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mhdiaries · 4 years

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Classroom Abbey Bominable & Heath Burns Home Ick Journal

Okay, so I never really intended to take Home Ick. I kind of signed up by accident. I have lots of accidents. The emergency room has a seat with my name on it. Honestly - it’s a little plaque that says “Reserved for Heath Burns”. I used to think that was pretty cool until some monster told me it was like getting a trophy for being clumsy. I do that a lot it seems - thinking something is totally hot and then finding out it’s totally not. I guess it’s good I have such a short memory about the mistakes I make otherwise I’d never leave the house. What was I talking about? Oh yeah, Home Ick. I get distracted easily. I think it’s a fire elemental thing... maybe.

So the reason I’m in this class was that I was going to sign up for Metal Shop cause it’s a pretty “Heath Safe” environment and I wanted to build a killer robot suit like the one you get to pilot in this game I’ve been playing online, but then Abbey walked by, and I kind of got distracted by something I said or something she said, and I must have checked the wrong box. I mean, why else would I have gotten Home Ick on my class schedule? Manny found out and was giving me grief, so I was going to change it, but Deuce and Abbey talked me into keeping it. Deuce is like my best bro ever and Abbey is like... totally cool. She’s so tall and pretty and totally cool. Abbey also said that she wanted me in the class... well, not in so many words maybe, but I knew what she meant. I totally light her fire.

I am thinking that maybe I was using too much of the encouragement on Heath Burns. Now he is in Home Ick class and is partner for cooking project. All I say is, “Home Ick class is not for ghouls only.” Hmmph - living in the down below is giving me avalanche of the mouth. Now grade with depend on Heath not creating huge mess and destroying project, but maybe Heath will be on best behavior, and it will all turn out to the good... right, I think abundance of down below oxygen is causing problem with clear thinking.

Ms. Kindergrubber made me come in before class to go over safety, she did the whole lecture - wearing oven mittens. I’m not sure if she always dresses that way or if she was worried about me. Whatever. It’s not like I haven’t heard this lecture before... in every class I’ve taken at MH. I can recite almost all of them from memory cause they pretty much all go something like this:

I can’t help it if I’m a fire elemental. I get excited and “poof” - something goes up in smoke. I almost want to change my last name to “No” since that seems to be what people call me the most; Heath No! It’s not like I torch term papers, books and other irreplaceable combustibles on purpose. I try so hard - when I think about it - not to fire up. Dad says I need to learn self-control. That’s easy for him to say since he can focus his fire down to a flame as small as a lit birthday candle even when I get excited or mad. It takes all my focus to just not melt my desk. I guess I must have said all the right things to Ms. Kindergrubber cause when we were finished she gave me a list of what I would need for class. At least I’ll get to be in the class with Abbey! Awwwww hydrogen! I wonder if I can get another copy of the list?

If one thing I am learning about Heath Burns it is that when Heath says, “I got this.” It is meaning he does not. Like today in class we took cookies from oven before they are being done. I was putting them back when I hear Heath say those words and before I could say, “HEATH NO!” he is turning the cookies into snowman eyes. Of course he is apologizing but is also giving bad grade and setting off smokes alarm. When class is finished Ms. Kindergrubber is pulling me to side and asking if I wish to have new partner. I tell her no and that Heath and I will make up grade with killer final cooking project. I am thinking she does not believe is possible. I am thinking maybe not either but Heath is friend so will have to try.

So after I vulcanized our cooking project yesterday Abbey called me and totally asked me out on a date! Yes! “The Heathster’s still got it,” is what I was thinking but it turned out that’s not what Abbey was thinking. She told me to meet her at Headmistress Bloodgood’s house, which I thought was kind of lame even if Abbey does live there during the school year. I said we should meet at the Maul but Abbey said I had to meet her there. I got my cousin Jackson to give me a ride cause I didn’t want to show up for a date on my bike. Jackson drives like an old monster lady but it’s way better than riding with Holt. One time I got in the car with Jackson and without thinking... natch... turned on the radio. Oh man his driving just about scared the ashes out of me. I didn’t make the same mistake today. When we got there Abbey was waiting for me along with several ice statues. I told Jackson that he didn’t have to wait but he said that he wanted to stick around and see this. Abbey asked why I was dressed up. It didn’t take me long to figure out this was not a date. It was her idea of how to help both of us out in Home Ick.

