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Holidaily offers multiple gluten-free beer options in Texas. -
Karen Hertz founded Holidaily to brew a better gluten-free beer. -
Big Henry Hazy IPA - Holidaily's award-winning, gluten-free beer - is available locally.
Most Americans love a good beer, but a gluten-free diet substantially limits the options for some people, confining them to sweet ciders or other tangy substitutes. That’s why Karen Hertz founded Holidaily Brewing Company in Golden, Colorado.
After surviving melanoma and thyroid cancer in her early 30s, Hertz began a treatment plan including a gluten-free diet – the same kind of diet people with gluten allergies or celiac disease must follow. Hertz said she had always loved beer, but did not love her options when it came to gluten-free brews. With an MBA in Entrepreneurial Studies and 10 years prior experience at Coors Brewing Company, Hertz ventured forth to start her own business and make more palatable gluten-free beer for enthusiasts such as herself.
“I tried the gluten-free beer that was out there and was very unhappy with my options at that point,” Hertz said during a video meeting with the Southeast Texas Business Journal. “It ultimately led me to do some research on how I could homebrew and make a good gluten-free beer.”
Most beers are made with barley and wheat, glutenous grains Hertz could not use for her recipes. Other gluten-free brewers replace the grains with sorghum or rice syrups, but Hertz realized quickly these substitutes did not deliver the flavor she wanted for her products. Instead, she found a woman-owned, gluten-free grain distributor – Grouse Malt House – selling malt and grains, like millet and buckwheat, the combo she ultimately selected for her beer after taste trials.
“That is what takes us above and beyond other beers – the quality of our ingredients,” said Hertz. “If you have had a very terrible gluten-free beer, it means they have replaced the grain with syrup. They don’t have any grain in there at all. It’s sorghum syrup or rice syrup. It’s very thin. It’s sweet. It’s cidery.
“Those are examples of the beer I was trying when I became gluten-free, and I thought, ‘Oh, no! This isn’t going to work.’”
According to Hertz, sports and beer go hand-in-hand, and as an avid fan, she wanted to enjoy a brew with friends while watching their favorite teams battle for glory.
“I didn’t want vodka, and I didn’t want wine. I wanted a beer,” said Hertz. She said for her, like most, it wasn’t about getting drunk. It was about socializing and relaxing with friends. “It’s so much more than beer. We’re impacting people’s social lives. We get full-blown tears in the taproom. If you’re gluten-free, you get it. If not, imagine having to cut beer completely out of your life. It sucks!”
Thus, Holidaily was born. When Hertz started her business in 2016, she had three beers on tap and was going bar-to-bar to try to get her products on their menus. By the end of the first year, she shared, the company had 10 beers on tap. Now, only six years later, Holidaily brews a wide variety of beers, has two taprooms and delivers to eight states – including Texas.
“We love Texas, and it’s surreal to get to go and see my beer there,” Hertz shared while on the road promoting her products. “I’m in Kansas right now, and they have my beer. I can’t explain how surreal it is.”
“Texas is deep in our hearts,” she said of the Lone Star State. “We’re going to go big in Texas, so we’re very excited.” Holidaily beers, like Favorite Blonde, Fat Randy’s IPA, Big Henry Hazy IPA and the Buckwit Belgian, are already available at several places in Southeast Texas. Search for availability online using Holidaily’s Beer Finder through its website, https://holidailybrewing.com/.
Holidaily is also participating in the upcoming 2022 Brewsology Beer Festival taking place at the Museum of Natural Science in Houston on July 23, so it may be a good time to get tickets and plan for a road trip.