‘It’s a vocation’: the women leading Barcelona’s craft beer revolution
Female brewers in the Catalan capital are finding success in an industry traditionally dominated by men
It was Steve Huxley, a Liverpudlian and long-term Barcelona resident, who introduced the city to craft beer when he opened the Barcelona Brewing Company in 1993, but it was a woman, Judit Cartex, who helped establish Barcelona as Spain’s craft beer capital.
“Beer has always been a part of my life,†she says. “We were poor and all we had to drink was tap water, no Coca-Cola. Except on Sundays my mother and grandmother would open a litre bottle of beer to watch football on TV. Very English, no?
“It was Steve who opened our eyes to the possibilities of craft beer, not just in Barcelona but in the rest of Spain,†says Cartex, who learned her trade from Huxley and ran her own brewery, Cerveza Barra, until the floor collapsed and the building was condemned.
Learn more about Barcelon’s brewing culture at TheGuardian.com
It’s Arkansas Craft Beer Week!
Arkansas Craft Beer Week puts spotlight on growing industry
Arkansas Craft Beer Week is taking place this week. It runs through March 12, culminating with a special pint day to benefit the Arkansas Brewers Guild. This is the third year that Gov. Asa Hutchinson has proclaimed the week in an effort to spotlight the state’s growing craft beer industry.
Local brewers seem to have survived the worst of Covid-19 and are once again thriving. There are 18 breweries currently operating in Benton and Washington counties. Twenty if you count the two in Eureka Springs. Twenty-one if you want to factor for cider.
Add at least four more to the total when breweries-in-planning (that we know about) come online later this year.
The days when the brew pub on Dickson Street was the only place making beer in NWA seem like ancient history. Now, if you live in any of the four main cities along the I-49 corridor, you are generally within a five-minute drive of a brewery taproom.
The entire state is seeing the same surge. There are now 50 breweries making beer in Arkansas, with probably a dozen or more in various stages of planning.
Read more about the Arkansas Craft Brewing here!
Pitt – Brewhaha craft beer festival returns 3/26
Brewhaha craft beer festival returns to Avonworth Community Park
Returning for its sixth year, the annual Brewhaha event is bringing 10 of Pittsburgh’s best craft brewers to Avonworth Community Park on March 26.
The beer festival is the marquee fundraiser for the Hollow Oak Land Trust, an organization dedicated to protecting and connecting greenspace in the Pittsburgh area.
“We are fortunate to have such an illustrious group of craft brewers that have partnered with our efforts to promote open space and conservation preserves that get people outdoors to enjoy nature,†said Lynda Stuckey, a Hollow Oak volunteer and chair of the Brewhaha committee.
Get the details here!
Falconer Foundation Offering Concise Course Scholarship to Siebel Institute – Apply Now!
In collaboration with the Seibel Institute of Technology, the Glen Hay Falconer Foundation is offering a full-tuition brewing education scholarship in 2022. The scholarship is a full tuition grant and comes with a travel/lodging stipend.
The scholarship is for the World Brewing Academy (WBA) Concise Course in Brewing Technology in Chicago, November 3-14, 2022. The WBA Concise Course in Brewing Technology is a two-week intensive program that covers every topic critical to successful brewery operations. The course is designed for brewers pursuing a wider knowledge of professional brewing standards and techniques to advance their brewing careers as well as individuals planning to enter the brewing industry. The WBA Concise Course in Brewing Technology scholarship includes a $1,000 stipend to help offset travel and lodging expenses.
Applicants must be from the states Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, California, Alaska, and Hawaii. The scholarship is open to both homebrewers and professional brewers.
Note that the full application must be received no later than May 11, 2022.
Complete details and scholarship application is available at https://siebelinstitute.com/about-us/studying-at-siebel/scholarships
The Glen Hay Falconer Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing educational opportunities for professional and aspiring craft brewers to further their knowledge and expertise. The Falconer Foundation has granted 50 scholarships since 2004.