Frozen inside each of the statues was an apple. I thought this was like some kind of kung fu movie so I totally melted the first two statues, turning them into a puddle of water and a smoking apple. I started to melt the third one when Abbey yelled “Heath Burns, stop!” I stopped. She said the goal was to melt the ice without cooking the apple. If I could do this, then she had an idea for a dish that would knock Ms. Kindergrubber’s gingerbread socks off. No problem, I said. Except three hours and many apples later Abbey finally gave up. “Is no use, I am failing first monster high class ever and you will never learn self control.” There was one statue left and maybe for the first time I felt more sorry for Abbey than I did for myself. So I concentrated all my fire into one finger and carved out the apple without even singeing the stem. I held up the apple and showed it to Abbey. “Excellent work, Heath Burns, - How about we go see movie now?” I burned the apple to a crisp, but we went to the movie anyway.

Home Ick Notes

Baked Himalaya

Recipe is a little muss and a little fuss, but is worth time and effort. Reminding Heath Burns to focus was largest part of task. We practiced at home before we were having to make in class.

Baked Himalaya #1

The recipe calls for seven eggs. We were down to four after I dropped three I was juggling. Doesn’t really work with four. - Fail

Baked Himalaya #2

Heath pronounces butter and milk of yak nasty. I use anyhow. Try out finished recipe on Headmistress Bloodgood who pronounces it nasty. FAIL... a tasty fail. Mmmmm just like grandmother yeti makes at home.

Baked Himalaya #3 Abbey thinks I should brown the meringue myself when we present it to Ms. Kindergrubber. Good thing we practiced, cause I sneezed when I tried this at home and tuned it into torched Himalaya. Fail.

Baked Himalaya #4

Perfection! Heath was focused. Was nice presentation whole class made with oohing and awing. Neither too much nor too little heat, and meringue was perfectly brown. Ms. Kindergrubber impressed by effort. A+

#monster high #monster high diary #monster high journal #home ick #abbey bominable #heath burns #stan heath burns

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trailsoftravel-blog · 5 years

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There are some places on this earth which gets synonymous with certain things. You think of Bhubaneswar, temples prop up in your mind; thought of Goa associates one with sea; Nainital will immediately pop up images of lakes in your mind and the list goes endless. But if you try to do it the reverse way, thought of sea maynot prop up just Goa, or thought of temples may never prop up just Bhubaneswar. Yet there are some places where even the reverse association will lead to what you associated the place with – you think of Coorg, coffee comes to our mind first. And if someone asks you which the coffee country of India is, Coorg will occur to you.

While it was during the British era, 1854 to be precise, that the first coffee estate was set up in Coorg by and Englishman, history of Coffee in this zone dates way back into 17th century.

During his pilgrimage to holy places of Islam, Baba Budan was fascinated by the magical beans that he came across in Yemen. He carried a few of them back and planted them in the Chandragiri hills of Karnataka. Coffee then flourished here and its fragrance filled the hills.

If you are here in the month of February, you may be misled to think that there has been snowfalls as the coffee plants blossom with snow white flowers and by March the entire place is filled with the fragrance of coffee. Great Indian Pied Hornbill, Giant Malabar Squirrel are famous here because they get attracted by the ripening coffee fruit. And if you are back again around November and December, you get to see the ripened coffee fruits ready to be plucked.

But is Coorg only about Coffee?

Thought of penning down how you can spend 48 hours in the Coffee Country of India.

Nisargadhama: If you are reaching Coorg from Mysore, just before you enter Coorg, on your left will be this nature park. If you are from a place where such parks exists, there is nothing that will seem striking here. For people around this place, it is nice, well laid out park with sculptures of local people and a deer park where I could locate only one deer and if you are keen to walk a lot, there is the river bank. However, crossing a narrow stream of Cauvery over a handing bridge is the only one thing that is different here.

Dubare Elephant camp: If you are a wildlife enthusiast, this place is not going to excite you. Bathing elephants and varied activity of elephants with tourists pouring all around maynot be a perfect wilderness which a wildlife lover prefers. But for kids and those whose only hope of viewing elephants are parks like this, this can be exciting. Wait your turn in queue to be ferried across a small stretch of the river to the other side to watch the activities. Desperation, on the day I was there, made people cross the water walking – rather some intended to walk but later attempted swimming.

