Gluten Free Home Brewing Blog
Gluten-Free Hefeweizen That Tastes Like the Real Thing
In this episode of The Underground Brewery, we drop a full brew day featuring a gluten-free hefeweizen crafted with millet malt, buckwheat malt, flaked quinoa, and rolled oats. They said it was indistinguishable from a traditional barley-based hefeweizen.
If you’ve been chasing that classic German wheat beer profile — soft body, pillowy head, and subtle banana notes — without the gluten, this recipe is worth a look.
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2026
March
This newsletter explores the essential role of yeast nutrients and roasted malts in gluten-free brewing. Learn when and how to use Fermaid O, Fermaid K, and Go-Ferm Protect™ for optimal fermentation performance. We also highlight our full range of roasted malts—from Light Roasted Millet for blonde ales to Dark Roasted Vienna for i...
How Can Darker Be Lighter
Every so often, we hear from a customer who thinks the malt they received was mislabeled. This often happens when ordering Dark and Gas Hog rice malts, or Gas Hog and Pitch rice malts together. It can also happen with various Caramel millet malts, or even with buckwheat malt.
Most people think of kilning and roasting malt as a way to deepen color—but push the heat too far or too long, and the opposite can happen. After consulting multiple sources, including AI, I could not find any studies spec...
The Use of Exogenous Enzymes and Mash Regime in Brewing Gluten Free Beer
Unlock the full potential of your brewing process with Termamyl SC DS, Ondea Pro, and Ceremix Flex, and learn how to maximize starch conversion using falling and rising step mash techniques. Whether you’re a home brewer or running a gluten-free brewing operation, understanding how to use these specialized enzymes can elevate your beer’s flavor, body, and clarity while optimizing sugar extraction for fermentation.
Termamyl SC DS: Advanced Alpha-Amylase for Brewing
Termamyl SC DS is a high-pe...
Brewtubers Better Than Barley Mexican Lager
This grain to glass video features two beers for the price of one! In this video, Brewtubers takes us through their normal barley Mexican Lager recipe and attempt to clone it with 100% gluten free ingredients. According to the fine folks at Brewtubers, they said the gluten-free version is better than their barley based original recipe!
GLUTEN FREE MEXICAN LAGER RECIPE | 5 gallon batch
8 lbs Pale Millet Malt (Grouse Malting)
4 lbs 3 oz Flaked Corn
24 mL Ondea Pro Liquid Enzyme
24 mL Ceremix ...
Low & Non-Alcohol via Cold Extraction
Each year around this time, I receive emails, phone calls and text messages asking about brewing low alcohol and/or no alcohol beer. For many years I referred folks to an article from Brew Your Own Magazine titled 'Brew a Great Non-Alcoholic Beer'. This article was removed (or relocated) from their website at an unknown time. But essentially, it covered the process of removing alcohol post fermentation by cooking off the alcohol from the beer, like cooking off the alcohol when using wine while c...
Should You Adjust Your Mash pH
The short answer is that most home brewers probably don't. So why does this come up? pH entered the conversation when GFHBers began discovering and experimenting with new exogenous enzymes. Specifically, Ceremix Flex and Ondea Pro. Since neither of these enzymes were specifically designed with brewing gluten free beer in mind, it took a lot of R&D over a long period of time to develop best practices. Originally, many brewers went through the extra step to maintain the 4.2 to 4.8 pH range recomme...
Grouse Malt House Collaboration Series
Grouse Malt House and Gluten Free Home Brewing have partnered to bring you a new collaborative series. Head over to grousemalthouse.com/news/ to see each month’s post, as well as some other articles Grouse has done over the years!
2024
May The 4th Be With You
We are celebrating the 27th Annual Big Brew AKA May The 4th (be with you) with this new Grouse recipe developed exclusively for GFHB. Now, go brew and enjoy The Phantom Pilsner.
February - Amber Ale Recipe
Grouse shares a craft Amber A...
Sour Beers - Never Easier Than Now!
