Is Whiskey Gluten Free? Explore the Impact of Distillation
Learn all about the specifics of whether whiskey is gluten free with our whiskey guide so you can decide to sip or serve something else. Remember, responsible consumption is key.
Is Whiskey Gluten Free?
Gluten-free living can be a choice or a necessity depending on how your body tolerates and breaks down gluten. For many who struggle tolerating gluten in their diet or for those who have Celiac disease, the need to stay away from gluten is big. So the big question we’ve seen you typing away, “is whiskey gluten free”, “is Jameson Irish Whiskey gluten free”, “is whiskey gf?”… well, it depends.
Many people who are intolerant to gluten can drink whiskey without any issue, while others who are particularly sensitive to gluten may be more susceptible to an allergic reaction. We’ll explain the impact of distillation on whiskey’s gluten content so you can understand it for yourself, but we’d recommend that you speak to a healthcare professional and exercise caution before you dive right in to enjoying your favourite whiskey or whiskey-based cocktail.
The Impact of Distillation on Whiskey’s Gluten Content
Pure, distilled whiskey is made from wheat, barely or rye but is considered gluten free due to the distillation process, and explaining this impact of distillation on whiskey’s gluten content leads us to the science part. Distillation involves boiling and condensation to separate components in a liquid. As gluten proteins are not volatile, they remain at the bottom rather than getting syphoned off into the distilled liquid. Therefore it’s clear that whiskey is a gluten-free product, but those who have Celiac Disease should have a chat with their healthcare professional before having any whiskey. If you’d like to get into the nitty gritty so you can understand a bit more about the process—this is how Jameson is made.
Is Jameson Irish Whiskey Gluten Free?
Jameson Irish Whiskey mainly uses unmalted and malted barley, maize and Irish water, so while the grains have gluten in them, as we mentioned before the distillation process is said to remove most, if not all, of the gluten. So for those who may have minimal tummy troubles when they ingest gluten, we’d say give it a go and enjoy a Jameson Irish Whiskey or one of our whiskey cocktails if you’re comfortable, but if you have Celiac Disease or are concerned in any way about even a minimal amount of gluten being present, we’d recommend that you exercise caution and consult with your healthcare professional—it’s always better to be safe than sorry and you never know when cross contamination can happen, we’re sure everyone who has Celiac Disease is familiar with that. While this advice obviously goes for drinking whiskey neat, straight and on the rocks, we’d have to extend it out to any whiskey-based cocktails, so make sure you double check before you order at the bar. For those looking for further information on Celiac Disease and gluten intolerance, you can head here, to beyondceliac.org to get more information.
So there you have it, Jameson Irish Whiskey is technically gluten free, and can have ‘gluten free’ on the label, so if you’re comfortable testing it out without any major concerns, we’d recommend enjoying your Jameson Irish Whiskey, but if you want to enjoy Jameson Irish Whiskey safely and you think you could be sensitive to gluten, we’d recommend contacting your healthcare professional before you try. As always, more guidance on the wonderful world of whiskey can be found through our whiskey guide.