Chikli Hole: Post lunch if you start, you can briefly touch Nisargadhama and then head to Dubare so that you are in time just before sunset at this place. And I loved being here. One reason being it is not populated with tourists as much as the previous ones are. The sight of serene lake surrounded by hills helps you rediscover yourself after you had lost yourself amidst crowd in the previous places. And if you are there for sunset, it will leave a lasting impression in you. Also, post sundown, the drive back to your resort through the woods will be enchanting.

Chetali Village: A tribal tour in Coorg can be a different experience. But if you are short on time, do take a drive up the winding roads of Chetali. You will feel the charm of the hills dotted with opulent plantations and huts of locals and tribal people who work in these plantations. Take a deep breath and view the vast stretches of undulating hills from the view point in Chetali. You will find yourself to be the only one there since very few explore this part of Coorg. And standing tall alone amidst undulating hills around you – yes you truly feel on top of the world.

Madikeri: Kodagu is the district which many refer to as Coorg and Madikeri is the district Headquarters. A nice little town, quaint in some places, busy with activity in the main market road, it has a welcome mix of colonial and local theme. Half a day here is something I wouldn’t want to miss.

Shopping: Spices are popular items here. But so it is in many other places in Kerala, Goa and so on. What I focused more on was the homemade wine and homemade chocolates. As they say, if a lady in Coorg is presented with rose, she may soon use the petals for making wine. From almost every possible fruit and some vegetables, wine is made at home here. Visit a Coorgi house. A glass of that wine is what welcomes you. No alcoholic content or yeast is used. It is through natural process of fermentation wine is made here. While you will be tempted to buy a bottle each of the wide variety, I restricted myself to a bottle of chili wine, driven by my dominant gustatory receptor.

Madikeri Fort: What struck me about the place is the way architecture of various periods has influenced its final shape. While Mudduraja built it in 17th century, Tipu Sultan modified it significantly, especially the palace portion, which is probably not open for tourists. The British, who took control of the fort in the early 19th century has left their influence too. There is a church (placed under the Church of England in India, Diocese of Madras) which was built here (in 1859) as you enter the fort. The building now houses the Madikeri Fort Museum. The Museum here contains several items related to history – mainly the British rule era, and also has a huge portrait of Coorg’s eminent personality Field Marshal K. M. Cariappa. The Fort has a functioning office of Madikeri Deputy Commissioner’s. Guess that has helped in a better upkeep of the place than many such places which are languishing for want of care.

Raja’s Seat: Watching the sun set from here is spectacular. Built for the King of Kodagu for watching the setting sun and spend time with his queens with an eye soothing view of undulating green hills, this place may crowded on weekends and holidays.

Abbey Falls: if you are in the hills, I guess it is customary to visit a waterfall. Abbey falls fills in that in your itinerary. But being close to the city, yet again, you are accompanied by mostly voices of fellow tourists rather than the sound of silence gently rhymed with the music of flowing water.

Café: Take an in-between halt at one of the many cafes that dot Madikeri. You are in Coorg and you should experiment with variants of Coffee while you are there.

Coorgi Meal: if you are in Coorg, you ought to focus only on the local cuisine. While a lot can be written about that, this blog captures nicely the essence and experience of Coorg Cuisine. Coorgi Cuisine

Plantation Visit: While choosing your stay in Coorg, ensure you choose a place amidst the plantations and up in the hills to get the feel of being in a coffee country in the hills. And to me, the most exciting part of Coorg trip was navigating through the plantation, smelling the plants, listening to chirping of birds and getting to soak into the feel of the environment. Passing through Arabica & Robusta plants, one needs to be told that both produce coffee, so different they are in their looks. Smell of peppercorn, stretches of paddy fields and rows of banana trees will make you lose yourself in some other world.

Places nearby but needs additional time: There are a few more places worth visiting, only if you have planned at least 3 nights stay in Coorg.

Iruppu Falls: plan your journey from Mysore to Coorg in a way you can visit Iruppu Falls on your way (it is a diversion enroute). If you have seen those falls in movie where the actors are cherishing the marvel of the falls by bathing under it while standing comfortably on a floor, you will get to enjoy the same here.