The history of sour beer is long and complex, and is intertwined with past brewing practices. It is generally agreed that brewing beer dates back about 5,000 years. However, what we would consider beer has only existed for the past couple hundred years. There are many websites and books that you can read about when yeast was (knowingly) used in beer production, when and why hops and malt became widely used, the role sour beer played in beer's history, etc.
Sour beer, to some degree, has been pr...
Easy Gluten Free Extract Brew
This start to finish brewing tutorial goes over each step to brew a great gluten free beer made from a small about of gluten free malt and sorghum syrup. There is minimal equipment required, we reach a boil quickly, and are able to pitch the yeast even quicker. No wort chiller required!
~Cheers!...
Gluten Free Malt Chart - updated May 2022
A lot has changed since our July 2019 blog An Exploration of Gluten Free Malts which included the widely used but now out-of-date malt chart. Therefore, it was about time to update the malt chart to remove some since discontinued malts, and add the new and exciting malt offerings. This is also a great opportunity to centralize the extensive research that has been compiled throughout our blogs and tutorials in regards to PPG. Below the updated malt chart we discuss PPG in the three categories den...
Brewing A Gluten Free Extract Beer For Beginners - Outro
This series of short videos provided the new brewer the step-by-step process of brewing a gluten free beer. Feel free to contact us with any questions!
Watch the previous episode here.
~Cheers!...
Brewing A Gluten Free Extract Beer For Beginners - Primary Fermentation, Aeration & Pitching Yeast
This short video provides a new brewer the step-by-step process of using a transferring the wort to primary fermentation, aerating the wort, and dry pitching the yeast.
Watch the previous episode here.
~Cheers!...
Brewing A Gluten Free Extract Beer For Beginners - Ice Bath & Sanitation
This short video provides a new brewer the step-by-step process of using a sink for an ice bath to reduce the temperature of the wort to a safe temperature to transfer to primary fermentation. Also discussed is sanitation of the fermentation bucket and anything else used from the post-boil forward.
Watch the previous episode here.
~Cheers!...
Brewing A Gluten Free Extract Beer For Beginners - Flameout & Using An Ice Bath
This short video provides a new brewer the step-by-step process of using a sink for an ice bath to reduce the temperature of the wort to a safe temperature to transfer to primary fermentation.
Watch the previous episode here.
~Cheers!...
Brewing A Gluten Free Extract Beer For Beginners - Using Maltodextrin & Discussing The Ice Bath
This short video provides a new brewer the step-by-step process of preparing and adding maltodextrin to the wort during the boil. Also discussed is using a sink for an ice bath to reduce the temperature of the wort to a safe temperature to transfer to primary fermentation.
Watch the previous episode here.
~Cheers!...
Brewing A Gluten Free Extract Beer For Beginners - 2nd Hops Addition
This short video provides a new brewer the step-by-step process of adding hops to the wort following the hops schedule. Also discussed is the addition of adjuncts and any other ingredients added during the boil.
Watch the previous episode here.
~Cheers!...
Brewing A Gluten Free Extract Beer For Beginners - Hot Break & 1st Hops Addition
This short video provides a new brewer the step-by-step process of adding hops to the wort following the hot break. The hot break and first hops addition are also the two most probable times for a potential boil over. This is discussed in this episode as well as how to prevent a boil over.
Watch the previous episode here.
~Cheers!...
Brewing A Gluten Free Extract Beer For Beginners - Boil Off Rate & Volume Of Extract
This short video provides a new brewer the step-by-step process of adding different sources of fermentable sugar to the wort, followed by starting the boil. There are two factors discussed in this episode: the boil off rate and the volume of extracts added to the wort. The preboil volume in the brew kettle or large stock pot needs to take into account how long and how rapidly the wort will be boiling. This ensures reaching the target post-boil volume. Additionally, any extracts added to the wort...
Brewing A Gluten Free Extract Beer For Beginners - Start The Boil
This short video provides a new brewer the step-by-step process of adding different sources of fermentable sugar to the wort, followed by starting the boil. At this point a small amount of gluten free malt was steeped and the runnings collected in the brew kettle or large stock pot. Now the primary source of sugar will be added and dissolved in the near boiling wort. Be sure not to scorch the extract when adding it to the brew kettle by gently stirring. Once the wort has returned to a rolling bo...
