuser-Busch symbol on the bottom. I must admit, I enjoy a lot a beer, but am not too fond of Bud/Busch varieties. But a few friends, and non-celiac Bud drinkers, gave me a big thumb's up!

Next up, I'm trying Bard's Tale Beer: Dragon's Gold and Lakefront Brewery's New Grist Ale. Bard's was started by a few fellow "beer snobs" like myself, who were diagnosed with celiac and wanted to continue enjoying a good brew. Bard's is available at local beer stores, so I'm hopeful it will be a better fit for my beer palate.

Cheers!

Click here to see gluten-free beers from around the world!