Ladies of Craft Beer

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

Guys, this one IS for you.

Take One: It is a beer tasting event. My husband and I get our tickets. As usual, we are hoping that there is a designated driver or non-drinker cheap or fee option for him. Most often not. Either way, we enter. I am excited, eyes wide open and feeling the great beer energy that abounds. He looks sad, accepting his fate with a certain amount of dread. Like when he takes me to a gun show. Yeah, it’s like that. After we are in the event and start to peruse the offerings, he is quickly approached by other attendees for beer talk. Brewers and vendors single him out for beer related conversation. Do you brew? What have you tasted? Where are you from? How long have you been brewing?

Take Two: It is a local home brew club meeting or social gathering. My husband and I arrive and home brewers start to roll in. The general crowd of home brewers hones in on my old man. They quickly walk over and start their beer talk. My hubby looks at them with a blank stare and says, “You need to talk to her.” The unknowing home brewer now looks at me with that same blank stare.

Take Three: It is a night out. A nice dinner and a couple of drinks. I am reading the beer menu and am throwing technical beer related questions left and right to the wait staff. While I try to extrapolate important libation information from the server, s/he looks confusedly at my spouse, wondering why they are having this conversation with me and not with him.

And so it goes…..

My Husband's "Brewer Support Team" Tee

I am a craft-beer-drinking-home-brew-making-brewery-touring-libation-loving woman! Say that five times fast. Not the norm, as I have quickly learned. It got to the point that I had a t-shirt made for my hubby. Just to clear up any confusion about who the beer dork truly is.

Keep in mind that I have years of experience being the only woman in a male dominated arena. Recall, if you will, that I ride motorcycles. I don’t ride on the back and I do ride for real. That means I ride thousands of miles in a season. I ride in the rain, in the wind, in the heat, the cold…. etc. I am not the only woman who does this, just to be clear. I embrace my riding sisters and have nothing but respect and admiration (envy?) for those who ride circles around me! But, it can get weird. I wear full gear, which quickly removes many gender-related indicators. I also wear a full-face helmet that leaves only my eyes and nose exposed. Not a lot of identifying information there, either. I also wear my hair short. I learned that my lifestyle of camping, riding, boating and such is just not conducive to anything but low maintenance. Short hair does it for me. In fact, I actually shaved my head one year. Another story.

I do these things that mostly guys do and I wear my hair like mostly guys do and I wear clothes that can be pretty gender neutral while I enjoy my hobbies in the great out of doors. I have been called “Sir” to my face and often on the phone. I hate that, by the way.

For four years in a row, my riding partner (hubby) and I have attended a specific motorcycle rally in the summer. Calm down, it is not the misogynistic-wet-t-shirt-drinking-contest event many call “Sturgis”. We attend the North American V-Strom Rally. The first year, I was one of two women and the only female who rode her own bike. I was bored out of my head and alone in a crowd. None of the guys or the other woman would talk to me. Nobody got excited when asked to ride with me. I played on my smart phone while the guys around me talked up a storm over dinner about their love of bikes and subsequent adventures. I sat a lot and just chilled. I was excited to attend and my hopes for a weekend ripe with motorcycle mania were quickly dashed. Fast forward a couple years and I am now greeted with big bear hugs, warm smiles and conversation galore. I am not only welcome, but known and respected among my bike-loving-ride-in-all-weather-have-helmet-hair crowd. We have found our connection and our common ground. We are now buddies. Friends.

Bringing this all together….. Fellas, I don’t do these things to meet guys. I never did. This is just NOT about YOU! I engage in these activities because I LOVE them. I mean L-O-V-E as in sacrifice other things for them, spend lots of money to enjoy them, and have integrated these passions into all aspects of my life. My Christmas tree is lovingly adorned with beer coaster and motorcycle ornaments. My basement is full of beer supplies and my garage is full of motorcycles. My spare closet is filled with motorcycle gear and my storage shelves are packed with home brew supplies. My spouse and I have arguments about money and spending on our hobbies. Just like you. Just like many of us.

