UK brewer wins best gluten-free beer award

Suffolk-based brewer St Peter’s G-Free beer has been named Europe’s Best Gluten-Free Beer at the World Beer Awards.

The brewer, which now exports to 32 countries around the world, is also targeting the estimated hundreds of thousands of people in the UK who are affected by coeliac disease, with a gift pack of its G-Free range. St Peter’s brews a G-Free and Dark G-Free beer.

Colin Cordy, the brewer’s managing director, told the drinks business that he is very proud of the beer and the positive reaction it has received from those suffering with coeliac disease.

“Everyone in the team was delighted to hear of our success,” Cordy said. “It took us back to the beginning of 2006 when I challenged our head brewer and brewing team to come up with a gluten free beer that would just as tasty as one of our normal wheat or barley based equivalents.

“After a lot of research and tastings, G-Free was ‘born’ and everyone agreed that the challenging brief had been fully met. Once launched, consumers around the world agreed and, to this day, we receive a lot of enthusiastic emails thanking St Peter’s for making a beer suitable for coeliacs that does, indeed, taste as good, if not better, than the beers consumers enjoyed before having to stop drinking beer because of a cereal allergy.

“Consequently, we are very proud of G-Free and, although we know it will never be one of our biggest sellers (due to the percentage of Coeliacs amongst the adult population), it has an important part in our product portfolio.”

The World Beer Award judges praised the 4.2% abv G-Free beer for having “lots of hoppy character, with a bitter finish”, the Dark G-Free beer, which is 3.9%, is described as “a full bodied beer brewed with Sovereign bittering hops.

Both beers have already proved popular in North America, where retails sales are expected to exceed £500,000 this year.