Philadelphia Weekly

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Contrary to the gender coding of American advertisements, women do enjoy beer—drinking it, brewing it, talking about it. (And men do dishes!) There are very powerful women in the beer industry. Still, there’s no question the business of beer continues to be dominated by men, so PW asked a few local pioneers of the craft beer movement to talk about what it’s like to be a women in this man’s world. Some of them feel it’s difficult; others feel gender is unimportant. Either way, we’re glad they’re doing what they do: encouraging women and men to drink and drink well.

Sebbie Buhler, advocate, Rogue Ales
Why did you decide to go into the beer industry?
I lived in Europe and visited the Pacific Northwest in the late ’80s and really enjoyed quality beer. Back home in New Jersey there was no selection, and brewpubs were illegal then. My brother in Seattle was a sales rep for Rogue Ales and he helped me open the East Coast markets for Rogue in 1992.

What's in like being a woman in the industry?
It’s easier today than a decade ago—more women are involved in brewing, selling beer as sales reps for breweries and in retail stores, and serving craft beer. Best of all, more women are drinking craft beer.
 
Do you have a favorite beer?
Not any one in particular, but I've had many beer epiphanies, including Rogue’s Old Crustacean Barleywine paired with a Rogue Creamery blue cheese in flaky pastry at a beer dinner at Rat’s Restaurant. Another magical pairing I can taste in my mind’s eye was at Morimoto in Philadelphia: Kobe Beef Carpaccio and Rogue Black Obi Soba Ale.  

Whitney Thompson, brewer, Victory Brewing Company
Why did you decide to go into the beer industry?
Opportunity knocked while I was animal sitting for a retired German brewmaster, Gerhard Hirsch, who’s now my brewing mentor. Gerhard helped me set up an apprenticeship at Ernst August Brauhaus in Hannover, Germany. I fell in love with the trade partly because I have a college background in the hard sciences and I enjoy the educational challenges that brewing presents. It certainly doesn't hurt that you can enjoy the results of your work at the end of the day! I also grew up on a family farm so the physical demands of brewing are inherent to me.

What’s it like being a woman in the industry?
That's a loaded question. Being a woman in the beer industry occasionally presents its challenges, but I haven't encountered many men who don't support my endeavors. I feel that as long as I approach my career in a professional manner, my achievements will always outweigh my gender.   Most importantly, I'm an advocate of making great beer. I want to help people experience great beer and I love spending time helping to educate my peers and beer lovers.

Do you favorite beer?
There are way too many great beers on this planet for me to pick a favorite. However, I can tell you that on a regular day when I just want to relax and have a beer, a well-made pilsner would be my pick. My affection for the style provides nostalgia from my time in Germany.

Carolyn Smagalski, “The Beer Fox,” writer for BellaOnline; editor of Beer & Brewing.
Why did you decide to go into the beer industry?
I initially joined the world of beer when I began writing a cookbook based on cuisine à la biere. I wanted to increase my understanding about beer and my credibility as an expert, so I joined the ranks of writers at BellaOnline to accomplish just that.    

What's it like being a woman in the industry?
I have followed in the footsteps of many industries that are dominated by men. For example, I am an instrument-rated pilot with a complex aircraft rating, work in the sales division in the magazine printing industry and I often travel or attend festivals solo, and enjoy the freedom and camaraderie within the beer community. There are numerous pockets of women in the beer industry because we’re like magnets—we always find each other. Teri Fahrendorf has established the Pink Boots Society for women in the industry; Suzanne Woods founded the women’s In Pursuit of Ale (IPA) Club in Philadelphia; Sue Smith Troy co-founded Ales for Females in Longmont, Colo.; Anne Sprecher established “Football and Sprecher Beer: Share the Passion” classes for women. I also enjoy the support and companionship that’s so easily shared by the men in the industry.   

Do you have a favorite beer?
Not a favorite, although I do prefer certain styles of beer: saison, strong Belgian ales, IPA, tripels and quads, rauchbier, gluten-free and experimental beers.

Rosemarie Certo, owner, Dock Street Brewery
Why did you decide to go into the beer industry?
It was a counter-culture business, so we were homebrewing at home—this was in 1985, and I guess just that it was seeing a need in the industry. In 1985 if you wanted a good beer you had to buy an imported beer. So that's mostly the beginning of the whole craft movement. It started a little earlier in the West Coast, but we were one of the first in the country in the East Coast. The question was, why can't Americans make great beers? I guess a few pioneers saw no reason why we couldn't. I think it was the nature of the business—making things with your hands, couples with the business side of it. In 1985, when most of us started, we started because it was a passion to have something really great-tasting. Most of us didn't know the first thing about running a business. If we did, I don’t know that half of us would have done it anyway.

What’s it like being a woman in the beer industry?
I have a tendency not to see women as minorities because I as a woman know how strong we are. I don’t feel inferior to the male gender. Having said that, obviously in the beer industry, especially back in 1985, it was an industry dominated by males. Even today, 28 years later, it's gotten a little bit better, but the industry is really dominated by males, especially because there are still more male drinkers than there are female drinkers. The preponderance is a male audience. The business people are mostly males. I'd be in meetings where there are 20 to 50 people and I'd be the only woman in there. It's gotten a little bit better than that, but I never let it stop me. I’d do what I had to do because I never felt women were inferior in any way to males, and that's a strong belief I have that got me through very graciously.

Do you have a favorite beer?
I have lots of favorite beers. I think the American craft segment is making some of the best beers in the world and I'm a real proponent of buying American. My favorite Dock Street beer right now is a Prince Myshkin Russian Imperial Stout. It's 9 percent alcohol by volume and it combines all these wonderful flavors from chocolates to coffee and we serve it in a brandy glass.

Carol Stoudt, founder and president, Stoudt Brewing Company
Why did you decide to go into the beer industry?
I heard about the Real Ale Campaign in Canada and England and my husband loves beer. I thought it would be great to start my own business that would complement his restaurant and beer garden and help bring back more flavorful beer to America.

What’s it like being a woman in the industry?
It's great. In the beginning, it was more difficult because beer has been a man's domain as far as American brewmasters and people selling and distributing beer. When I first started, there were even one or two bars in Reading, Pa., that wouldn’t allow women in their bar area. They had a room next door. But it's no longer like that. There are 50-some female brewers in the United States, a lot of female salespeople selling beer, and the whole craft movement has really helped that. A lot of men beer drinkers appreciate what women bring to the table because everyone tastes differently and males and females taste differently. We do add a lot to the renaissance and the whole beer movement.

Do you have a favorite beer?
A German-style pilsner with a long dry finish.