I realize that we are socialized to assume that most interactions between men and women are or will be or should become sexual. Both men and women receive messages that make it difficult to merely see each other as people with common interests, common stories, and connections to make. Connections that lay way outside of anything sexual, intimate or otherwise relationship-oriented. Connections that will bring us joy, but have nothing to do with partner shopping or dating or hooking
up. Nothing. Nada. Zero. Zilch. I bring this up because women, after all, are about 50% of the population. Women, after all, are everywhere, too. We come in all shapes and sizes, colors and configurations. We have lots of diverse interests and personalities. We are as similar and as different as you are.

But there is more…

The Front of Jim's Tee

I ask you, the male majority for this chat, to please not let my gender get in the way. While I may give you a black eye if you call me “sir” to my face (just kidding), I am there To enjoy one of my passions. Just like you. It IS about the beer. It is about talking beer, sharing stories about beer, getting tips and information that is beer related. It is all about the beer!

We share our love or beer (or bikes) and it is okay that we connect. It is okay that my hubby does not share my passion for beer and that I will have lengthy conversations with strange men about something I love. It only means that we share a common interest. Nothing more and nothing less. Dudes, it is about the beer NOT about you! Despite the messed up societal norms we may be exposed to, I think we can work through this together. I think there is room for all of us at the beer-lover-home-brewer table. That being said, it is not always the case that those of us who share a hobby are only there for the hobby. Of course not. I may have been born at night, but it was not last night. I know full well that some folks are looking for a partner, mate or maybe even just a hook-up. So be it. But, let’s be clear that you will figure that out right away. Even your beer-drinking self can recognize flirting vibes and undertones of a sexual nature. I, on the other hand, will make is easy. Not only will I not give you any clear or unmistakable flirt vibes, I can almost always guarantee that my big and tall adoring husband will be standing right there beside me while I get my beer on. A clear indication that I seek no more than a connection. No more than a mutual adoration of good brew. I seek only to indulge my beer dork self.

So, let’s make a deal. Let’s agree to each take a baby step on behalf of our love of beer. I will try and be more outgoing at these events and may even introduce myself to lots of strangers. Men included. In turn, I will ask that you seek out me – the female – and introduce yourself. You may recognize that I am one of the only women there and I may feel shy and intimidated. I probably don’t have any female friends that will attend with me, and I know for sure I have no close female home brew friends. But, like people everywhere, I am just trying to find my place and, in this case, share my love of beer. Like you, I long to connect with others who share my passion. If you approach a couple, perhaps ask who the beer lover is first and don’t assume that it is the male. I will, in turn, try not to get so freaking pissed off when I get ignored or left out or if you ask my hubby about his home brew.

It this always easy? Nope. Especially if you are as introverted as I am. I hate talking to strangers and meeting new people can be hard. But, I am willing to step out of my comfort zone if you will meet me part way. While it may not be our norm to approach strange people at our beer events, especially those who don’t look like us, we do have this great opportunity to break new ground, build a community and welcome new folks. It is our love of beer that brings us together. It is our love of beer that makes us happy. It is for our love of beer that we invest in our beer culture and our beer club. It is for our love of beer that we invite and welcome others in to our passion and our hobby. It is for our love of beer that we can throw out societal norms, expectations and stereotypes and move beyond the gender divide. Hell, let’s get crazy and include the racial divide, the ability divide, the age divide. Let’s include all those things that keep us separate and put them aside. It is for our love of beer that our community can and will grow, accepting all who enter. It is about creating and nurturing a quality beer culture. It is, again, about the shared passion. It is, as always, all about the beer. But, all bets are off if you call me “sir” to my face. Then it’s on…..

Related Posts:

• Interview with Randy Mosher about Women and Beer (Guest post by Ingrid Calderoni)
• Vicki Stowe – Brewmaster (The College Years, Part 5)
• Vicki Stowe – Brewmaster (Part 35)
• Vicki Stowe – Brewmaster (Part 34)
• Vicki Stowe – Brewmaster (Part 32)

Posted By: Guest

Who am I to tell you anything?

