Ladies of Craft Beer

Posted By: SBenner

Poster courtesy of stonebrew.com

The Raleigh Times Bar in Raleigh, NC, has earned quite a few distinctions over the years, including multiple recognitions on Draft’s “100 Best Beer Bars” list. The most recent is a bit more specific, but carries quite the honor – Stone Brewing Co. declared it the “Most Arrogant Bar in America.” The honor came after North Carolinians drank the most pints of Stone Arrogant Bastard Ale, Double Bastard Ale, and OAKED Arrogant Bastard Ale during a week-long promotion in fall 2011. This is the third year in a row a North Carolina drinking hole took the honors, with previous winners being from Charlotte.

Greg Koch, Stone Brewing Co. CEO, was at the celebration at Raleigh Times on March 24 to present the plaque and join hundreds of thirsty admirers in enjoying a prime lineup of a dozen Stone beers. After careful consideration, my husband and I chose Arrogant Bastard Ale, dry-hopped Arrogant Bastard, Imperial Russian Stout, Double Bastard Ale with chipotle peppers, and the Smoked Porter with vanilla beans. The special additions, like chipotle peppers or vanilla beans, enhanced the base beer just enough to smooth them out, and not change the flavor so much you wouldn’t recognize what you’re drinking.

I had the great opportunity to talk with Greg about the event and his impression of the following that Stone, and specifically the “Bastard” series, has developed over the years. When asked about the impression North Carolina has made having taken the honors three years in a row, he said we are “unquestionably very passionate” about our craft beer. The state is home to 21 brewpubs and 28 breweries, and most recently added Sierra Nevada to that list. The craft beer pioneer will set up their East coast facility, including restaurant, about 20 miles south of Asheville, which currently holds the title of “Beer City USA.”

Greg said to expect the Stone version of the Dogfish Head/Victory/Stone collaboration, Saison du Buff, later this year. The three breweries are getting together at the San Diego-based facility in May to put a California spin on the previously brewed batches from Dogfish Head and Victory. The herbs for the beer, which have included rosemary, thyme, and coriander, are grown right at Stone’s own 18-acre farm.

The event lived up to expectations, with Raleigh Times even creating a menu for the day that they deemed “Incredibly Arrogant.” We are looking forward to that week in the fall where we accept the challenge to bring the title back to North Carolina once again!

Related Posts:

• Vicki Stowe – Brewmaster (The College Years, Part 18)
• Slate.com – The Hops Ceiling
• Interview with Randy Mosher about Women and Beer (Guest post by Ingrid Calderoni)
• Vicki Stowe – Brewmaster (The College Years, Part 15)
• Vicki Stowe – Brewmaster (The College Years, Part 14)

Posted By: Stevie Caldarola

Ingrid Calderoni

Ingrid Calderoni is journalist, photography lover, homebrewer and beer blogger. Born on May 25^th in São Paulo, is lauching the first beer travel guide in Brazil, listing more than 40 Brazilian microbreweries, by Panda Books. Is also founder of the first female beer group in São Paulo, Maltemoiselles.

Ingrid sat down with craft beer heavyweight (and author of Radical Brewing) Randy Mosher to discuss the topic of women and beer.

INGRID C.: Today, despite women having spending power far beyond men (in career, for instance), beer remains very much a man’s world. What do you think about it?

RANDY M.: I think this is just a relic from the era when drinking was a social activity in the man’s world, and a little less acceptable for “proper” women. Wine has led the way for women to become drinkers and then connoisseurs and enthusiasts, at least in the US, followed by spirits and finally craft beer.

From a mass-marketer’s point-of-view, the easiest way to reach the biggest beer drinkers has been to advertise with sports, and since these are more popular with men, these ads are made for men, to be persuasive to men only. This means women are ignored, intentionally or just as a result of trying to spend the advertising money to get the largest group of those who drink the most beer, which happens to be men. So you get TV commercials with tough men, and women in swimsuits and crude humor (maybe it is different in Brazil), so you actually drive a lot of women away who don’t want to be associated with or support a product like that.

Of course, with craft beer, things are different. There are many more choices, some of them very sophisticated. And there is no money for advertising, so there are no sexist ads. Selling craft beer is all about the personal touch and building relationships between producers and consumers, and I think that women generally feel more comfortable with this approach, and also young people are much more excited by this than my generation was.