For more information on the Foundation please visit www.glenfalconerfoundation.org and follow us on Facebook.
Chicago’s Twisted Hippo Brewery Destroyed in Fire
Albany Park fire tears through brewery, Ultimate Ninjas Chicago, apartments; CFD investigating
Twisted Hippo Chicago owner said brewery’s carbon dioxide, nitrogen tanks likely caused explosions heard in neighborhood
https://abc7chicago.com/chicago-fire-albany-park-twisted-hippo-brewery-ultimate-ninjas/11588638/
Contribute to their Gofundme:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-twisted-hippo
Largest Beer Spa in the Woooorld!
Largest beer spa in the world to open in Canada…yes, Canada.
The world’s biggest beer spa, based in Ontario, where you can drink cool beer while lounging in the pool, is set to open in the spring.
The Muskoka Beer Spa, part of Clear Lake Brewing Co, opening on April 7, 2022, which states on its website that it will be the biggest beer spa in the world, will feature an outdoor pool, two large hot tubs, dump buckets, a music stage, an ice rink and four saunas.
Read more in The Drinks Business…
Central Oregon Winter Beer Festival – Volunteers Needed
The Oregon Brewers Guild has recently taken over management of the Central Oregon Winter Beer Festival to be held in Bend on Saturday, March 5th. We are in need of volunteers for the following shifts:
12pm-5:30pm: Beer Servers, Check-in
4:30-10pm: Beer Servers, Check-in
All volunteers must be 21 or older and FULLY VACCINATED to participate.
Volunteer Here
The Story Behind Spencer Brewery at Saint Joseph’s Abbey in central Mass
MEET THE MOST UNLIKELY BEER MAKER IN NORTH AMERICA
SPENCER, Mass.—Father Isaac Keeley knew nothing about beer. He was a 59-year-old Trappist monk who rose daily at 2:30 a.m. to pray for most of the next four hours. Yet there he was, at a local public house in 2009, discussing plans for the brewery he would build on the 2,000 cloistered acres of Saint Joseph’s Abbey in central Massachusetts.
The talks were interrupted by the arrival of a round of cold ones for the table, further unsettling Father Isaac. He sipped hesitantly from the large, sweating glass.
“It was delicious,†he recalls. “I asked, ‘Is this really beer?’â€
Read the rest of this great piece at https://news.northeastern.edu/2022/01/26/spencer-brewery-trappist-monk/
Hop Culture Announces Beers With(Out) Beards Festival in Portland, ME.
Support The Most Badass Women In the Beer Industry
BRICK SOUTH THOMPSON’S POINT / PORTLAND, MAINE
SATURDAY, APRIL 9TH 2022
In 2018, Grace Weitz conceptualized the first Beers With(out) Beards as part of her graduate school thesis capstone project at NYU. Over the past four years, this celebration of women in beer has grown to attract thousands of attendees and showcase over sixty women-led breweries. Additionally, the fest has featured over thirty-five events highlighting the achievements of women across all aspects of the alcoholic beverage industries. Grace started BW(O)B to create a space where everyone felt welcome to show up, taste amazing beers, and cultivate conversations around how to break through barriers. And now more than ever, we need Beers With(out) Beards.
The fifth annual Beers With(out) Beards takes pride in representing women and femme-identifying folks in the beer industry. And this year, we feel especially empowered by those who have also had the courage to speak up about the importance of equity and inclusion in craft beer. Together, everyone’s voice is stronger.
Join us on Saturday, April 9th, 2022 at Brick South in Portland, ME to celebrate the achievements of women in craft beer. All are welcome at the festival, and you’ll be able to enjoy beer from thirty-five-plus breweries that are either women-owned or owned by femme-identifying people, or that have women or femme-identifiying people in prominent leadership positions.
Bear Republic’s Hop Rod Rye IPA is back!
NEW YEAR, NEW BEERS!
