Is hard alcohol gluten free?

Hard liquor aka distilled alcohol is considered gluten free by the FDA, even if the ingredients used to make the original ferment included barley, rye, or wheat. This is true for all alcohols made from glutenous ingredients that have been distilled after fermentation, unless a gluten-containing substance is added after distillation is completed. During the distillation process all proteins are removed, which includes gliadin and other gluten-based proteins that trigger reactions for those with gluten sensitivities.

However, some gluten sensitive individuals have reported negative digestive reactions even when consuming alcohol that has been distilled. The reason for this is probably due to cross-contamination in the processing facility, or due to additives like flavors/colors that were added to the alcohol after the distillation process was completed. As someone with celiac disease, I’ve been lucky to have never had a reaction to properly distilled alcohols, and these reactions seem quite rare, but I would recommend testing this out for yourself.

For more information, please see this article from Gluten Free Watchdog. Note that the TTB (the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau) has since updated their stance, and they now allow distilled products made from wheat, barley, or rye to be labeled gluten free as well.

Luckily, for those individuals that do notice reactions when consuming grain-based distilled alcohols, there are many other varieties of hard alcohols sourced from only grain free starting ingredients.

Grain-Free Hard Alcohols

• Tequila
• Mezcal
• Rum
• Cachaça
• Cognac
• Brandy
• Vermouth

There are also many companies that make vodka, gin, and whiskey with entirely gluten free ingredients. Certain brands have learned to take advantage of gluten free labeling to charge more for their products that are naturally gluten free, but there are many budget options in the list below as well.

GF Vodka

• Luksusowa Red Label vodka - potatoes
• Smirnoff vodka - corn
• Stoli Gluten Free vodka - corn and buckwheat
• Crop Artisinal Harvest Earth - organic corn
• Tito’s handmade vodka - corn
• Deep Eddy vodka - corn
• Grand Teton vodka - potatoes
• Bombora vodka - grapes
• Famout vodka - Idaho russet potatoes
• Cayman Blue vodka - sugar cane
• Zodiac vodka - potatoes
• Crystal head vodka - peaches and cream corn
• Cîroc vodka - grapes
• Boyd and Blair vodka - potatoes
• Chopin vodka - potatoes
• Kissui vodka - rice
• Vikingfjord vodka - potatoes
• Cold River vodka - Maine potatoes
• Ocean vodka - sugarcane
• Lokka vodka - grapes
• L’Chaim kosher vodka - organic corn
• Kleiner Feigling - figs and fig flavoring
• Dixie vodka - non-GMO corn
• Monopolowa vodka - potatoes
• Schramm Organic vodka - potatoes

GF Gin

• Monopolowa dry gin - potatoes
• Schramm Organic gin - potatoes
• Cold River gin - Maine potatoes
• G-Vine gin - vine blossoms and grape brandy
• Bluecoat gin - botanicals
• Corgi Spirits gin - potatoes
• Colorado gin - potatoes
• Ashuelot gin - apples, potatoes
• Bradford’s Chesterton’s gin - potatoes
• Beattie’s potato gin - potatoes
• Monkey 47 dry gin - molasses

GF Whiskey

• Queen Jennie Sorghum whiskey - sorghum
• Grand Teton whiskey - corn
• Hudson Baby bourbon - corn
• James F.C. Hyde Sorgho whiskey - sorghum
• Koval bourbon - corn and millet
• Koval Millet whiskey - millet
• LBL Moonshine whiskey - corn
• New Southern Revival Sorghum whiskey - sorghum
• S.S. Sorghum whiskey - sorghum
• Abasolo El Whisky De Mexico whiskey - nixtamalized cacahuazintle corn