Hand Brew Co brings together women for International Women’s Day

Hand Brew Co is bringing together women from across the south east of England for a collaborative brew to celebrate International Women’s Day.

The event, which takes place on 8 March, will see approximately 50 women join together to network, share stories and assist in the brewing of a beer.

The beer, currently decribed by the working title of ‘Unite Brew’, will centre on the theme ‘’Celebrate’ and will be a 5.5% ABV Hopfenweisse, dry hopped generously with the Yakima Chief Pink Boots Blend – a hop blend consisting of 30% Idaho Gem, 20% HBC 630, 20% Talus, 20% Triumph, and 10% Loral to give sensory notes of tropical stone fruit, grass, cherry and candy – with some additional Sabro also from Yakima Chief.

The grain bill will be 40% Wheat, 57% Pale Ale and a small amount of Dextrin as well as including “a lot of rice hulls”.

The resulting beer, which is yet to be ‘officially’ named, will then become available in 30 litre kegs and 440ml cans for general release on 4 April with preorders being taken since stock may be limited.

The collaborative brew day – held on International Women’s Day – will additionally include a raft of activities with a strong social focus on helping female and female-identifying colleagues across the region to meet, share ideas and contacts and build a strong network of support.

Hand Brew Co has highlighted that its values are very much centred around the community and people in and around the brew pub where its team started – the Hand in Hand in Brighton and, as such, are very music and arts focused.

Hand Brew Co production manager Kate Hyde said: “We want to demonstrate that a little through this day, because we also believe that the best connections are often formed by participating in creative activities with new people.”

Attendees to the brewery and tap on the south coast in Worthing, will include: brewers, directors, sales people, marketeers, business managers, drays, beertenders, cicerones, suppliers, writers, ops, logistics and many more.

Hyde explained that the day holds importance “for us, as women working in and around beer, to break out of our cliques, extend our contacts and develop a productive network”.

But, she highlighted, it is also “to generate a social resource we can call on to support us individually and professionally when we need that support. A group among which we might find new friends, cohorts, colleagues, allies or business opportunities and, finally, to amplify the female voice through a stronger community in the local industry”.

A profit share from keg sales will go to Common Ground, a local charity working with refugees. As a food growing project, Common Ground offers a space where the local migrant/refugee community can come and cook, all produce is then donated to food banks and distributed among refugees in Brighton. Additionally, a profit share of can sales is going to go to Strut Safe – an Edinburgh based organisation, founded in productive fury in the wake of Sarah Everard’s murder, staffed by volunteers providing a ‘talk you to the door’ service for people walking home alone at night.

On the day, planned activities will include panel discussions, a book club, sensory workshops, yoga, food pairings, fanzine-making classes and life drawing.

The Hand Brew Co Tap Room will be open until 8pm and will feature the talents of performers, while a local food truck will be on site serving snacks throughout the duration of the day.