International Women's Collaboration Brew Day is an annual event that takes place each year on International Women's Day (8 March). [1] The event gathers women brewers around the world who brew the same beer. All proceeds are donated to charity. It was established to raise awareness of women in the brewing industry, especially as beer brewmasters. It also networks women interested in brewing. [2]
The idea for the IWCBD came from Project Venus member, Sophie de Ronde, who reached out to the Pink Boots Society in 2013 to start a "unified brew day." [3] De Ronde wanted the day "to encourage women to brew together." [4] The day was meant to coincide with International Women's Day and would "raise awareness of women in the brewing industry and raise money for local charities and Pink Boots Society." [3] Brewing beer is a male-dominated industry and is "struggling with sexism and gender bias." [5] Another participant said, "I'd like to normalize the idea that women can and do work in the brewhouse along with other departments in a brewery." [6]
The first year, 2014, over 60 women in five countries brewed a pale ale called Unite. [7] In 2015, 80 women from eleven countries worked together to brew Unite red ale. [3] [6] In South Africa, Apiwe Nxusani-Mawela, helped organize the first IWCBD event in Johannesburg. [8] For 2016, the type of beer brewed was a gose. [9] By 2018, the number of participating female brewers had increased to 126. [10]
India pale ale (IPA) is a hoppy beer style within the broader category of pale ale.
Beer was introduced to Canada by European settlers in the seventeenth century. The first commercial brewery was La Brasseries du Roy started by New France Intendant Jean Talon, in Québec City in 1668. Many commercial brewers thrived until prohibition in Canada. The provincial and federal governments' attempt to eliminate "intoxicating" beverages led to the closing of nearly three quarters of breweries between 1878 and 1928. It was only in the second half of the twentieth century that a significant number of new breweries opened up. The Canadian beer industry now plays an important role in Canadian identity, although globalization of the brewing industry has seen the major players in Canada acquired by or merged with foreign companies, notably its three largest beer producers: Labatt, Molson and Sleeman. The result is that Moosehead, with an estimated 3.8 percent share of the domestic market in 2016, has become the largest fully Canadian-owned brewer.
Brewing in Ireland has a long history. Production currently stands at over 8 million hectolitres, and approximately half the alcohol consumed is beer.
Mountain Goat Beer is a brewery in Richmond, Victoria, Australia. The brewery was founded in 1997 by Cam Hines and Dave Bonighton. The company's first commercial brew, 'Hightale Ale' amber ale, was released in October 1997. Mountain Goat Beer was purchased by Asahi in September 2015.
Odell Brewing Company is an independent craft brewery in Fort Collins, Colorado. It's the 23rd largest U.S. craft brewing company by the Brewers Association. Odell Brewing is known for their hop-forward and balanced IPAs.
Shmaltz Brewing Company is an American craft brewing company headquartered in Troy, New York. Originally primarily known for its He'Brew flagship brand, the company produces a large line of Shmaltz Brewing beers and numerous other brands including 518/838 craft beers and the Alphabet City Brewing brand. It also produced Coney Island Craft Lagers until that brand's acquisition by Boston Beer Company in 2013.
San Diego County, California, has been called "the Craft Beer Capital of America". As of 2018, the county was home to 155 licensed craft breweries – the most of any county in the United States. Based on 2016 sales volume, three San Diego County breweries – Stone, Green Flash, and Karl Strauss – rank among the 50 largest craft brewers in the United States. San Diego County brewers pioneered the specialty beer style known as Double India Pale Ale, sometimes called San Diego Pale Ale. Its beer culture is a draw for tourism, particularly during major festivals such as San Diego Beer Week and the San Diego International Beer Competition. San Diego County breweries including Stone Brewing Co., AleSmith Brewing Company and Ballast Point Brewing Company are consistently rated among the top breweries in the world.
Beer Day Britain is an annual event celebrating beer in the United Kingdom. The date has been celebrated annually on 15 June since 2015. It is supported by the British Beer and Pub Association, the Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA), and the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA).
Women have been active in brewing since ancient times. From the earliest evidence of brewing in 7000 BCE, until the commercialization of brewing during industrialization, women were the primary brewers on all inhabited continents. In many cultures, the deities, goddesses and protectors of brewers were female entities who were associated with fertility.
Apiwe Nxusani-Mawela is a South African brewmaster. Nxusani-Mawela is the first person from South Africa to earn a National Diploma in clear fermented beverages. She is also the first black woman in South Africa to found a microbrewery. Her company, Brewsters Craft, introduces students to the science of beer making through training and provides professional breweries a service through beer quality testing. She helped organize International Women's Collaboration Brew Day (IWCBD) events in South Africa.
The Pink Boots Society (PBS) is a non-profit organization with international membership which supports women and non-binary people working in the fermented beverages and allied industries. PBS started with women beer professionals and expanded that definition as its members and the industry have evolved. The majority of its members are involved with craft beer. The organization helps women fermented beverage professionals advance their careers through educational opportunities. Sub goals include mentorship, networking with other women in the profession, and raising awareness of women in these male-dominated industries. PBS also helps teach the skills needed to become beer judges. PBS raises money for scholarships for women to continue their education in order to break through remaining glass ceilings. There are around 2,500 members across the world. All members must be women or non-binary and have some type of career in the fermented beverages industries, which includes beer, wine, spirits, cider, saki, kombucha, and any other fermented beverage.
Teri Fahrendorf is an American brewer and founder of the Pink Boots Society, an organization that supports women in the brewing industry.
Sara Barton owns Brewster’s Brewery in Grantham, Lincolnshire. In 2012, Barton was the first woman awarded the British Guild of Beer Writers’ Brewer of the Year Award and was the 2019 Institute of Brewing and Distilling Brewer of the Year. Her beers have won multiple international awards. She started Project Venus, a collaborative brewing group for women brewers, in 2011.
Rebecca Bennett has worked in various brewmaster positions at Anheuser-Busch InBev, most recently as a senior quality manager in Baldwinsville, New York. She also held the assistant brewmaster post (2015–2018) at the Baldwinsville facility and previously was a product development specialist (2010–2015) and group manager (2005–2010 at the St. Louis, Missouri, facility. She graduated from Purdue University with a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering in 2005.
Jaega Wise is an English beer brewer, campaigner, broadcaster and author. Born in London and raised in Nottingham, she is the head brewer and co-founder of London-based Wild Card Brewery and in 2018 was named "Brewer of the Year" by the British Guild of Beer Writers.
Sophie de Ronde is a British brewer. She has been head brewer of Suffolk-based Burnt Mill Brewery since 2017, and previously brewed at Brentwood Brewing Company between 2007 and 2014. In 2019, she was named "Brewer of the Year" by the British Guild of Beer Writers. De Ronde is the founder of the International Women's Collaboration Brew Day as well as being a co-founder of Beer Day Britain. Unusually for a brewer, she is unable to drink most beer as she is allergic to wheat and barley.
Beervana is an annual two-day beer festival in Wellington, New Zealand, with 14,000 – 16,000 visitors attending. Typically there are 350–450 different craft beers.