Edgar Allen Poe Speakeasy is a traveling show touring various cities across the US. In this 90 minute show you will hear four stories from the works of Edgar Allen Poe. Locations and further information can be found at their website. There is no food available at the shows, but are the drinks gluten free? Keep reading if you need to adhere to a GF diet for health reasons.
This is a 21+ event as a cocktail will be served to each guest at the start of each of the four stories. The drinks are included in your show ticket price. Before each story the staff wheel carts down the aisles to pass out drinks, in a fashion shockingly similar to a cult passing out Kool-Aid. Will you be able to drink the Kool-Aid while avoiding gluten?
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Statement from Edgar Allen Poe Speakeasy
I contacted the production staff at Edgar Allen Poe Speakeasy to inquire about a full ingredients list for the cocktails so that I could check if they are gluten free and safe for celiacs. I received the following response.
“All of our vodkas are gluten free as well as our Brandy. As for the Bourbon we use Jim Beam.”
“I do not have a specific ingredient list and because we are a touring show specific brands do change based on what is available in said location. Sorry I can’t be more specific.”
Edgar Allen Poe Speakeasy staff response via email
Those responses are kind of contradicting. They believe the alcohol used is gluten free but they may change brands from day to day. Especially in the case of flavored alcohols the brand will make all the difference in whether it is GF or not.
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Substitutions
When purchasing tickets for Edgar Allen Poe Speakeasy events there is a note that non-alcoholic mocktails and allergy substitutions can be made. However the staff member responding via email made no attempt to provide alternative options that might be available. With the above response it sounds like they have no idea what they will have on hand from one night to the next. All of this isn’t very confidence inspiring. If substitutions are available you wouldn’t be able to know what you will be offered.
The Cocktails
Browsing their website there is a brief listing on their cocktails page of the four drinks served at each show. However this is old data and apparently not maintained. When you arrive you will see printed cards that show different drinks than listed. Some of the drinks listed on the website may appear but the ingredients may be completely different. We’re not talking about just a different spirit being used. The card showed that a couple of drinks with the same name as those on the website shared almost no common ingredients.
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Verdict: Is it Gluten Free?
Given their email response about how all drink ingredients are in flux and could be changed without notice it’s difficult to know which of these cocktails are likely to be safe. You won’t have any idea what is being offered until you arrive. It’s probably best to avoid all of these if you have celiac disease or a strong gluten allergy/sensitivity. I don’t have any reason to believe the staff are cognizant of what ingredients are safe for you or any attention is given to choosing drink ingredients that do not contain gluten. Also it’s not communicated if the drink description card contains a complete listing of all ingredients in these drinks.
Ingredients observed on both the website and the drink description cards show they commonly include flavored spirits such as flavored vodka and flavored rye. Many brands of flavored liquor are not gluten free. While the alcohol itself is gluten free the flavoring is not. At the same time there are a small number of brands that ensure their flavorings are created without gluten. You could ask what brand was used but they may have needed to buy more than one due to the quantities they go through each day.
Overall the safest choice would be to avoid consuming cocktail drinks at the Edgar Allen Poe Speakeasy event if you are avoiding gluten for health reasons. There is nothing that inspires confidence in being able to avoid getting glutened at this event.
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