IC: As a designer, what do you think could shatter the “macho” image of beer? Do you think the beer industry could try to create more attractive package for women instead of trying to sell light lagers, floral or chocolate beers – popularly known as “chick beers”?

RM: No, not really. I think the product should reflect the quality and character of what’s inside the package. There are beers for everybody, and if the package designer does his or her job right, people will have a sense of what the emotional experience of drinking the beer will be like. Is it fun, exciting, challenging, outrageous, sublime, silly, or super-serious? People, whether they are women or men will respond to what moves them at the moment, and I think that’s the way it should be.

Marketing “special” products to women has a dismal record in the business. No one wants to live in a ghetto where they have to have to have special products based on gender, as if they were handicapped or something. Also, from a producer’s point-of-view, with womens’ products, you are throwing away half or more of your potential audience. I used to work in the toy business years ago, and it was well known that girls would play with boys’ toys, but not the other way around. A man would never touch a beer if he thought the product was supposed to be just for women. He would be worried it might make him grow breasts or something.

Randy Mosher

IC: And what do you think about this denomination that the market uses to sell beer – “suitable for female palate”? I´ve found this expression even in German – frauenbier!

RM: I think it’s stupid. Women have a similar palate to men, except perhaps they have a bit more sensitivity and generally pay a little more attention to what they put in their mouths. The one difference is that in general, women seem to be a little less tolerant of hop bitterness, but this is by no means always true. I know many women who like beers that are extremely bitter, like 70 IBU+!

IC:  It is scientifically proven that women have a better sensory perception for tasting beer, for some kind of flavors. Many people say that this is why women would rather drink “chick beer” than other hoppy ones. There are also researches based on preference, which suggests that women drink more light and sweet beers. What is your point of view? Could we rely on a preference research to base all the marketing targeting the female public like this, or, for you, taste is individual?

RM: Market research is an abomination and results in the huge number of bland, boring products that fill the supermarket aisles. People should make beer that they and their friends like, then hopefully others will like them as well. This is what craft beer is about.

IC:  What do you think abour beers designed to appeal to female taste buds, like the low-carb beers?

RM: Lo-carb has nothing to do with palate. It is a form of medicine for people who think they are being poisoned by carbohydrates. We had a frenzy of lo-carb products about 8 years ago in the US. Thankfully, this silly trend is no longer with us.

IC: What is your opinion about women getting together in groups like Pink Boots Society, Ladies of Craft Beer, and Maltemoiselles in Brazil? Do you think these girly clubs appeared on behalf of machism in the world of beer?

RM: I think it is natural for women to want to get together on their own terms, especially since groups with a lot of men in them are sometimes difficult for women to make themselves heard and influence the group. I think the womens’ groups are fantastic, but I also hope that all the beer organizations will be open enough to women that they don’t feels such a need to separate themselves–and that day is coming. I know many women in the beer business who are more than capable of holding their own, even in a room full of men, so I have no doubt that this will happen. At least two large craft breweries in the US are run by women: Stoudt’s (Carol Stoudt) and New Belgium (Kim Jordan). And there are women in very important roles in most small breweries.

IC: What do you think that keep lots of women away from beer, beyond the mistaken perception that beer is unhealthy, fattening and unsophisticated?