In my daytime life I work as an educator at a University. My topics are health related. My specialty is alcohol. Ironic, huh? I teach college students how to drink by day, practice my own drinking by night, and make alcohol on the weekends. Who could ask for anything more? It’s not quite that simple, but you get the idea. So here I am, hoping to pass on some tools of the trade and share some tips to help you get the most out of your beer drinking experiences. I am certainly not here to tell you how to live your life or pass any judgment. I am here to share information that can help you maximize “the good stuff”, minimize the “bad stuff”, and perhaps better understand what happens when you, as a special and unique beer drinking female, consume alcohol.

The Gender of Beer

Ok, girls, let me just put it out there – you generally cannot drink as much as the guys. Sorry! I know we all want equality and such, but our biological make-up keeps us behind on this one. First, guys are generally bigger and weigh more than us, which is great when it comes to changing that tire but a drag during a night on the town. Guys typically also have less fat than women. Fat, as you may know, does not absorb alcohol. The less fat you have, the quicker it moves through your system. Thank our baby-making genes for that one. Being fit does help, but women are prone to having more fat just the same. Speaking of making babies… our hormones also get in the way. Depending on what time of the month it is, or what sort of hormonal birth control method we may use, alcohol can affect us differently. Sometimes we can get that good feeling, sometimes not. Sometimes it goes right to our head, sometimes not. Hormones…

Sheesh!

Last, but not least, guys have more (and I mean lots more) of an enzyme called alcohol dehydrogenase. This is the fancy little number that breaks down the alcohol and gets it moving through and out of the system. We just don’t have it. Bummer.

What is a drink, anyway?

Now the discussion turns a bit technical. One drink is not always what is in the glass, can or bottle. By definition, one “standard” serving of alcohol is a 1/2 oz of pure ethyl alcohol. Not many folks drink that straight – can you say Everclear ? Translate that into real life. On average, that means one 12 oz. beer, one 1.0 oz (shot) of hard alcohol, and 5 ounces of wine. Please, allow me to further complicate the issue. As you well know my craft beer drinking sisters, not all beers are created equal either. We have beer with 4% alcohol by volume (ABV) [editor's note: and even lower!] all the way up to 12% ABV (barley wine) [editor's note: and even higher!]. Girls, that means we must be on our toes and pay attention to what we are putting into our bodies. It takes the body about 15 minutes to absorb all of that alcohol and it begins as soon as that scrumptious ale hits our mouth. Once the alcohol is in our system, it takes about an hour for it to oxidize itself into oblivion and out of our blood stream.

A Bit More on our Bodies

Now that you understand what a “drink” really is, and some of the ways alcohol effects us gals differently, there are tools you can use to help mitigate your beer time. First, know that alcohol is a depressant. Sure, we feel that initial high, or buzz, but ultimately we come down. To really get the most out of your beer experience, it is best to keep your blood alcohol level (BAL or BAC) at (or below) .06. You know that legal limit traffic law that talks about .08 BAC for not driving? Well, think of .06 BAC as the fun limit. When you pass this number, you will experience more impairment, more depressant effects, and you could be on your way to not having the fun time you have set out to have. Once you pass that limit you usually don’t get that nice buzz back. Sad

Image courtesy of the California DMV

* The chart reflects the number of drinks per hour.

