While Beer & Brewer readers have long been aware of the great role that women play in the craft beer industry – as enthusiasts, brewers, and experts – it seems that the rest of the world may be a little slow on the uptake that beer and ladies do mix, and mix well.

With this fact firmly in mind, Kieran Blood and Michael Ward, organisers of the Great Australian Beer Festival, are keen to tap into the changing relationship between women and beer. As such, they are working with well-known beer evangelists The Beer Diva, Kirrily Waldhorn, and Beer Girls Bites, Tiffany Waldron, to help more women embrace the amber nectar.

According to Waldhorn it is the outdated image of beer that is keeping it from being something that foodies and non-beer drinkers are willing to investigate.

“The reality is that despite its growth in recent years beer is still misunderstood,” she says. “The extraordinary complexities and diverse styles that beer can offer are often unappreciated, whilst we happily muse on the lexicon ofwine.”

There is a change in the air though, no matter how slowly it may appear to be coming, with Blood explaining that a distinctly higher number of restaurants are now working to include a variety of brews on their menus and giving it the respect it deserves.

“The diversity of beer styles, strengths, and flavours available to craft beer consumers is staggering,” he says. “Australia has some of the best beer in the world – [it] is, after all, an intrinsic part of Australian culture”

There will be a number of activities at the event to celebrate the role of women in craft beer, including a Cupcakes & Craft Beer seminar at the recently renovated and licensed Dish cafe on Friday November 9th. “Imagine the unique pairing of a delicious Java Chocolate and Coffee cupcake with a Southern Bay Porter or a Marmalade Orange cupcake with a Prickly Moses wheat beer? These are just a taste of what’s on offer at Geelong’s first ever Cupcakes & Craft Beer event”, says Blood.

The seminar will be hosted by Beer Girls Bites’ Waldron and will see attendees pairing up to five craft beers from local brewers with a variety of mini cupcakes.

[Ed note: from experience, this is a delicious way to spend an evening – buy tickets for the ladies in your life as a surprise and they’ll never look at beer the same way again!]

Cupcakes & Craft Beer

Friday 9th November: 7pm-8:30pm
The Dish, 66 Lt Malop St. Geelong
Cost: $30.00 per person – Limited space
For bookings go to www.beergirlbites.com

For festival goers – there is an early bird incentive: all festival tickets purchased prior to 26th October go into a draw to win a bar fridge stocked with either craft beer or Flying Brick Cider.

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