Ever heard of spelt? It’s a cousin of wheat that’s not been widely used in Britain for many years. But it’s gaining popularity, particularly among people who struggle to digest wheat. Now it’s the centrepiece of a new beer, too.

Glebe Farm is a working farm in Cambridgeshire that produces a range of products that are organic or gluten-free, anything from flours to cake mixes. Now they’ve diversified into beer, taking advantage of their spelt crop to create a bottled ale in conjunction with Cambridge Moonshire brewery.

Spelt, it is believed, was brought to Britain by the Romans, hence the name of the beer: Gladiator. The grain is malted by hand at the farm and combined with barley malt to form the cereal grist.

Other details remain tantalisingly obscure as farm owner Rebecca Raynor declines to offer information about the range of malts employed, the amount of spelt in the mash tun or the choice of hops in the copper.

But she does reveal that the style of beer is influenced by her own appreciation of certain Belgian brands, and Leffe in particular. Hence the beer packs a chunky 5.8% alcohol and is presented in 330 ml bottles, instead of half-litres.

I’ve tried spelt beer before. It’s one of the four cereals employed in Gulpener Korenwolf and it’s also intrinsic to Joseph from Belgium’s Silenrieux brewery. In both cases, the grain contributes a nutty note to what is ostensibly a witbier, complete with herb/spice flavouring.

Gladiator, however, drinks, more like a blonde ale. Marmalade orange notes from the mysterious hops fill the aroma and run on into the mostly sweet taste, with that interesting, but gentle, nutty cereal note underneath. It’s crisp and light-drinking for the strength, with a touch of perfume and almond from the esters.

The strength pokes through in the gentle burn on the swallow, and then the slightly chalky finish is nutty, dry and bitter with a moderate hop tang that lingers rather well.

Spelt has been promoted for its health benefits since Biblical times. St Hildegard of Bingen – feted 12th-century abbess and oracle – swore by it, and she lived for more than 80 years at a time when most people failed to reach 40.

I can only comment on the beer itself, which is unusual but pleasantly quaffable, unlike some beers brewed with strange cereals. Being bottle conditioned, it also has a welcome freshness.

Just one note of caution: coeliac disease sufferers should be aware that, unlike much of Glebe Farm’s output, Gladiator is not gluten free.