Brewing A Gluten Free Extract Beer For Beginners - Sparging Malt After Steeping
This short video provides a new brewer the step-by-step process of sparging a small amount of gluten free beer malt. While technically this could be considered a partial mash recipe rather than an extract recipe, we are still getting the fermentable sugars from the extracts that will be used in an upcoming video in this series. By using even a small amount of gluten free malt, it will impart a significant amount of color, flavor and other attributes to the finished beer. Sparging the malt after ...
Brewing A Gluten Free Extract Beer For Beginners - Recirculation During Steeping & Prepping Sparge
This short video provides a new brewer the step-by-step process of recirculating a small amount of gluten free beer malt while steeping in a brew kettle or large stock pot. While technically this could be considered a partial mash recipe rather than an extract recipe, we are still getting the fermentable sugars from the extracts that will be used in an upcoming video in this series. By using even a small amount of gluten free malt, it will impart a significant amount of color, flavor and other a...
Brewing A Gluten Free Extract Beer For Beginners - Steeping Malt
This short video provides a new brewer the step-by-step process of steeping a small amount of gluten free beer malt. While technically this could be considered a partial mash recipe rather than an extract recipe, we are still getting the fermentable sugars from the extracts that will be used in an upcoming video in this series. By using even a small amount of gluten free malt, it will impart a significant amount of color, flavor and other attributes to the finished beer.
Brewing A Gluten Free Extract Beer For Beginners - Intro
This series of short videos provides a new brewer the step-by-step process of brewing a gluten free beer. Starting with steeping some pre-milled gluten free malt from GlutenFreeHomeBrewing.com, the boil process including hops additions, to using an ice bath to bring the hot wort down to a safe temperature to pitch the yeast.
~Cheers!...
BrewZilla All Grain Brewing System With Pump - The Mash Out and Boil
GFHBer Kim takes you through the step-by-step process of mash in on your new BrewZilla !
Read the BrewZilla Gen 3.1.1 Instructions here!
Watch the previous video blog The Mash here.
~Cheers!...
BrewZilla All Grain Brewing System With Pump - The Mash
GFHBer Kim takes you through the step-by-step process of mash in on your new BrewZilla !
Read the BrewZilla Gen 3.1.1 Instructions here!
Watch the previous video blog The Setup here.
Watch the next video blog The Mash Out and Boil here.
~Cheers!...
BrewZilla All Grain Brewing System With Pump - The Setup
GFHBer Kim takes you through the step-by-step process of setting up your new BrewZilla so that you are ready to go on brew day!
Read the BrewZilla Gen 3.1.1 Instructions here!
Watch the next video blog The Mash here!
~Cheers!...
Using A Counterflow Wort Chiller To Conduct Reverse Step Mash (The Grainfather)
Let's talk about wort chillers! Most home brewers are familiar with the trusted immersion chiller. This is a tried and true method of cooling a wort relatively quickly. During the summer months when the tap water is not very cold I will use a second immersion chiller in a bucket of ice to get the water as cold as possible before it reaches the immersion chiller in the brew kettle. (Full disclosure; I use the same immersion chiller during the summer in combination with my counterflow wort chiller...
Setting Up Your Monster Mills MM-2Pro GF Malt Edition - Part 3
Now that you have set the gap setting on your Monster Mills MM-2Pro GF Malt Edition mill you are ready to start milling gluten free malt. GFHB has created the following video blogs to help simplify the process.
~Cheers!...
Setting Up Your Monster Mills MM-2Pro GF Malt Edition - Part 2
Now that you have assembled your Monster Mills MM-2Pro GF Malt Edition mill you are ready to set the gap setting. GFHB has created the following video blogs to help simplify the process.
~Cheers!...
Setting Up Your Monster Mills MM-2Pro GF Malt Edition - Part 1
Congratulations on your purchase of your Monster Mills MM-2Pro Gluten Free Malt Edition mill! GFHB and Monster Brewing Hardware have teamed up to offer the only roller grain mill specifically designed for gluten free malt. This roller mill design has been modified for the smaller buckwheat, corn, millet and rice malts used in brewing gluten free beer. Each mill includes very detailed setup, operation and maintenance instructions from Monster Brewing. GFHB has created the following video blogs to...