RM: Maybe it is because most of it (mass-market beer) is boring, cheap and lacking in variety, elegance and flavor? Stick a pink label on a reduced calorie mass-market beer and is still just as uninteresting.

~~~~~

What do you think of what Randy had to say? Leave your thoughts in the comments below to keep this dialogue going. Cheers!

Related Posts:

• A Beer Drinking Woman in a Beer Man’s World
• Women in Beer Series – Maggie Foley
• This Mother’s Day Celebrate The First Beer Brewers – Women
• Beer Apps for Techno Geeks
• How Do You Judge a Good Beer Bar?

Originally posted 2011-08-10 12:05:33.

Posted By: Stevie Caldarola

The following is a press release sent to me by Nicole Courides, Social Media Chair of the Pink Boots Society:

NATIONWIDE: This Mother’s Day, May 13 from 1-4PM, raise a pint to honor the world’s first beer brewers – women. The ladies of the Pink Boots Society invite breweries, brewpubs, restaurants, bottle shops and patrons to participate in the nationwide educational campaign, Bring Mom Out For A Beer (BMOFAB).

“Not only were women the first brewers,” says Teri Fahrendorf, founder of the Pink Boots Society, “but those first women brewers were also mothers,” she concludes. Fahrendorf refers to as early as 3500 BC when women were responsible for the beer making since it was considered a provisional food group.1 And many may argue it still is.

Whether it is enjoying a brewery tour, a guided beer tasting or food pairing, the Pink Boots Society encourages beer lovers to share quality time, as well as a bit of beer education, with the special woman they call “Ma.”

All participating establishments are invited to post their Mother’s Day festivities on www.craftbeer.com under “Events,” or on BMOFAB 2012’s Facebook page (Bring Mom Out For A Beer 2012).

Last year’s participants included:

Saraveza (Portland, Ore.), The Thirsty Monk (Asheville, N.C.), Pi Bar (San Francisco, Calif.), Brown’s Brewing Company (Troy, N.Y.), Wolverine State Brewing Co. (Ann Arbor, Mich.), Wild Rose Brewery (Canada), Icicle Brewing Co. and Munchen Haus Bavarian Grill & Beer Garden (Leavenworth, Wash.), Brugge Brasserie (Indianapolis, Ind.), Full Sailing Brewing Co. (Hood River, Ore.), SanTan Brewing Co. (Chandler, Ariz.), Ladyface Alehouse & Brasserie (Agoura Hills, Calif.), Market Cross Pub & Brewery (Carlisle, Pa.), Triumph Brewing Co. (New Hope, Pa.) and Pike Brewing Co. (Seattle, Wash.).

PBS background
Since 2007, Fahrendorf has been marching one pink boot in front of the other in creating a renowned network of women with one strong passion – encouraging the education and appreciation of beer. The international Pink Boots Society is composed of more than 735 professional females within the beer industry (i.e. owners, CEOs, brewers, packagers, marketers, manufacturers, servers and beer journalists).

Posted By: Michelle

The goddess at work...

RELAX, IT’S A HOME BREW.

I have been brewing for just over two years. I was all excited when I got the idea to start making my own beer. I make a lot of my own food-stuff and am proud to be able to feed myself with very few processed items. I also live in the country and must be ready to be self-contained at any given moment, be it weather related limitations or laziness or lack of transportation or whatever.

Over time, I though about it and decided to take my love of beer to the next level. I mean, the other things I make at home are better than the store, so why not beer? But, then I got really scared! I started looking at books and web sites and home brew magazines. I started reading all about the gravity and the measuring and the science and the complexities of yeast and the equipment. I got pretty frightened and intimidated; so much so that I nearly gave up. Nearly….

RELAX, IT’S A HOME BREW.

Then I got a pretty decent home brew kit for Christmas from my husband. The kit had everything I needed to get started, even the ingredients and first recipe. To the credit of my local home brew store, this was no “Mr. Beer” set up; this was glass carboys and shiny tubes and fermentation locks and explicit directions. All I needed to take the plunge and make that first beer.

Onward I marched. I made my first batch a few weeks later. To this day, I am not sure what sort of beer it was. Just a regular beer, I suppose. Anyway, that first batch went pretty well overall and was most palatable. But, I did have to call the home brew store a couple of times for a quick consultation. The red bottom of the wine thief fell off into the carboy during fermentation. Crisis!!! AHHHH! If only for a 24 hour help line!! I was so worried after all I had read about contamination that I was sure this was the end of the batch and the only thing I would feed is my septic tank.

RELAX, IT’S A HOME BREW.

Then, the temperatures started to fall in the basement where I had planned to ferment. Again, I was on the phone with my home brew store. Did I kill the yeast? Will my beer survive? Oh, help, beer Goddesses! What was I to do now that the beer was not following the recipe on print? I continued on and muddled through that first batch.

RELAX, IT’S A HOME BREW.