Talakaveri: Located in Brahmagiri Hill, it is considered as the source of holy river Cauvery (Kaveri). While it is exciting to be here in monsoons, you may still want to plan for this 48 km drive from Madikeri, if you want to visit the origin of this holy river. The temple here is dedicated to Goddess Kaveramma.

Bylakuppe: About half an hour before you reach Madikeri, you cross this place. While many associate Tibetan settlements in India to places in the Himalayas, it is not widely known that after Dharamshala, this is most populated area for the Tibetans in India. And apart from the plantation explorations in Coorg, this was probably the most satiating experience of mine in Coorg. And hence it deserves a separate blog. You can find my experience at Bylakuppe here :

Thriving Tibet

Coffee Country – Coorg There are some places on this earth which gets synonymous with certain things. You think of Bhubaneswar, temples prop up in your mind; thought of Goa associates one with sea; Nainital will immediately pop up images of lakes in your mind and the list goes endless.

#coorg weekendgataways kodava kodagu coffee coffeecountry spicecountry karnatakatourism visitkarnataka hillinsouth southindia nat

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miamibeerscene · 7 years

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The Evolving Role of Women’s Contributions to Brewing Beer

June 29, 2017

Women and female brewers have a long history in the story of beer.

In the dawn of civilized brewing, making beer was a woman’s job. It continues to be so in indigenous cultures around the world and is once again becoming an important workplace for women in the U.S., Canada and Europe.

Let’s start at the very beginning …

Early Evidence Found in China

Dr. Patrick McGovern is the world’s preeminent expert on ancient alcoholic beverages, as well as the scientific director of the Biomolecular Archaeology Laboratory for Cuisine, Fermented Beverages, and Health at the University of Pennsylvania Museum. McGovern notes that in mankind’s earliest days, “While men were out hunting, women were out gathering the ingredients they needed to make other foods and drink to go with the wooly mammoth or mastodon.”

McGovern explains the female’s role became even more critical once agriculture took hold because fermentation was often part of the food processing. Some of this fermentation was initiated by women chewing the grains to start the process.

(READ: BA Launches a Seal for Independent Brewers)

The earliest documented beer evidence was found in Jiahu, China, dating 7000-5600 BCE. Dogfish Head Craft Brewing makes a Chateau Jiahu. McGovern consulted with the brewery on the project, doing analyses to determine the beer’s contents of rice beer, honey mead and hawthorn fruit wine.

Rice beer, according to Chinese legend, was first brewed by Yi Di, the wife of Yu the Great. McGovern writes that in areas of Japan and Taiwan, “You can still find women sitting around a large bowl, masticating and spitting rice juice into the vessel as they prepare the rice wine.”

The Ancient Beer Goddesses

Stained glass window shows an artistic depiction of Ninkasi. (Credit: Founders Brewing Co.)

The oldest extant beer recipe, written in cuneiform, dates to ancient Mesopotamia, around 1800 BCE. The Hymn to Ninkasi, the Sumerian goddess of brewing, is both a song of praise to Ninkasi and an ancient recipe for brewing.

While written down around 1800 BCE, the hymn is probably much older since archeological evidence for brewing the beer goes back to 3500-3100 BCE at the Sumerian settlement of Godin Tepe in modern-day Iran. In ancient Babylon women were bakers/brewers and also distributed the beers.

According to the preeminent beer historian Alan Eames, another Sumerian beer goddess was Siris, who watched over the daily ritual of brewing. Eames notes that only women were allowed to brew and their beers included all manner of strange ingredients such as spices, peppers, tree bark and powdered crab claws. Sounds much like modern craft brewers — except for the powered crab claws part.

Perhaps the most interesting of these brewsters was Kubaba. While the circumstances of her elevation are unknown, Kubaba is the only female listed in the Sumerian King List, compiled around 2100 BCE, and probably the first recorded woman ruler. The Sumerian King List names her as the woman tavern-keeper. Legend says she reigned for 100 years (which may be a stretch).

Eames also notes that women ran the beer halls and taverns, with the price of beer being raw grain. The Babylonian Code of Hammurabi, from about 1500-2000 BCE, harshly states that if a tavern owner (a woman) does not accept barley as the price of beer, but if she receives money and the price of the drink is less than the that of the barley, she shall be convicted and the judges shall throw the brewster into the water. It also states that if conspirators meet at a tavern but are not captured then the tavern-keeper shall be put to death. Ouch.

