Lakefront Brewing: New Grist

Beer is definitely my favorite kind of alcoholic beverage.  It comes in so many different varieties, yet the major ingredients are so simple: water, hops, wheat/barley and yeast.  Sadly, I am no longer supposed to consume beer because barley contains gluten...no, I'm lucky enough that I don't have celiac disease, but I've been trying to stay on a gluten-free (GF) diet because it seems to be helping with my chronic daily headaches.  I do still indulge in non-GF beers on the regular, but I do it with the knowledge that I will probably not feel so great later, but the trade off is worth it to me because I really love beer.

While I love bread, cookies, cake, etc. the hardest thing to forgo/find a GF version of is BEER.  Sure, I could drink hard cider instead, but most of those are VERY sweet and get old after one drink.  GF beer is getting easier to find out at bars and in your local liquor store (Omission and Two Brothers both make good ones), but there still aren't many varieties.  One of the best GF beers I've had so far comes from Lakefront Brewery (ayoo Milwaukee): New Grist.

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New Grist is so called because it is made with sorghum and rice instead of barley or wheat.  It has a slightly sweet taste but still tastes enough like beer that I wouldn't confuse it with a hard cider.  New Grist is 5% alcohol contest by volume, which makes it more similar to session beer (as opposed to most craft beers which are >5-6%).  It is very light, which makes it great and refreshing in the summer.  Most of my friends have tried it and they appreciate it even though they can have as much gluten as their little hearts desire.

When we were in Milwaukee I got to try the new version of this beer: New Grist with Ginger!  If you like ginger ale you will like this beer.  One of my friends said she didn't even think it tasted like beer at all (so if you're one of those ladies--sorry, people--who doesn't enjoy beer, you might like this!).  I hope that New Grist with Ginger will be available this summer in the Chicagoland area, because I think it would pair very well with BBQ and hanging out on patios.