– Women and Beer / By Alex Humphreys & Rosie Setterfield-Price
In the beer world it seems to be a mans domain. Many women who have an input are easily dismissed or their efforts go unrecognised, this is the result of our cultural and industrial development over time and seems ignorant to the industry’s foundation and past.
Traditionally, it was the woman’s role, as a brewster, to brew beer for the household and certain laws state that the tools to brew were solely the woman’s property. Through various historical and sociological developments this is no longer the case so much so that the opposite is almost true. In Medieval times monastries started to brew beer on a larger scale for passing travellers, when the industrial revolution came about it transferred brewing from the home to the marketplace, resulting in the decline of women brewing at home. Men claimed the local taverns and women drank less beer. There was an increase in male brewers and it has been so ever since. Obviously female brewers are active today yet they don’t get the recognition of their male counter parts, this industrialisation of the beer industry does not adequately explain why most women, when choosing a beverage feel a distance between themselves and beer.
Women’s roles in today’s beer industry tend to be stereotyped with the dispense of beer, from female bar staff serving beverages to the female figure being the main image on a beer’s pump clip in the hope that it will sell more. Beer marketing as such does tend to highlight men as the target audience, this alone does not seem an ample explanation for the high numbers of women who don’t appear comfortable both drinking and sampling a wider range of beers. It’s time that the culturally accepted and prescribed gender roles regarding women and beer were more actively challenged.
At Port Street Beer House we try to broaden everyones view on the beer industry, with varying degrees of success. Whilst it is a refreshing change to serve male customers a half of fruit beer, this is a more common occurrence than serving female customers a pint of porter or stout for no discernable reason other than a willingness to experiment with different beer styles and flavours. All our staff have a keen personal interest in beer and have all been trained to a equal level. We are ready to help you with your beery needs.
This week at PSBH we are hosting ‘ladies week’. With a selection of cask ales brewed by women. Come along and build a beer bridge.
– Photos / Meet The Brewer with Thornbridge 22.08.11
A lovely evening tasting Thornbridge’s finest and eating plenty of bakewell tarts….. a typical ‘Meet The Brewer’ at Port Street Beer House. Thanks to all who came and made it another sell out event.
Next Meet The Brewer event is with Red Willow on Momday 26th September – more details soon.
– Manchester Week / Tuesday 16th – Sunday 21st August 2011
It’s quite fitting after events of the past week we are celebrating Manchester, when the worst is brought out in some, the best is brought out in others. It’s a similar thing in the Manchester beer world, mass brewing lethiathans swamp many pubs in the North West with tasteless cask beer when some are the saviours of flavour.
One of these is The Marble Brewery, this place makes some of the best beers in the UK, and as a tip of the hat to one of it’s great leaders we are going to feature them heavily throughout the week before Colin Stronge sets his sights on the thistles & cows of the highlands.
Join us in celebration and expression of good taste.
Other great Manchester breweries will also feature throughout the week, as well as the regular cask beers from Darkstar, Thornbridge and Prospect.
– Photos / Meet The Brewer with Flying Dog 03.08.11
Hello.
We had a fantastic evening with Matt Brophy and Jim Caruso from Flying Dog. It was a really fun and informative event, with a great american twist. Lots of humour, beer and good times.
Many thanks to all who came and in-particular James Clay for making this happen.
See you at the next one with Thornbridge Brewery on Monday 22nd August.