Beer was discovered by a woman

It is very common to associate beer with the male universe. But not everyone knows that this drink, so popular and present all over the world, was discovered by a woman🇧🇷 to celebrate the International Women’s Dayfind out more about curiosities, past and present of the drink in the voices of women specialists in the subject and who broke stereotypes within the beer universe.

11,000 years ago, while men went out to hunt and take meat home, women were responsible for taking care of the grains that were kept inside jars and that would be used to make bread. It was in this way, somewhat by chance, that beer was discovered. “The grains were often not consumed and ended up kept in jars, exposed to rain and sun, being fermented and forming the liquid we call beer today”, explains Carolina Loureiro, Beer Sommelière at Cervejaria Ambev.

Thousands of years later, around 1800 BC, the first beer recipe was written. Made in honor of a woman, the goddess known as Ninkasi by the Sumerians, the formula brought dates, varied grains, herbs, honey and spices.

Hops itself, one of the main ingredients in beer production, had its properties described for the first time years later, in the twelfth century, by a woman, the German nun and theologian Hildegard von Bingen or Saint Hildegard.

For Carolina, women have always been and are now increasingly involved in the brewing universe, showing that diversity should not be limited to labels. “Women are in the past, present and future of beer. More and more we see women venturing into this universe and creating incredible beers of all styles”explains.

Today, at Cervejaria Ambev alone, there are more than 58 women brewers, including master brewers and beer sommeliers. Within the CIT, the largest Technology and Innovation Center in the world – whose mission is to develop new beers, recipes, packaging and other beverages – there are already 32 women, out of a total of 88 people.

Brazilian cicerone

If women already occupy prominent places in history and in the current beer production market, when it comes to knowledge and evaluation of the drink, Brazil has more examples where the phrase “beer is a man’s drink” makes no sense.

Sommelière of beers for over six years, Beatriz Ruiz is today culture and relationship manager at Cervejaria Ambev and the first person in Brazil to own the most important beer certification in the world. Created in 2009 in the United States, Cicerone certifies Sommeliers all over the planet. This requires a long practical and theoretical assessment, divided into three stages.

“Beer’s target audience is still mostly male and, because of that, many men do not accept that they understand less about the drink than a woman. But with each passing day, more and more women occupy their space in the brewing world, creating, producing, evaluating and drinking beer. It’s a one-way street,” she says.

Beatriz is also the founder of the confraternity Goose Island Sisterhood, a project whose objective is to discuss beer in the female universe and which even produces its own beers. Currently, nine girls are on the front line, but 900 women are part of the Facebook group. All profit from the sale of the confraternity’s beers is donated to institutions that fight for feminist causes. “Our goal is to inform and empower women even more about the beer universe”, he adds.

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