I never really knew what that phrase meant until, oh, about 18 months into brewing. I have brewed nearly two dozen batches so far and, knock on wood and pray to all that is beer related, I have not thrown a batch yet. I understand that, though we start out with the best of intentions and meaning to stay true to the directions, there are times when it does not matter. I have learned to relax a bit.

I have also met and talked to lots of other home brewers. They, too, have had their mishaps and mess ups and not-true-to-form experiences. Their beer, most of the time, has been just fine. Just like the diverse nature of humans, the home brew community brews in diverse ways. This includes a lack of good record keeping, or no notes at all, varied fermentation temperatures, hops that were just on hand and not those recommended, sugar additions and grain modifications. And guess what? The beer LIVED! Much of the time, the brew was drinkable and acceptable. Perhaps not award worthy, or spectacular, or marketable on a grand scale, but just fine for the home brew crowd and even better for the “average” Joe who knows no better.

RELAX, IT’S A HOME BREW.

Boiling a brew!

It took me over a year of strict adherence to the directions to be brave enough to experiment. I was not interested in throwing away the time, money or effort in a bad batch of beer. I wanted to make sure whatever creation I came up with was not only drinkable, but noteworthy and perhaps a topic of discussion at home brew club night. I began to experiment, even if only slightly. So far, so good!

To date, I have brewed with herbal tea, real fresh fruit, various spices, dried fruit, and lavender. I have added these items to the boil, first, and second fermentation. Additionally, my fermentation temperatures have been all over the map, with up to 10 degree variations. I have boiled perhaps a bit too long, or perhaps a bit too hot, and have taken anywhere from minutes to hours to cool the precious wort. I have kicked my spouse completely out of the process, unless I need some requested help or muscle. That way, I figure that if a batch goes bad I will leave no room for blame on anyone but me.

Mind you, I never, ever, never, ever, never skimp on sanitation and cleaning and have a routine I stick to religiously. But, I have learned to relax a little when it comes to the recipe, directions or outline of the beer itself. I have not yet acquired the equipment or wherewithal to transition to all grain and I continue to be a partial mash brewer. I still use hop pellets and yeast packets, which leaves me plenty of room yet to grow and learn and expand.

RELAX, IT’S A HOME BREW.

There are times I get a bit of flack from my home brew brethren because I still use the packets and pellets, but they, too, are forgiving and realize they can be my mentors and guides into the next phase of my brewing life. I brew in my kitchen and ferment in the basement, most of the time. There are occasions when the basement gets a bit too cold and I turn the office into the fermentation room with it’s own heater. It sure helps that there are no kids at my house and the cat does not mind too much when one room becomes closed off.

Overall, I am having a blast and am told that I make good beer. I also have really enjoyed the new community I am a part of. I find a lot of support and much to learn. I find my fellow brewers more than willing to lend an ear or guidance and, hopefully soon, I will observe and learn more about all grain brewing first hand.

I also find that women approach brewing differently than men, which in and of itself, only adds to the diversity of the hobby. My brew set up has not grown, but my bravery and knowledge and support community has. Fortunately, too, my beer continues to disappear and nothing but positive comments follow.

I still think of myself as a new brewer and have nothing by high regard for those who have blazed the trail of knowledge and experimentation and creativity before me. I strive to be a welcome addition to the field as I continue to learn and experiment in my own right.

Hooray for those who dare brew and kudos to the others who take the time to help the rest of us along.

RELAX, IT’S A HOME BREW.

Words I understand and can now live by.

Cheers!

Related Posts:

• A Beer Drinking Woman in a Beer Man’s World
• Vicki Stowe – Brewmaster (The College Years, Part 5)
• Vicki Stowe – Brewmaster (The College Years, Part 4)
• Vicki Stowe – Brewmaster (The College Years, Part 3)
• Vicki Stowe – Brewmaster (The College Years, Part 2)

Posted By: Michelle

Image courtesy of Active Beer Geek

Fast forward to present day, me with my iPhone4 and over 200 apps on my device. I do have photos and music and even keep a calendar, but I have totally app-ed out! I spend more time shopping the apps than I do talking on the darned thing. Heck, I even have a BEER folder for all of the beer-related apps I have.

