LOWELL, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — MIT graduate Samara Oster claims her beer company isn't like all the others: It's the first in the United States to sell a gluten-free beer that uses quinoa as its only grain base.
Oster is the founder of Meli Beer, a Lowell-based company inspired by beers Oster sipped during her travels in South America. Those beers were brewed partially from quinoa, but still contained barley.
"It was just a light, refreshing drink," Oster said. "And I thought, 'Well this would be great if it was gluten free.'"
Oster said it took her three years, several unsavory taste tests and help from two MIT food scientists to hone the formula.
"We didn't know anything about recipes, or formulation, or process, so we kind of were just starting from scratch basically when we started this," Oster said.
Samara Oster founded Meli Beer with the help of two MIT food scientists. Photo: Courtesy of Meli Beer
Now, Meli is available at dozens of restaurants, bars, liquor stores and super markets along Massachusetts' east coast, including Trader Joe's and Eataly.
The final recipe is crisp and refreshing "with a hint of sweetness," according to Meli's website.
WBZ NewsRadio's Brooke McCarthy (@BrookeWBZ) reports.
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