KPU brewing releases new beer to celebrate International Women’s Day
The university’s brewing faculty launched Coastal Breeze to raise money and empower women in the business
KPU brewing and brewing operations faculty released Costal Breeze, a beer inspired by a crisp winter day on the coast. (Submitted/Claudia Culley)
Kwantlen Polytechnic University’s brewing and brewing operations faculty launched and showcased a new beer, Coastal Breeze, at an event at Farm Country Brewing in recognition of International Women’s Day on March 8.
The beer was brewed as part of Pink Boots Collaboration Brew Day, an annual event celebrating women and non-binary brewer entrepreneurs in the brewing industry. The event was organized by the Pink Boots Society, a non-profit formed in 2007 to inspire and encourage women and non-binary people to advance their careers in the fermented beverage industry.
“I became a member of the Pink Boots Society soon after it was formed,” Nancy More, an instructor in KPU’s brewery and brewing operations program and one of the first female brewmasters in North America, wrote in an email statement to The Runner.
“As a woman who worked in the beer industry when there were few other women, I try to support all avenues to encourage women to join the industry.”
Since 2018, when KPU brewing first participated in Pink Boots Collaboration Brew Day, students have taken over the task of developing the brew, with instructors providing feedback.
The team responsible for creating Coastal Breeze consisted of first and second-year students, as well as current and past brewing instructors. The recipe for this year’s beer was led by Lucy Chang, a second-year brewing student, with the assistance of other brewing students and instructors.
Olga Mikova, a brewing lab instructor, played a key role in organizing the team and guiding discussion on the beer. The team collaborated through meetings and emails to come up with the type of beer, which they wanted to be clean and bright to highlight the Pink Boots Hop Blend.
The Yakima Chief Hops, which created the Pink Boots Hop Blend, donates $1 USD for each pound of hop purchased from the Pink Boots Society to provide scholarships for women. Last year, the collaboration raised more than $100,000 USD, More wrote.
“Once the brew was completed and tasted, Olga solicited ideas for names from the team and a final vote was done,” More wrote. “Coastal Breeze was selected as it supported our inspiration of a crisp winter day on the coast: bright, refreshing, and slightly warm.”
Apart from producing a beer, the project helps establish a community of women brewers at KPU by giving them a chance to work together. It also allows students to gain more experience working with brewing equipment.
The project also demonstrates the students’ abilities and raises the profile of the brewing program.
“We want to encourage more diversity in the brewing industry so this is another opportunity for young women to work with and spend time with women brewers,” More wrote.
For more information on KPU’s brewing and brewery operations program, visit www.kpu.ca/brew.