(LEARN: CraftBeer.com’s Big Beer Glossary)

Ninkasi and Siris were not the only ancient brewing goddesses. Nearby Egypt had Tenerit, the goddess of beer, and Hathor, the goddess of drunkenness. Egyptian hieroglyphics show women both brewing and drinking beer.

Early Brewing Traditions in Europe

Egyptian hieroglyphics show women both brewing and drinking beer. (Public Domain)

From the Middle East beer brewing spread through Egypt to Greece, where beer was a distant second favorite to strong wine; to Rome where people also preferred strong wine; and throughout Europe.

The Romans reported that traditional German societies drank ale produced by women, mainly made from fermented honey. Women in the migrating Germanic tribes often brewed in forests to avoid pillaging raiders, some of whom were Vikings.

Based on archaeological finds in Northern Bavaria, Germans were brewing beer as early as 800 BCE. This continued for centuries after the Christian era, and once again brewing was the domain of the hausfrau.

From the 8th through the 10th century Vikings rampaged throughout North Africa and Europe. Viking beer was called Aul from which we obtain the name “ale.”

(MORE: Get to Know 75+ Popular Beer Styles)

According to Eames, “Viking women were the exclusive brewers in Norse society and law dictated that all brewhouse equipment remained the property of women.”

A record in England shows that women probably were the vast majority of brewers until the 13th century. These women, known as alewives, brewed beer in their kitchens.

Eames writes that, “Beer remained an essential diet and selling surplus beer became important to the economy of most households. When a housewife had extra beer to sell, an ale-stake — a long handled pole or broom handle — would be placed over the front door or in the road.”

Often there was a garland of hops atop the broomstick.

This marker continues to be seen throughout the world, especially in indigenous societies and probably is related to the brewer’s star which was hung outside pubs in Germany when fresh beer was available.

Photo shows women making Chicha beer. (Public Domain)

One of the regions where similar flags or notices are put out when beer is ready is Peru. The local corn-based Chicha beer is made in small homes and batches and a flag is displayed out front when Chicha is available.

A friend from our local homebrew club, who toured the Inca Trail, reports that she went off on her own for part of a day to find the local Chicha beer: “On that last day… I went for a long walk. I ended up in a village and knocked on a door that was flying the flag. When I walked back to the spa, I noticed another woman was actually making Chicha on the road and selling Chicha she made a few days earlier. This Chicha was very different because the natural microbial mixture was most likely different.”

Later her tour guide took her to a Chicha brewing friend and she reports she was told that the women enjoy the whole interaction because, “The men drink and the women laugh at them when they act silly.”

She also relates that virtually the same story exists in Nepal, according to a friend who taught her how to brew Chang, the beer of the Himalayas. Clearly, the brewing responsibility in indigenous societies comes with a bunch of societal fun for the brewing wives.

(RECIPES: Hundreds of Ways to Cook with Craft Beer)

A Shift from Women to Men

Several events evolved over time, conspiring to transfer the art of brewing from women to men.

Hildegard von Bingen, one of the great women in all of history, was a German abbess in the early 12th century. She was a consultant to popes and emperors, a writer of sacred music and madrigals, a philosopher and author of numerous scientific and medical writings.

Her Physica Sacra pharmacopeia was the first written reference to the preservative benefits of hops. This breakthrough allowed beer to last longer and, among other factors, led to larger breweries.

A second was the growth of monasteries which served as safe hotels and inns for weary travelers. That safety included serving beer rather than the local water which often was polluted. Much of the beer profits went to help run the monastery just as it is in today’s European monastery breweries. The monks became quite proficient at brewing and essentially initiated brewing as a profession.

(READ: 7 Breweries Worth a Detour)

The Black Plague in the 1400s was another turning point. With the attendant labor shortage wages increased and the financial ability to buy ale, which was safer than water (and more tasty), sharply increased. Brewing moved from the home to larger establishments.

As it became commercialized it segued into the hands of men who had the financial and legal resources to develop the growing industry. At the time, married female brewers had few legal rights and unmarried women had little capital.

Brewing originally did not involve much education, apprenticeship training or land, as long as it was confined to the home — but that changed.

