Brett Keating
April 22, 2021
Los Angeles breweries are collaborating with the local Pink Boots Society chapter to raise money for women in beer. Local spots like Frogtown Brewery, Highland Park Brewery, and Trademark Brewing all joined in the fundraiser, brewing with a special hop blend from Yakima Chief Hops.
These beers are starting to hit the shelves this month, and the involved breweries are all donating a portion to the Pink Boots Society, a non-profit dedicated to educating women – cis, trans, and non-binary folks – in the traditionally male-dominated field of beer. The organization also uses funds for scholarships to assist women in furthering their careers in the alcohol industry.
Each involved brewery also hosted a brew day in March for the beers. Frogtown Brewery brewed “All Places,” a double dry-hopped tropical pale ale. The name references the well-known quote from the late Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg: “Women belong in all places where decisions are being made. It shouldn’t be that women are the exception.”
Frogtown General Manager Mallory Jackson says the idea came about after RBG passed away last September. “I felt the urge to do something to pay homage to the badass woman who helped pave the way for women everywhere to have a place at the table,” Jackson said.
Trademark in Long Beach brewed a hoppy pale ale called “All Dolled Up.” According to Head Brewer Valerie Hicks, this is an allusion to a struggle women-brewers face in and out of work. “I often get stereotyped for my appearance,” she says. “Given [that] it’s physical labor every single day, and I have certain attire for safety reasons like overalls, boots and so on. I wanted to bring light to the assumption that just because I may have a job and wear certain attire that most may assume is more ‘male-centric’ doesn’t mean I’m not feminine nor like to dress up for the occasion.”
Some breweries also collaborated with other groups on the brew, like San Dimas’ Feathered Serpent Brewing. They worked with the IE Brew Witches, an Inland Empire-based feminist beer collective, for their iteration, Ixta, a hoppy pale that was released earlier this week.
Other local brews include Highland Park’s hazy West Coast IPA “Más Chingona,” named for the Latina term for “badass,” Poseidon Brewing’s “Squad Juicy” double IPA, and Claremont’s “That’s Rad” WC pale ale.
For more information, and to see all the local member breweries and beers, head to the Pink Boots Society website.
All Los Angeles-area Pink Boots releases:
Brewjeria Company: Step Into Power Elderberry Pale Ale (5.2% ABV)
Claremont Craft Ales: That’s Rad West Coast Pale Ale (5.0% ABV)
Frogtown Brewery: All Places Pale Ale (5.5% ABV)
Feathered Serpent Brewery: IXTA Ale (5% ABV)
Golden Road Brewing: All Pale the Queen Pale Ale
Highland Park Brewery: Mas Chingona IPA (7% ABV)
Indie Brewing: Squad Juicy Double IPA (8% ABV)
Poseidon Brewing Co.: Siren’s Kiss IPA (7.1% ABV)
Tarantula Hill Brewing Co.: So Sawft N’ IPA (7.2% ABV)
Trademark Brewing: All Dolled Up Hoppy Pale Ale (5.5% ABV)