How Ondea Pro Works: Some Preliminary Thoughts
Shared with permission by Otherwise Brewing
Ondea Pro is a pretty exciting development for gluten-free brewing, and over at Otherwise Brewing, we’ve been experimenting with it a lot. As such, I wanted to add some insights to complement the excellent primer that Jason Yerger and JP Bierly put together in January.
We’ve seen some results that match up with what Jason and JP have found, but we’ve also seen a few differences. I’ve also conducted a number of controlled mini-mash experiments to try ...
Increase Efficiency By Improving Your Grist
This year has been one of growth and expansion at Bierly Brewing, a dedicated gluten free brewery in McMinnville, Oregon, and we’ve been very focused on bringing in new equipment that will help us meet our production goals with quality and efficiency. We brew all of our beer two barrels at a time, but until recently our grain bills were limited to 42 pounds or less. At this scale, we were able to get by with a corona-style mill to grind all of our grain. We used a Wondermill Jr. and it came with...
Assessment of Flaked Quinoa PPG & Lovibond
Brewing gluten free beer has been a collaborative effort that has included everyone from the newest home brewer to the most experienced dedicated gluten free brewmaster. We appreciate the enthusiasm the GFHBing community has for sharing what they learn about brewing gluten free beer so that we may continue to improve the mash and brew process, and of course make amazing beer! So of course we were super excited when Aaron from the upcoming dedicated gluten free brewery in San Francisco ...
Brewing Gluten Free Beer Using The Grainfather Part 6
In this episode we use a 1000 micron stainless steel mesh screen and compare the results with the 500 micron stainless steel mesh screen we have been using up until now. We also offer some helpful tricks to installing the bottom plate into the grain basket of The Grainfather.
Cheers!...
Brewing Gluten Free Beer Using The Grainfather Part 5
How to brew gluten free beer using the ready to use HotRod Heat Stick with the Grainfather Connect.
Cheers!...
Brewing Gluten Free Beer Using The Grainfather Part 4
Follow up video to our first brew session using the Grainfather where we share our experience and answer questions and comments submitted by fellow GFHBers.
Cheers!...
Brewing Gluten Free Beer Using The Grainfather Part 3
How to brew gluten free beer using the Grainfather Connect using the recommended modifications.
Here are a couple tips and tricks submitted by GFHBer Shawn H:
1) Recirculate to heat strike water faster, or you can do a delayed timer (works great).
2) Press 'finish sparge' once you pull the basket so the wort heats up while you're sparging.
3) The chiller works great if you want to do a high gelatinization and then drop to saccharification temps. Just stop chil...
Brewing Gluten Free Beer Using The Grainfather Part 2
How to compensate for the 3.6 quarts of liquid below the inner basket and a couple inexpensive modifications before we start to brew our first gluten free beer using the Grainfather All Grain Brewing system.
Cheers!...
Brewing Gluten Free Beer Using The Grainfather Part 1
Before we can brew using The Grainfather All Grain Brewing system, we need to modify the inner basket (or mash tun) with a stainless steel mesh screen to prevent gluten free malt from passing the bottom perforated plate.
Watch Part 2 Here
Cheers!
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...Yeast Must Knows For Brewing Gluten Free Beer
First thing first, if you are brewing gluten free beer, you will need to use dry yeast. Liquid yeasts are cultured in a medium made partially from barley and will contaminate your beer. Dry yeast is cultivated on beet sugar, cane sugar or molasses and can be pitched directly to the carboy. If you make a yeast starter, it must also be made gluten free too.1
Although there are fewer available varieties of dry yeast, there are quite a few more varieties than just a few years ago. Fermentis and Lall...