The ale market changed from being dominated by single and married women into one that was commercial, professional and male-governed. By the 16th century in England and Germany, guilds also centralized and regulated brewing more heavily, which further contributed to the decline of women throughout the trade (although there were some guild women).

By the 18th century, women brewers seem to have largely disappeared from the profession — though many still served as tavern-keepers and often brewed the ales they served. While this may seem like a romantic notion, it was very hard work and often done out of necessity — and frequently by widows who needed the income.

Female Brewers Begin Making Inroads

In Europe in more modern times there have been inroads for women in the brewing industry.

Perhaps the most notable person is Franciscan Sister Doris of the Mallersdorf Abbey in Bavaria. Mallersdorf is one of the few brewing monasteries in Europe and perhaps the only nunnery.

Sister Doris began her brewing apprenticeship in 1966. She became the brewmaster in 1975, taking over from another sister who had been brewing there since the 1930s. Like St. Brigid, the second most famous saint in Ireland, Sister Doris is renowned for converting water in beer.

(TRAVEL: Beercation Guides)

More recently Anne-Françoise Pypaert became the first female Trappist brewmaster. Yes, that reads correctly. She is the brewmaster at the world famous Orval Trappist monastery.

While she was the only woman at Orval in 1992 when she was hired, the brewery now employs eight other women: two in the lab, one in Research and Development, four in the office, and one in the cheese factory.

Brewmaster Pypaert tells us, “The feminization of brewers helps to bring a certain nobility to the beer. Beer is no longer a product intended only for men, but also for women who enjoy it more and more.”

Similar things are happening in England. Sara Barton opened her own brewery, aptly called Brewster’s Brewery, in 1997. In 2013 she was named England’s Brewer of the Year.

Another woman, Emma Gilleland, was the first female head brewer in England and now is the director of supply chain for Marston’s Brewery, the leading independent brewery in England. Gilleland oversees the brewing and distribution of over 60 beers from five Marston breweries including the beers using the famous Burton Union system.

Marston’s, the only brewery in England still using Burton Unions, was described to us years ago by a brewer at the time as “The cathedral of British brewing.”

The increased visibility of these women and others has played a big part in attracting other women, many in various aspects of the industry.

(LEARN: Beer 101 Online Course)

Women Brewing in Early America

In the New World, colonial and subsequent Americans followed their homeland traditions. Early colonial women continued to brew for family and friends in their kitchen brewery.

While this changed in the cities with the growth of regional breweries, in rural areas it remained the same for a long time. These women brewed with what was available to them including corn, pumpkins, oats, wheat and honey.

America has a similar history to England. As brewing became a commercial enterprise, men dominated the trade. However, there were still some women involved in the industry. Mary Lisle was the first recorded but unofficial brewster in the colonies. She inherited her father’s brewery, the Edinburgh Brewhouse, in 1734. Her sister, Elizabeth, inherited his malt house. Mary ran the brewery until 1751 when Robert Steel bought it.

As families moved to the cities and the local breweries grew, refrigeration and industrialization essentially ended women’s involvement in the brewing system. Prohibition did not help and there were few small breweries for a long time after the passage of the Volstead Act and the 21st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution ended Prohibition.

(READ: Brick Store Pub Reflects on 20 Years as a Beer Bar)

American Women Among the Craft Brewing Pioneers

Women have been among the pioneers in the craft beer resurgence beginning in the 1980s and have attracted an increasing number of women to the craft brewing industry.

Women such as Mellie Pullman (Schirf), Carol Stoudt (Stoudts), and Teri Fahrendorf (Steelhead), three of the first women brewers, and Kim Jordan (New Belgium), Irene Firmat (Full Sail), Deb Carey (New Glarus), and Marcy Larson (Alaskan) who helped open some of the early breweries and served in numerous capacities other than brewer.

Carol Stoudt co-founded Stoudt’s Brewing in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in 1986. (Credit: Stoudts Brewing)

Deb Carey’s page on the New Glarus website says, “She does everything except brew beer.”

The trailblazing continues with people like Andrea Stanley who opened one of the first craft malteries in 2010. She also serves as president of the craft maltsters guild.

Several of these women mention the difficulty of raising funds to open a brewery, but mostly because the idea of making craft beer in the 80s and 90s was still foreign to a lot of people.

“Everyone just thought we were crazy for wanting to build a brewery,” Irene Firmat says. “It was not a woman’s issue.”

