• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Advertise
  • About Craft Brewing Business

Craft Brewing Business

Professional Insight, Unfiltered

Craft Brewing Business Craft Brewing Business
  • News
  • Business & Marketing
  • Packaging & Distribution
  • Equipment & Systems
  • Ingredients & Supplies
  • Webinars & White Papers
  • News
  • Business & Marketing
  • Ingredients & Supplies
  • Packaging & Distribution
  • Equipment
  • Webinars & White Papers
  • COVID-19

Women beer professionals march forward in the Pink Boots Society

February 25, 2013Keith Gribbins

Pink Boots Society Logo
If you are a woman in the brewing industry, consider attending the Pink Boots Society’s Craft Brewing Conference National Meeting this March (see the info below).

Beer’s magnetism attracts all races, all ages and all genders. One might say the diversity of craft beer in America represents the diversity of craft beer characters in the industry. One of the most passionate and character-driven demographics in the craft beer industry is women. Look no further than the Pink Boots Society, an organization created to empower women beer professionals, advance women brewing careers and make damn good beer along the way.

Headed by award-winning Portland, Ore., craft brewer Teri Fahrendorf, the Portland-based Pink Boots Society has been supporting women in brewing since 2008. Fahrendorf is an ideal role model and president for the group. She won her first double-gold medal at the Great American Beer Festival in 1991, blazing a career that has roamed from beer clerk and malt salesperson to brewer and educator.

“2013 is my 25th year as a beer professional,” Fahrendorf said. “I’ve had such an amazing and enjoyable career in beer that it is personally important to me to give back to the industry I love by mentoring younger women. A big part of that is my work starting and running Pink Boots Society. There is no gender-based glass ceiling in the beer industry, just an education glass ceiling. That’s why we focus on education and on teaching each other.”

The first Pink Boots Society meeting was held during the San Diego Craft Brewers Conference in April of 2008. At that time, the society was only 60 women brewers. Sixteen of those brewers and six women beer writers attended that first meeting. Membership has since grown to more than 800 female professionals worldwide, ranging from brewery owners and distributors to servers and beer journalists.

The society has two main tenants:
1. Support Pink Boots Society members to advance their beer careers through education.
2. Teach women beer professionals the judging skills necessary to become beer judges at the Great American Beer Festival and other competitions.

“We talk about a lot of non-brewing beer info too — like sensory analysis, beer line cleaning, building a small incubator and lab culturing and how to become a beer judge,” Fahrendorf said.

Try attending one of the organization’s meetings. They are beer-oriented think-tanks, and the results are often inspiring. A great article in the Denver Post last week reported on seven women beer professionals collaborating on a craft beer recipe to be served at Colorado Craft Beer Week (March 18-24). The seven women met last week and came up with a citrusy, session-focused Belgian pale ale (using tropical New Zealand hops). Quoted from the article:

“The meeting was one of those surreal experiences: seven girls, sipping beer, getting super technical and nerding out about brewing beer,” said Bess Dougherty, an assistant brewer at Wynkoop Brewing Co. “I’ve never had that much of a technical conversation with other female brewers before.”

Dougherty said that the idea of a collaboration beer between the female brewers was an idea that’s been kicked around for a while, especially in the Pink Boots Society.

It’s an outstanding organization and gets women talking, and we encourage any female professionals in the craft brewing industry to check out their website. We noticed recently that the Pink Boots Society is finally a 501(c) 3 USA tax-exempt charity. That means they can finally launch their long-anticipated scholarship program. We think that’s pretty much awesome.

Want to check out even more awesomeness? Attend the Pink Boots Society’s Craft Brewing Conference National Meeting (see the info below).

“This photo of 130 members who attended our 2012 Craft Brewers Conference really shows how far we’ve come in only four years from the 2008 meeting where 22 members attended,” Fahrendorf said. “Starting Pink Boots Society has been the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but I know it will be worth it when I announce the recipient of our first educational scholarship at our national meeting during the 2013 Craft Brewers Conference in Washington, D.C., in March.”

The Details:
Pink Books Society Craft Brewers Conference National Meeting
Thursday, March 28
11:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m.
Room #207
Walter E. Washington Convention Center
801 Mount Vernon Place Northwest
Washington, D.C.

The Pink Boots Society Group Photo 2012
The next leaders in the brewing industry. The Pink Boots Society group photo 2012.
brooklyn 35 feature
Brooklyn Lager turns 35 and more beers to know this week
Pink Boots Society Logo
Less talk more action: CT Brewers Guild and Pink Boots Society unveil a four-point plan to battle sexual harassment
roughhouse brewing cave aged beers
Cave-aged beer finally excavated by Roughhouse and other beers to know this week
Pink Boots Society Logo
Laura Ulrich named new president of Pink Boots Society, gives leading ladies three reasons to join

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Al Kingham says

    March 10, 2013 at 6:50 pm

    Moving in a direction involving a beer directed to women. So learning of your Pink Boots Society, enforces that belief that women have been over looked too long for their gender’s contribution to brewing, if not the historical possibility, women invented the process.

    Log in to Reply
  2. MillwallFCEO says

    February 25, 2013 at 12:47 pm

    RT @CraftBrewingBiz: Women beer professionals march forward in the Pink Boots Society @pinkbootsbeer http://t.co/B5C2BhvgWQ

    Log in to Reply
  3. Holy_Growler says

    February 25, 2013 at 12:11 pm

    http://t.co/p9O0UDTpqY #craftbeer #women

    Log in to Reply
  4. NoCrapBeer says

    February 25, 2013 at 12:09 pm

    RT @CraftBrewingBiz: Women beer professionals march forward in the Pink Boots Society @pinkbootsbeer http://t.co/B5C2BhvgWQ

    Log in to Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Primary Sidebar

Latest News

  • Blue Moon plans limited run under its original name, Bellyslide Wit, coinciding with baseball season
  • Craft sales continue to struggle in 2023, NBWA March Beer Purchasers’ Index confirms
  • Sockeye Brewing’s new Alehouse has one of Boise’s largest outdoor patios + a 9-hole putting course
  • Distribution update: pFriem Family Brewers goes to LA + news from Wiseacre, Anderson Valley, FÜL and more

Sign up for our newsletter

unsubscribe from list

Most Popular Today

Recent Features

  • Craft sales continue to struggle in 2023, NBWA March Beer Purchasers’ Index confirms
    March 30, 2023
  • Distribution update: pFriem Family Brewers goes to LA + news from Wiseacre, Anderson Valley, FÜL and more
    March 29, 2023
  • Watch how White Labs’ WLP077 Tropicale yeast intensifies fruity flavors in hop compounds
    March 29, 2023
  • Boston’s Dorchester Brewing and Yakima Chief Hops team up to offer contract breweries discounts on hops
    March 28, 2023
  • 10 craft beer variety packs that have us excited to try new beer
    March 27, 2023
  • Take a look at Jack’s Abby’s renovated Beer Hall and its sweet new Tradition Meets Tech pilot system
    March 27, 2023

Footer

  • Email Newsletter Sign Up
  • About Craft Brewing Business
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise on Craft Brewing Business
  • Media Kit Download
  • Privacy and Terms

© 2023 · CBB Media LLC