Suggested Mangrove Jack's Dry Yeast by Beer Style
According to Mangrove Jack’s, beer yeast works in three stages: Lag Phase, Fermentation, and Maturation. After pitching the yeast, a lag period of 12 to 24 hours before active fermentation starts is normal. Vigorous fermentation may take up to 48 hours to occur. The finished beer will reach premium flavor potential after approximately 4 weeks maturation; 1-2 weeks fermentation followed by 2-3 weeks bottle conditioning. However, some exceptions include Lagers, Strong Ales, and Bavarian Wheat beer...
Suggested Lallemand Dry Yeast by Beer Style
According to Lellemand, rehydrating dry yeast is a crucial step to ensure rapid and complete fermentation. The following effects have been observed with non-hydrated yeast under specific brewing conditions: longer diacetyl stand, longer fermentation time, longer lag phase, stuck fermentation, and poor utilization of maltotriose.
The following chart is an excerpt from 'Brewing Catalog' by Lellemand
|
Belgian |
…use… |
Abbaye |
|
Saison |
…use… |
Belle Saison |
|
Amer... |
Suggested Fermentis Dry Yeast by Beer Style
Yeast attributes a lot to the finished beer. Do you want a dry or full bodied beer? Are you making an Ale or a Lager? According to Fermentis, beer yeast is able to produce or contribute to body, mouth feel, flavor and many aromas which could typically be grouped into four categories: neutral, fruity, floral and spicy. But the expression of the yeast onto the final beer depends on factors including pitching rate and fermentation temperature, as well as the effect of oxygen.
The following chart i...
High Gravity Gluten Free Brewing
While the early advances in brewing gluten free beer can be chronicled on the GFHB facebook page, much of what is rapidly evolving can be found here on the GFHB blog! It seems like every few months we are updating our brewing recommendations with the latest and greatest information. And although the gluten free brewing community has seemingly advanced more in the last couple of years than it did in the last decade, there hasn't been much information about brewing high gravity beers.
Matt S. fro...
Partial Mash vs Partial Grain - Part 2
The first episode in this two part blog may be found here: https://www.glutenfreehomebrewing.com/BLOG/96/Partial-Mash-vs-Partial-Grain--Part-1.php
In this second episode in our two part blog, we are going to review the two gluten free Amber Ales which we brewed simultaneously using the partial mash and partial grain with BIAB option brewing methods. The same grain bill was used in each batch of beer, and the amount of sorghum syrup was calculated based on the projected conversion and efficiency...
Catching Up with Andrew Lavery
This is a blog collaboration with the Zero Tolerance Gluten-Free Home Brew Club of Portland Oregon. Thank you Joe Morris from Zero Tolerance for reaching out to the worldwide gluten free brewing community and coming up with the great questions in this epic blog!
Most GFHBers have read Andrew Lavery’s 2006 Gluten Free Brewing and Gluten Free Malting tutorials. These tutorials have been referenced heavily for years where they are the starting point for many gluten-free brewers. Andrew has graciousl...
Partial Mash vs Partial Grain - Part 1
In this two part video blog we are simultaneously brewing two gluten free Amber Ales using the partial mash and partial grain with BIAB option brewing methods. The same grain bill was used in each batch of beer, and the amount of sorghum syrup was calculated based on the projected conversion and efficiency of each brewing method. In the next episode we will discuss the math results and compare the two beers.
Go to the next episode here: https://www.glutenfreehomebrewing.com/BLOG/99/Partial-M...
Close Up Look At Milled Millet And Buckwheat Malt
Close up examples of milled millet and buckwheat malt. A side by side comparison of six different examples of milled millet and buckwheat malt used for brewing gluten free beer.
In our last video we discussed and showed examples of milled hulled and dehulled or “naked” rice malt. Today we are going to discuss and show examples of milled millet and buckwheat malt. Malt is stored unmilled and is only milled prior to using it; milled malt that is not used can degrade quickly. While we make spec...
Close Up Look At Milled Rice Malt
Close up examples of milled hulled and dehulled or "naked" rice malt. A side by side comparison of six different examples of milled rice malt used for brewing gluten free beer.
In our last video we compared the dimensional weight of gluten free malt. Today we are going to discuss and show examples of milled hulled and dehulled or “naked” rice malt. Malt is stored unmilled and is only milled prior to using it; milled malt that is not used can degrade quickly. While we make specific mill gap s...
