Brew like a girl

Do says that her and Tessel’s first advantage in the male dominated beer world was the very fact that they were women. “That first brewery owner who helped us contract brew was very excited about the whole thing and was like ‘you’re going to be so big, people will love you’, and he was right,” she says. 

By the time Brewed by Women released its first beer, Do and Tessel were on local TV and radio, and appearing in newspapers. Women-owned bars were, of course, fervent supporters, stocking as much of Do and Tessel’s beer as they could. “The ‘girl power’ has always helped us in lots of ways. Ten years ago, there were no other girl-dominated brands, at least not in Holland, so that really helps us.”

It didn’t take long for Do and Tessel to recognise the need for expansion. They were still brewing in such small quantities that ingredients and use of the equipment was expensive, even if they were operating the kit themselves. They were also working full time day jobs — Do at an IT start-up, and Tessel in head office at Albert Heijn, the biggest supermarket in the Netherlands — which made brewing at an out-of-town facility all the more challenging. After six months of working like this, something had to give. On January 1st, 2016, the sisters quit their jobs to dedicate their full attention to brewing, and attempt to make a living off their work. They moved contract-brewing operations to Lindeboom brewery, “a very old and traditional brewery in the south of Holland but with a really good reputation for quality,” according to Do. 

The quality of Brewed by Women beer plays a really big part in the brewery’s story. Brewed by Women has never been afraid to venture into uncharted territory, but Do and Tessel’s confidence in the quality and consistency of the beer itself has been an axiom they return to in moments that the brand is challenged. “We get a lot of Untappd ratings that are like ‘brewed by women and it’s actually quite nice’” says Do, rolling her eyes. “We have also gotten comments like ‘ew, I don’t want to drink beer made by girls’, but overall the feedback is always much more positive than negative.”

In fact, Do feels like the brand’s existence and modus operandi isn’t just celebrated for being different, but is important in its own way. “Girls like beer too,” she says. “If there are no beers brewed by women, and you go to a beer festival and only see all these craft brewers with the big beards and their stouts of 10%, you might not see yourself reflected in the space. We are super colourful and have a beer of 3%, and it makes sense for that variety to exist.” Brewed by Women isn’t shy of a high ABV beer — after all, the brand started life brewing tripels — but heavy hitters are just a small part of the brewery’s wider range. 

Something Do and Tessel liked about Belgian styles is that they often have a healthy malt base, resulting in beers with a savoury sweetness, as opposed to a dry finish. This was the sisters’ starting point, and with that flavour in mind, they began brewing accessible IPAs, New Englands in particular, and experimenting with various adjuncts and ABVs. “We use a lot of elderflower in Bloesem Bluf, it’s a 0.5% blonde that smells like spring and tastes like lemonade,” she begins. “We also do a ginger beer. There are so many good ginger beers without alcohol, but we really missed an alcoholic option, so we made a pale with lots of ginger in it. Similarly we make a wheat beer called ‘gin weizen’ because it has all the herbs usually used to flavour gin.

“They’re all really easy going beers,” Do continues. “We always call it level one craft beer. So yeah, you can, of course, not like it, but almost everybody does, and it actually helps women who think they don't like beer to try it and then it sends them over the edge to really like craft beer. Even our tripel is so sweet and smooth that people who think they don't like beer, especially not one that's almost 8%, and they're like, ‘I actually quite like this’. If you’re used to having a half warm beer at 2am in a bar, then of course that’s not very good. If you have a good speciality beer, at the right temperature in the right environment, you can really enjoy craft beer.”

Do says Brewed by Women’s bar in Amsterdam isn’t your typical craft beer bar. Sure, it’s got the shiny silver taps, and tiled splashback, but there’s also a disco ball, and a smoke machine that comes out on Friday night, when all the tables are pushed to the edges of the room to make space for dancing. Do says that dancing has been known to happen “a little bit also on the bar”. 

Operations are primarily driven by fun, play, passion and enthusiasm at Brewed By Women, but there is also a time and place for seriousness in the brewery’s mission. Do is very aware that for women to take an interest in brewing, they usually have to have an interest in beer first. She says she encourages everyone she crosses paths with to try their hand at homebrewing because it’s so much fun, but she acknowledges that without a vested interest in beer, people are unlikely to invest the time, money and space required to try making it at home. As such, Brewed by Women’s focus has always been on creating approachable beers that people can take an interest in, and be excited by. Everything else is a bonus.