Tips, Tools and Ways to have Fun 

Feeling overwhelmed? Yeah, imagine me teaching this to 50 Sorority sisters late on a Sunday night! In all honesty, they are a great audience and we have fun discussions. But, stay with me, because this next part will be helpful. I promise. In my professional life, when talking about alcohol, I talk a lot about “protective factors”. Let me tell you that 96% of college students already do this stuff, so I am confident not all of this will be new. Protective factors are things we do to “protect” ourselves during our alcohol-based good time fun. I don’t think folks intend to get a DUI, dance with the porcelain goddess, or acquire some fancy (and perhaps incurable) disease. Some things you can do to keep the fun alive: designate a sober driver – I said sober, not the least drunk; make sure you have real food in that tummy – I know calories are a drag, but so is being
arrested; count your drinks or set a limit ahead of time; don’t play drinking games or consume unknown quantities (do you really need to be the beer pong champ?); know what you are having and how much alcohol is in it; use your behavioral cues, such as how you are feeling, talking or walking, as a way to judge if you have had too much.
Sometimes the same amount of alcohol can effect us differently, so be prepared to change your plan if you have to. Talk to your friends and make a deal about limiting your drinking. I think you get the idea. Use your beer drinking brain ahead of time for maximum beer drinking fun later.

[Editor's note: For any of you drinking game loving ladies out there (and I'm one of them)- don't get upset just yet at what Michelle said above. She makes a good point, but if I can put my two cents in, I'd say, if you really must play one of those games, (and sometimes you just do, believe me, I've been there), include those drinks that you consume during the game in your count of drinks for the night. Drinking games are a lot of fun, but can be very dangerous if you aren't paying attention to how much and how quickly your drinking. Again, the overall message here is- have fun, but be safe.]

Keeping it Real, Keeping it Fun

Image courtesy of Inland Brewer's Unite

The bottom line here is that we all want to have a good time. I mean, nobody really sets out to “be that guy” or “that gal”. The reality, too, is that most of us have or will make mistakes, miscalculations, and perform mishaps during our drinking careers. Easy steps to take involve just a little planning: Who will drive? Who will drink? What about food? What about mood or medication? Is it that time of the month? What am I expecting out of this? Are there non-drinking activities to pass the time? Am I tired, pissed off, or happy? Will there be food or non-alcohol beverages? I encourage you to take five minutes, run a quick inventory, and talk about your plan. Get your friends or partner to agree, so that later, when you are unable to make any decisions at all, nobody changes their mind, blows your evening, or puts you in any sort of danger. With this information you are now ready to set out for a good time with your beer brethren.

In the end, we want to enjoy the beer, enjoy each other, and we want to see YOU again!

Cheers,

Michelle

Michelle Pingree has been brewing for two years, is a partial mach and extract brewer, and averages one beer per month. She is married to a non-beer-drinker-designated-driver and when not brewing or drinking beer she can be found taking part in various motorcycle adventures. Her husband and adult daughter also ride.

~~~~~

Related Posts:

• A Beer Drinking Woman in a Beer Man’s World
• Interview with Randy Mosher about Women and Beer (Guest post by Ingrid Calderoni)
• Women, Beer and Media- Happy International Women’s Day!
• Women in Beer Series – Maggie Foley
• Join the Ranks! Contribute for Ladies of Craft Beer

Posted By: Stevie Caldarola

The following is from an email newsletter from Private Tap:

 SHE’S CRAFTY LAUNCHES!

Photo courtesy of Private Tap

Chicks and beer are culturally estranged (the St. Pauli Girl is the closest thing we have to a beer icon). But despite all busty misconceptions, the fact is, chicks dig beer – good beer. Thank goodness, then, for Nune Boyadjian, Los Angeles transplant and founder of She’s Crafty, a craft beer forum for like-minded, hops and malt-loving ladies.

The group is Boyadjian’s “if you build it, they will come” solution to the apparent dearth of female craft beer lovers in her adopted NYC hometown. And with She’s Crafty’s inaugural meeting last Wednesday, October 26th, Boyadjian began recruiting a surprisingly diverse crowd of fellow femmes to drink and discuss amber ales, IPAs and stouts (just don’t ask her about Flemish sours).

She’s Crafty’s first meeting brought Syracuse’s Empire Brewery to the decidedly unfeminine Manchester Pub, a low-lights, frosty-pints spot on Manhattan’s East side where Olivia, the youngest (and only female) brewer in New York state, led a table of women through a craft beer tasting – with a side of quesadillas and wings. Some of the bar’s louder, hairier patrons couldn’t resist the occasional interruption, making discussion a little harder. But Nune and Co. prevailed, tasting four of the Empire lineup, including the drinkably rich Empire Cream Ale, a spicy Critz’s Pumpkin Ale, a grapefruity, floral IPA, and the balanced crowd favorite Empire Amber Ale. If anyone had any complaints, Empire founder David Katleski was on hand to answer to them directly.

For those ladies out there still stranded in the masculine, mustachioed stereotype of craft beer appreciation, Boyadjian’s next event is coming up soon. Meanwhile, she’s still drinking casks and taking names – so Sign Up Today as the next She’s Crafty member!

Related Posts:

• Interview with Randy Mosher about Women and Beer (Guest post by Ingrid Calderoni)
• This Mother’s Day Celebrate The First Beer Brewers – Women
• A Beer Drinking Woman in a Beer Man’s World
• Vicki Stowe – Brewmaster (Part 32)
• Women in Beer Series – Hanna Laney

Posted By: Stevie Caldarola

As the president of Ladies of Craft Beer, I get the pleasure of meeting many amazing women who are a part of the craft beer industry. Each woman has great stories and amazing insight into the world of craft beer. This has inspired me to start a “Women in Beer” interview series. Whether brewing, blogging, selling, marketing, or advocating craft beer, women from all over the industry will answer the following ten questions to share with your their thoughts and experiences with craft beer. I hope that these little glimpses into the minds of these great women will inspire you.

If you know or have heard of a woman in the craft beer community that you think deserves to be highlighted in this series, please send me your suggestion(s).

Cheers!