Assessment of Water Absorption Across Various Gluten-Free Grains
Introduction:
This research was carried out by Ben Barnes, undergraduate senior chemistry student at Southern Oregon University, on behalf of Gluten Free Home Brewing. The purpose of this research is to determine volume of water absorbed by various gluten-free grains during the Single Infusion Mash procedure (link included at end of report).
Experimental procedure:
A water bath with an initial temperature of 71.1 °C (160 °F) was prepared. In this experiment, there were eight total samples: t...
BIABing with Anthony from Texas
You may remember Anthony from his guest blog in January ‘Brewing 101 by GFHBer Anthony from Texas’. We have been collaborating on developing a clone recipe of his favorite conventional beer from before he was gluten free. After a couple revisions he thinks we may be close to the big unveiling. During this time, we have also worked on refining our BIAB brewing recommendations. You may recall our September and October blog articles when we conducted a series of BIAB batches and posted our results....
Sugar Chart For Gluten Free Home Brewing
Last month we filmed a video blog Q&A with Bierly Brewing and discussed his experience with extract brewing. We thought a good follow up to that video blog would be a chart of sugars frequently used in brewing gluten free beer....
| Sugar | Lovibond | PPG | Fermentability | Typical Usage |
| Brown Rice Syrup 42DE - Clarified | 2 | 1.037 | 75% | Nearly colorless and flavorless; Provides proteins and amino acids necessary for yeast nutrition, head retention and body. High percentage use may result in c |
Brewing 101 by GFHBer Anthony from Texas
Many of our customers may not realize that GFHB started out as a facebook page in 2010 in an effort to connect GFHBers together in one place, share our knowledge and experiences, and of course share our favorite recipes. Since we opened our business three years ago we have enjoyed helping customers that are new to brewing, new to brewing gluten free beer, and seasoned brewers develop a new recipe. Most of our time these days are spent fulfilling orders and reordering supplies, but we really enjo...
Grapefruit IPA
If this beer is anything like the Grapefruit IPA Ghostfish Brewing Co brews and sells...then this recipe will be amazing!
Original article: http://ghostfishbrewing.com/ghostfishblog/gfhomebrewing-grapefruit-ipa/
Brewing Equipment: see your choice of homebrew guidebooks for a full list of equipment; note that this is a 5-gallon batch, so I recommend a 7- to 10-gallon boil kettle to do a full wort boil, which most likely will require a free-standing propane burner to achieve a rolling boil. If ...
Gluten Free Home Brewing Tutorial Series - The Fermentation
The final episode in our series of gluten home beer brewing tutorials is now available on the GFHB YouTube page!
Cheers!...
Gluten Free Home Brewing Tutorial Series - The Boil
The eighth episode of our series of gluten home beer brewing tutorials is now available on the GFHB YouTube page!
Cheers!...
Gluten Free Home Brewing Tutorial Series - The Mash
The seventh episode of our series of gluten home beer brewing tutorials is now available on the GFHB YouTube page!
Cheers!...
Gluten Free Home Brewing Tutorial Series - The Mill
The sixth episode of our series of gluten home beer brewing tutorials is now available on the GFHB YouTube page!
Cheers!...
Gluten Free Home Brewing Tutorial Series - The Malt
The fifth episode of our series of gluten home beer brewing tutorials is now available on the GFHB YouTube page!
Cheers!...
Gluten Free Home Brewing Tutorial Series - The Ingredients
The fourth episode of our series of gluten home beer brewing tutorials is now available on the GFHB YouTube page!
Cheers!...
Gluten Free Home Brewing Tutorial Series - The Recipe
The third episode of our series of gluten home beer brewing tutorials is now available on the GFHB YouTube page!
Cheers!...
Gluten Free Home Brewing Tutorial Series - The Equipment
The second episode of our series of gluten home beer brewing tutorials is now available on the GFHB YouTube page!
Cheers!...
Gluten Free Home Brewing Tutorial Series - Introduction
The first in our series of gluten home beer brewing tutorials is now available on the GFHB YouTube page!
Cheers!...