And it was hard work. Kim Jordan talks about “serving beers on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, delivering a newborn son the following Wednesday, and opening a new brewery the subsequent Monday.”

(VISIT: Find a U.S. Craft Brewery)

Does the Gender Gap Exist?

These pioneers say that they generally have not encountered sexism in the craft brewing world. Kim Jordan tell us, “Craft brewers tend to be more progressive and open-minded.”

Andrea Stanley tells us she’s had a similar positive experience.

“In seven years I never had a bad word from anyone in the craft industry,” Stanley says. “Men in craft brewing are willing and want to support.”

Granted, this isn’t the case for everyone. When Fahrendorf was first looking for work as a brewer, she remembers getting questions like, “Can you lift a 50-pound stack up the stairs?”

She moved on with determination and help from other industry people.

Mentoring a New Generation of Women in Beer

Teri Fahrendorf founded the Pink Boots Society to empower women beer professionals. (Credit: Pink Boots Society)

Most often their industry mentors were men since there were few women brewing at the time. Sometimes the mentors merely provided moral support and encouragement. Fahrendorf remembers when Paul Shipman, the founder of Redhook Ale, told her that he did not have any openings but, “One day you will be a brewery owner or brewmaster.”

Years later he does not remember the experience, but Fahrendorf certainly does.

Many of the women pioneers are now mentors themselves.

Stanley is working to get women on the board of the maltsters guild. She’s also working with other women to do the same for the craft industry as a whole.

Among the more ambitious and largest such program is the Pink Boots Society (PBS). When Fahrendorf took time off in 2007 to drive across the country brewing at various places, she found at least 60 women brewers asking at different breweries, “Are there others like us?”

She realized they had no connections.

(READ: 2017’s Great American Beer Bars)

She eventually developed a list of the women brewers which became the start of the PBS. PBS works to, “Assist, inspire, and encourage women beer professionals through education.” From the original 60 members there now are over 30 chapters across the world with more than 2,000 members from all aspects of the industry.

Fahrendorf also helped organize Barley’s Angels, a group for women who are interested in craft beer but not brewing. Barley’s Angels works with breweries, brewpubs, restaurants, alehouses and other places “to advance the female consumer craft beer enthusiast, resulting in increased patronage and revenue from women, while encouraging education and interest in craft beer among this often under-recognized demographic group.”

While mostly in the U.S., there are now more than 100 chapters around the world.

Kim Jordan ends a quick trip down a spiral slide at the New Belgium Fort Collins facility. The slide remains in place to this day. (Credit: New Belgium Brewing)

Advice to the Next Generation of Women in Beer

Jennifer Glanville, a brewer at Boston Beer/Sam Adams, thinks she has been called a pioneer “because I survived this long.” When she met Sister Doris at Mallersdorf she says: “We talked about beer and brewing, not about women in brewing.”

“We joke that brewers’ events are the only place where there is not a line to the women’s room,” Irene Firmat says.

Fahrendorf relates that when she started brewing she often did not go on trips because there was no one to share a room with.

(READ: Brewers are Fascinated with Foraged Beers)

That old norm clearly is changing, but there still is work to be done, and these pioneers have advice for women starting in brewing.

Firmat: “Feel strong and empowered. We have a better palate. Have a sense of confidence without expecting conflict.”

Stoudt: “Knowledge helps gain respect.”

Jordan: “Make sure you love it and work hard.”

Fahrendorf: “If you become discouraged, don’t give up. Be stubborn. If you don’t get a particular job then go elsewhere, be amazing, and make them jealous. When you get 5-10 years down the road stop thinking about yourself and become a mentor to others.”

At this point, Ninkasi probably is looking down from the pantheon of beer goddess and smiling.

The Brews Brothers

The Brews Brothers journalism team has focused on craft beers since shortly after the first shots were fired early in the ‘craft beer revolution.’ Publications and writings include American Brewer; Mid-Atlantic Brewing News; the Gazette Newspapers where we wrote monthly craft beer columns for 23 years for the metropolitan Washington, DC area; and Beerhistory.com. We also give lectures and host beer tastings. Steve likes classical music, the gym, walking my dog Barley on the C&O Canal and beercations. Arnie enjoys jazz, drinking craft beer and beercations. Read more by this author

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