~~~~~

Hanna Laney is the resident Word Nerd at Great Divide Brewing Company.

1. What was your first beer experience?

My first beer memories go back to being a kid and seeing my dad drink Widmer Hefeweizen in a tiny town in Oregon called Sunriver. To me, the word “beer” meant that particular golden brew and an evening spent grilling on the patio. My first tastes of craft beer were in college. There was this awesome grocery store in Spokane, Washington called Huckleberry’s that let you do mix-and-match six packs from a more-than-respectable craft beer cooler. This is where I had the chance to branch out and try styles that have become some of my favorites: saisons, krieks, sours and west coast IPAs.

2. If you brew/homebrew, what or who inspired you to start brewing? What do you do in the industry and what or who inspired you to get into it?

I don’t homebrew or brew commercially but I have some serious respect for all the hard workers who do. Currently, I work for Great Divide Brewing Company as the resident Word Nerd. My job is a delightful hodge-podge of social media strategy, copywriting, festival coordination and general customer service. Of course, I do my part for quality control one pint at a time in the Tap Room, as well. I was inspired to get into the industry when my parents started growing barley for Rogue Ales and Spirits. This opened my eyes to the thoughtful, creative process that is craft brewing and I’ve been hooked ever since!

3. What is your favorite beer to brew and why? What is your favorite beer to drink and why?

That’s a hard one. I don’t know if I can pin favorite on a single beer but, undoubtedly, my favorite style is a hopped-up West Coast-style IPA—whether citrus, floral, grassy, it’s all good. Growing up in Portland gave me a bevy of delicious hop bombs to choose from and I’m slowly making my way through all of them that I can find. I will try any brewery’s IPA, but since I’m still relatively new in the industry, I like to try new things, especially at the behest of my much more experienced co-workers and friends in the industry.

4. What is/was your favorite beer event to attend, and why?

I like the energy and excitement of the big blowouts like GABF, but my favorite events are the neighborhood tasting events. I’d rather spend an evening at a local, neighborhood haunt trying beer than a big, crazy multi-day marathon festival. My favorite events are the quirky one-nighters like vertical tastings, single hop festivals, single style showcases, beer and food pairings and brewery anniversary parties.