Coming in hot! Bear Republic is starting out the new year with a bang and bringing back one of their most requested, OG beers of all time, Hop Rod Rye IPA.
“I am VERY excited to see a return of Hop Rod Rye. Before I started brewing for BRBC I was a pub regular, and this was my go-to ale. Bursting with classic Cascade, Columbus, and Centennial aroma and rich maltiness, this original Rye IPA is one of Bear Republic’s greatest creations.” – Brewmaster, Roger Herpst
Want to get your hands on Hop Rod Rye? Visit their Lakeside Pub to get fresh pints, crowlers, and cans.
Hop Rod Rye will be hitting general distribution in early February and will be included in the new Bear Republic Variety Pack!
Central Oregon Winter Beer Festival Returns
Event Returns In-Person Under Guild Management, Vaccination Required.
The Oregon Brewers Guild announces the return of the Central Oregon Winter Beer Festival, to be held on Saturday, March 5th at GoodLife Brewing in Bend, Oregon. The event, previously held as a fundraiser for the Central Oregon Brewers Guild which dissolved at the end of 2021, will now be a fundraiser for and managed by the Oregon Brewers Guild.
Full press release here
Russian River Postpones Pliny the Younger Release
The surge in omicron has many industry events reevaluating plans to cancel, postpone or go forward with events that are planned for the coming weeks and months. One well-known event, Russian River Brewing’s Pliny the Younger release has been postponed until late March. The annual event draws beer consumers from around the country who travel to the Santa Rosa, California brewery for a long wait in line to buy the popular double IPA.
Read more on ProBrewer
Oregon – 2022 Zwickelmania® Dates Announced
Read More at OBG site here
Annual Open-House Style Event Returns to In-Person with Precautions
The Oregon Brewers Guild announces the return of their 14th Annual Zwickelmania® event. The statewide open-house style celebration of Oregon craft breweries will be returning safely in-person in February and is free to attend. As in previous years, the event will be held on two separate weekends, highlighting Portland breweries on Saturday, February 19th and then statewide on Saturday, February 26th.
“Zwickelmania® has been a staple event for the Guild for over a decade and we are very excited to be able to transition back to in-person this year,†shared Christina LaRue, Executive Director of the Oregon Brewers Guild. “We made the pivot last year to an online platform, offering virtual brewery tours and panel discussions with brewers via Zoom and social media. Our members are looking forward to being able to offer guests an in-person experience and will be ensuring the safety of the public, as well as their teams is a top priority.â€
Hell or high water… SF Beer Week Returns
The world’s most cherished craft beer celebration returns…
SF Beer Week – Feb. 11-20
SAVE THE DATES
Sure, there’s uncertainty in the world — but one thing is for sure, SF Beer Week is returning in 2022!
Advance listings and the Week’s initial schedule launch in January, when tasting boxes, ticketed offerings, Valentine gift ideas and similar on-demand offerings help set the table for a festive 2022 SF Beer Week. Mix in the Winter Olympics, Super Bowl, Valentine’s Day, Black History Month and a BOATLOAD of special releases, and you know, now matter if in person or on demand, it’s going to be a great time.
More Info Here
Sisters are doing it for themselves!
Move over monks: Belgian nuns join in on brewing tradition
A group of Belgian nuns has turned to beer brewing, an occupation undertaken by monks for centuries, to fund much needed renovation work.
Maredret Abbey in Belgium is a 20-strong Benedictine community, founded in 1893. The Abbey’s nuns, struggling to scrape together the funds for some much needed renovation work, turned to brewing to raise the money.
Maredret Abbey nuns teamed up with a brewer five years ago, in the hopes of producing some beer infused with some of their history and values, in order to fix the leaky roofs and cracked walls.
Abbey beers, where a brewer pays royalties to use the Abbey name, are common in Belgium. But until now only monks have been associated with these brews.
Read more…The Drinks Business