For those with a gluten intolerance, there isn’t a lot of variety in terms of beer.

The widely available GF beers tend to either be a lager or a pale ale – and they tend to be pretty ordinary too. Not that the gluten intolerant would necessarily complain – after ages of not being able to drink any beer at all I’m sure they mightn’t be too picky.

But now they can be because GF brewer O’Brien has gone and made an autumn seasonal – a gluten-free Belgian Ale. It’s surprising that it’s taken someone so long to venture beyond the lager-pale ale paradigm but it’s good that someone finally has.

And it’s even better that it’s a decent-tasting beer. It’s still not going to trick anyone into thinking it’s real beer but it comes far closer to ‘‘real beer’’ than any other GF beer I’ve had.

As you can see from the photo, it is abnormally clear for a Belgian – that logo you can see is actually on the other side of the glass.

But don’t let that put you off. On the nose there are some mild Belgian spice notes and those spices are evident in the flavour as well. There’s also some slight fruity sweetness as well. The big surprise is that it carries its six per cent alcohol very well – it really doesn’t feel as strong as that.

If you’re not any good with gluten, or know someone who is, this beer is very recommended. It’s only a limited release so I’d reckon it’d be a good idea to buy as much of it as you can and hoard it.