Despite all of my apps, I am by no means the Queen of Apps. I generally do not buy any of the apps I use. I am not sure why I can easily drop dollars at the mall, but God forbid I part with a few cents for a beer app! Also, I hate, and I mean HATE, apps that want me to enter all of my personal information and link their site to my Facebook or my Twitter or my what-the-heck-ever account. I just want to find a brewery in a new city, not open my entire personal life to your community! I get a bit touchy when I have to invent new, or use old, user names and passwords and then invent yet another secret question. Gee, was that a capital letter or a lower case letter? Was that one word or two? My time is too important, and my privacy too guarded, to invite every beer drinking Bertha into my little corner of the world when all I want is some information. I also refuse to be a part of drinking game apps. My professional self and my personal self collide here and I know that drinking games do nothing more than promote the over consumption of alcohol and promote a culture of excess. In my humble opinion.

My perspective is also limited by the fact that I shoot for free apps and I only have the iphone. I have not ever owned and know very little about the Droid, iPad, or any of the other platforms that are out there for app Geeks like me. If you are one of those folks, please add your input in the comments section of this article so that others can benefit from your experiences. You know, inclusivity and all.

Right now, today, and subject to change at any moment or the next time the bus gets stuck in traffic, my phone contains the following beer apps that are listed below. I will try and save you some time and money by describing each one and give you what I hope will be useful feedback. I am not technologically talented enough to include logos, either. Again, this is where you as a member of the LOCB community are invaluable and your feedback needed!

• Brewery Map – Input a location and it is supposed to show you breweries. Tends not to be comprehensive and will only find the well established and large places. Not bad if you are in a new town or live in a large city.
• Beer Match – Puts beer, food and cheeses together for pairings. You can choose the beer, the foods or the cheese and the app will give you suggestions. Pretty fun, but there are times that I could care less what goes with what, as long as the beer is good!
• Beer – Keeps track of your tasting with notes and ratings. You can include a photo of the beer. I logged into mine and realized I had never put anything in this one. I will have to get on that.
• BAC Calc – One of the better ways to gauge your blood alcohol levels if you are monitoring or need to know if you can or should drive. Never 100% accurate, but a nice reference.
• Beer Cloud – Lots of information in there, but it is a bit much for this simple gal. You can input your beers, find what is near, and there are pairing suggestions. Caution – this one will want a profile and such, which you do not have to provide. I found it slow and confusing. Delete.
• Beer Brands – A means by which you can keep track of your favorites or of beers you have tried. You can rate them yourself. You can also look up brands and get a detailed description, pairings, and a bit of history. Caution – the app does want you to connect all your social networking, but it is not required. Simple and easy to use (like me ;0).
• iLoveBeer – Well, it looked good at first. When I looked further, the offerings included Keystone, Miller Light and Bud. DELETE!!!!
• Taplister – Provides information on local pubs and beer places. Great way to see details of the establishment as with hours web site and location, but dependent on the management or app users putting information into the site. If information is there about the beer, it can be useful if you are looking for new taps in your area or if you are out of town.
• Tap Hunter – hmm, not sure about this one. Again, a program to help find beer and or breweries. However, most of the listings I received were about 300 miles away. You can search by beer or by brewery. May be more useful if I lived in a big city.
• A Monitor – another way to calculate or monitor your blood alcohol level. This one is for the visual among us, as it is mostly in pictures. I would shy away from making big life decisions based on the information, but a guide just the same.

Those are what I have and how I found them to be or not to be useful. I am looking forward to feedback from readers and more information on what is out there.

Oh, and don’t even get me started on the ipad and the wonders that wait for me there… with one of those in my hands, you may never see me again!

Cheers!

[Editor's Note: Although Untappd isn't mentioned on this particular list, we here at Ladies of Craft Beer are big fans, as shown by our East/West Coast Brew Crawl Badges with them. Untappd is a check-in service where you can keep track of and review in 140 characters any beer that you drink while earning badges along the way!]

Related Posts:

• Interview with Randy Mosher about Women and Beer (Guest post by Ingrid Calderoni)
• How Do You Judge a Good Beer Bar?
• A Review of 5 Gluten-Free Beers (Guest Post by Amanda Tradwick)
• How Do You Want Your Beer Organized on a Menu?
• A Beer Drinking Woman in a Beer Man’s World