5. Have you taken any tasting and/or brewing courses? What are your thoughts on such courses?

Unfortunately, I have yet to take any brewing or tasting courses. I think they are a great way to learn about the entire craft and I hope to delve in soon. While beer’s legitimacy is obvious to fans and industry members around the world, I think programs like the Cicerone training and evaluation help validate beer as more than just wine’s hillbilly cousin. I’m excited about the standardization of these tests and how they reflect the nuance, subtlety, passion and complexity of beer as a craft.

6. What advice do you have for anyone interested in getting into your aspect of the beer industry?

I’ve run into some excellent luck along the way that has allowed me to be in the right place at the right time, so I don’t know if I have any great advice for anyone. However, I can comment on the openness, warmth and overall helpfulness of those in the craft beer industry. If you want to get into the industry, start asking around. Try and get an informational interview with anyone you can—this way, you can get vital info from those already in the industry. Look for part-time jobs in breweries that could open the door to what you ultimately want to be doing. All of our brewers have come from our production team and I think that speaks to the fluidity and room for growth within the industry.

7. What beer would you want to brew/ want to see brewed?

Can I have two answers? Experimental and session. To me, each beer is an experience within itself; a nice 16-ounce journey. While I obviously want to see more of my favorite style being brewed, I have a special place in my heart for experimental beers. There’s something really inspiring to me about saying, “To hell with it–we’re doing this thing and we’ll see how it works out.” Non-hopped beers, alternative ingredients, style revivals, blends and barrel work all appeal to me. I also think the whole industry is primed for a session beer renaissance and I can’t wait.

8. What has been your hardest challenge in the industry? What has been your greatest success?

Hardest challenge? Hmm…I can’t say that anything jumps to mind. I’ve found the industry to be mostly inclusive, progressive and exciting. I suppose I have had some trouble convincing people that a young woman in the industry should be taken seriously, but that’s the vast minority of interactions I’ve had. As far as successes, I’m happy to have been on the forefront of some of the exciting trends in beer and social media while working at Great Divide. As an industry, we’re on the cusp of some pretty cool new technologies that can bridge the gap between real-time beer experience and the web. I’m looking forward to seeing how these trends can continue to enrich the social experience of craft beer.

9. Tell us your most fun beer story.

Undoubtedly, my most fun beer story comes from the 2009 Oregon Brewers Fest when I worked at Rogue as an intern. I think too much detail would leave me in some hot water, but, suffice to say, the day was one for the books. For some reason, the Rogue cadre attends the festival dressed as monks, so I spent a day of parading, imbibing and general shenanigans in a brown robe, cigar in mouth and mug in hand.

10. What is your take on the craft beer industry? What is your favorite thing about it? What could stand improvement?

My favorite thing about the craft beer industry is the people. Most people I’ve met within the industry enjoy their role in the process. In a time of decided cultural divisions, it’s inspiring to see an industry that brings people together in the name of innovation, passion and good, ol’ fashioned human interaction. I would say an improvement that comes to mind is between women. If we could find a way to close the philosophical gap between die-hard female beer geeks and newbies, we could make craft beer a more inviting place for women. The way I see it, there’s room for every palate.

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Related Posts:

• Women in Beer Series – Karen Walker, Colette Johnson and Krista Homiak
• Women in Beer Series – Kelly McKnight
• Third Annual Parade of Darks – Wynkoop Brewing, Denver, Colorado
• Women in Beer Series – Megan Parisi
• Women in Beer Series – Mariah Calagione

Posted By: Stevie Caldarola

Now this is news we like to see!

FROM PR Newswire:

“LONG BEACH, Calif., Aug. 15, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Women are placing the “ale” in female for Taste of Brews, an entirely new craft beer tasting festival that is heading to Lighthouse Park in Long Beach on Saturday, August 20, 2011.  Taste of Brews features more than 100 beers from 50 local, regional and international breweries and brewpubs paired alongside cuisine from high-end gastropubs and fabulous eateries.  The all-inclusive admission includes unlimited craft beer tastes and food samples, along with snacks, water and more…”  

Read more on the PR Newswire website here.

Are you heading to Taste of Brews or another beer festival/event in your area? Tell us about it in the comments below.

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