Heathen's Brewery

Reviewed on September 4, 2020

Heathen's Brewery opened in Calgary's Craft District in June 2019. It is one of 2 dedicated gluten-free breweries in Canada. (The other one being Glutenberg in Montreal.) Owner and Head Brewer Wes Maxwell decided to focus on making gluten-free beers because several members of his family are celiac and he wanted to make beers that they can drink. When I explained to him that most of the gluten-free beer I have tasted is insipid, he quickly countered this claim by blaming sorghum. It's commonly used to keep costs down, unfortunately, it tends to have the same effect upon flavour.

At Heathen's, Wes Maxwell is on a mission to make the most flavourful gluten-free beer possible so he avoids sorghum at all costs. Instead, he relies on ancient grains like millet, buckwheat, quinoa and rice. At anyone time, there are more than 8 different gluten-free beers available on tap. I picked the Kvasir Peanut Butter stout. I've tasted coffee stouts and chocolate stouts but this is my first one made with peanut butter. It is delicious!  It reminds me of Reese's pieces in a glass. At the taproom, they also serve a Peanut Butter and Jelly stout which is a mix of hibiscus tea and the Peanut Butter stout.