EDUCAT I O N
These Boots
Were Made for
Brewing
The Pink Boots Society is a step in the
right direction for women in brewing
By Sarah B. Hood
Once upon a time, an American brewer named Teri Fahren-dorf
decided to take a cross-country road trip, visiting
– and often making beer at 71 breweries. Along the way,
she encountered other female brewers, who were all surprised to
discover women colleagues in a largely male industry. She real-ized
that women in brewing were yearning for a chance to meet
one another, and in 2008, 16 women responded to her invitation to
join the Pink Boots Society, named for Fehrendorf ’s travel footwear
of choice.
At last count, Pink Boots has almost 3,000 members in 94
chapters around the world, in such countries as the U.S., Canada,
Australia, China, Chile, Costa Rica, Peru, Spain, and Sweden. The
organization exists to assist, encourage and inspire women beer
professionals to advance their careers through education, and its
scholarship programs provide unique training opportunities to
its members.
“I joined Pink Boots as soon as I heard of it; I think I had been
brewing for only two months at that time,” said Cat Wiest, the
research and development brewer at Pelican Brewing Company in
Pacific City, Ore., That was about seven years ago; Wiest currently
serves as communications and media co-ordinator for Pink Boots.
“I think we’re up to 25 scholarships a year now, and we also
just increased our scholarship budget this year,” she said. In 2017,
she received assistance to take a program at the University of
California, Davis; some of the scholarships cover international
opportunities as well.
“We just partnered with New Mexico State University to do
a study-abroad scholarship in Belgium. That will be taking place
next spring, and every year there will be a new country,” Wiest
said. “Our chapters do have some autonomy as to what they can
offer locally.”
Besides $35 in annual dues from members, Pink Boots sup-ports
itself through an annual fundraiser known as the Pink
Boots Collaboration Brew Day, generously sponsored by Yakima
Chief Hops and Country Malt Group, and held every March 8
(International Women’s Day).
Alongside education, women flock to Pink Boots for the net-working
opportunities. “We encourage our chapters to have as
many meetings as they can,” said Wiest. “Every other year, Pink
Boots hosts a conference. The most recent one was held in Austin,
Texas. We also have two meetings annually, one at the Craft
Brewers Conference CBC and the other at the Great American
Beer Festival in Denver.”
Pink Boots has an open-door policy. Non-members can attend
meetings to get a taste of the organization. Also, they need not be
hands-on brewers in order to participate. Membership is open to
Courtesy of Pink Boots Society Courtesy of Mirella Amato
FALL 2019 § POURED CANADA § 33