A Woman’s Brew

We’ve been talking about it for ages, so here it finally is – our first book club episode and we’re reading Girly Drinks by Mallory O’Meara which dives into the fascinating intersection of beer, history, and powerful women. Join us as we unravel historical narratives, challenge gender stereotypes, and celebrate the unsung heroines of the alcohol industry. From Cleopatra's controversial portrayal t...

Here at A Woman’s Brew, it’s always Pumpkin Spice season! We missed our pumpkin episode last autumn, but we have finally got round to trying our selection of pumpkin spiced beers for you now. From the aroma reminiscent of freshly roasted coffee with a hint of warming spices, to the unexpected flavour profiles that these unique beers deliver, we'll leave no pumpkin unexplored. As we savour each sip...

How do you feel about beer flights? Here at A Woman’s Brew both Tori and Jo are big advocates for beer flights - both for beer choices, pour size and beer education. But there is a debate going on as to whether a beer flight works for breweries and taprooms – does it slow down service? Not give the best representation of the beer? Or maybe there isn’t enough space for glass storage? We look throug...

This week, Tori and Rik take us on a journey through their recent trip to Brussels, focusing on their fascinating tour at Cantillon Brewery. They'll compare this unique experience to other brewery tours they've been on, highlighting the complexities and history of lambic brewing in Brussels. Beyond the brewery, they'll recount their adventures in the city—from discovering hidden gems like La Sourc...

Back by popular demand (if you don’t listen to Tori!), Rik joins Tori to talk about their recent Belgian excursion to the Toer De Geuze where tradition meets the bubbling excitement of craft brewing. They embraced the unique opportunity to peek behind the curtains of some of Belgium's most revered Lambic breweries and blenders. But! Navigating this event, that only happens every two years, can be...

This episode takes a unique spin as we explore the landscape of top-rated beers, sipping our way through Julius by Treehouse and some of it’s variants. We'll navigate the world of exceptional beers, discussing the finer points that elevate a beer to "top-rated" status. Tori shares her experiences of visiting Treehouse while she was in the US and Jo walks you through her Try All The Beers blog seri...

This week, we're embarking on a flavourful journey south of the border to explore the enigmatic world of Mexican lagers. But do we once again have more questions than answers? We contrast craft enthusiasms with macro lager charm and question how a slice of lime became synonymous with a whole genre of beer. From the Austrian-brewed history of the Vienna lager's Mexican adventures to the European an...

In this episode we tap into the world of core beer ranges, the power of first beer impressions, and the essence of a brewery's core lineup. What makes a great core range and what do you expect from a brewery’s flagship beers? Do you have a favourite core range? We also took this opportunity to taste through some beers Jo brought back from the US from Alaskan Brewing Co – one of the breweries that...

It's been a wild ride this first quarter of 2024, keeping us busy when we should be working on our beer goals and the drink harder challenge! Despite our best efforts to stay on top of our beer check-ins and tracking, we admit, keeping up has been a bit of a struggle. But it's all in the name of good beer and great company! But! We have a few updates for you, including our memorable visit to Craft...

This week, we're delving deep into the world of hops with Siren’s thrilling challenge of "Guess the Hop." Using the challenge as a starting point, we guide you through the intense and important process of judging hops for brewing, discussing the meticulous attention to detail and keen sense of smell required. We share our experiences of identifying different hops, the tools and techniques we recom...

He’s back! Our mate, Matt Lincoln, formerly of Siren and Unbarred, and who has been on the podcast a couple of times, is leaving us to move to the US! Tori took the opportunity to ask him about the move and revisit his background in beer. Matt gives us his current insights into Atlanta, where he is moving to, and adds his top tips for moving a beer stash to another country. Also – does lager pair...

Tasting beers blind is a hard task, but it’s also really fun! This week we are trying to guess what Yonder’s 2024 mystery beers are and arguing about it along the way! We discuss blind beer tastings in general – they are a great way to train your tasting palate - and ways you can set up your own. As it happens, Jo has a kit for that in her Etsy shop! Have you tried this year’s mystery beers? What...

Who knew there could be some new hotness in lager?! Continuing our lager series, we look at West Coast Pils, which is billed to be the hottest beer style of 2024 (do you agree?!) As a new style, there aren’t any definite style guidelines for West Coast Pils yet, so we dig into what you should expect. We tried three versions from UK breweries and look at what factors are shaping the style. We drank...

You know we love supporting women owned businesses at A Woman’s Brew, and who better to visit us than Carys from Craft Beerings. You may have seen Carys’ offerings at beer festivals – beautiful earrings, bracelets and more made from craft beer cans. We talk about the origins on Craft Beerings, her creative process and what makes a beer can perfect for creating jewellery with. Craft Beerings has al...

We are super excited this week to have Johnny from Holy Goat on the podcast. If you’re new here, Holy Goat is one of our fave sour breweries with it’s gorgeous beers! We talk all things Brett fermentation, fruit and where recipe ideas come from. We hear all about the history of Holy Goat and try to make Johnny pick a beer that represents the brewery. We drank some beautiful beers that are currentl...

We are still here, being brave and making noise and very glad to see a new Brave Noise beer! This time it’s from Hand Brew Co and we were very pleased to chat to Kate, their head brewer. Our lovely friend Pip also joined us as proceeds from the beer are going to support The Coven – welcome back to the pod Pip! We chat about the positive experiences we’ve all gained from being a part of Brave Noise...

We apologise in advance for this episode in our lager series on Kellerbier – it may cause more questions than we answer! You will have seen beers called Kellerbier, you may have seen beers listed under the style, but what exactly is a Kellerbier and why is this style so confusing? We attempt to answer this for you and share some examples you can try. But as Em Sauter says in beer there are a lot o...

It’s been a while, but we are bringing you another cocktail beer episode! This time we are looking at the delectable Espresso Martini. You know how Jo & Tori love coffee! We drink beers from Wiper & True, New Bristol and Yonder and decide if your espresso martini loving friends would drink the beers with you. As per, we hit you up with some fun facts, a few interesting variants of the cock...

You know we love a challenge here at A Woman’s Brew, so we thought we’d create our own beer challenge this year, alongside our beer goals. We look at the Drink Harder challenge for 2024, which we will take part in again and then think about tasks we could add to our own A Woman’s Brew beer challenge. Will you be following the Drink Harder challenge or do you have challenge suggestions for us? Let...

We’ve made it to January 2024 – New Year, New You and all that, or maybe just New Year, same you because you are awesome! We’re looking at reflecting and resetting in this week’s episode. Tori & Jo give you a run down of what they got up to over the Christmas break and if they actually managed to add anything to their Drink Harder challenge. Spoiler alert – we are putting together our own beer...

At the end of last year, Jo got stuck in Germany. Tori took the opportunity to record an episode with her husband Rik. You will have heard us talk about our long-suffering partners, if you’ve been listening to us for a while. Both of our husbands are very supportive of what we do – luckily for us! Rik answers Tori’s questions about being a beer widow – what’s it like going to different beer places...

We are back with our lager series and this time we are looking at a refreshing mix of Radlers and Shandies. Where did these beverages come from? Why did we start cutting beer with fruit juice anyway? And what is the difference between a Radler and a shandy? We drink 4 different versions to ease you in and we want to know – what’s the best beer to make a shandy with? Let us know! Beers we drink in...

We have come to the end of 2023 and it’s time for our Q4 review. Did we accomplish all of our beer goals? How did we do with our Drink Harder challenge? We also share our goals for 2024 and of course, those Untappd Stats! We are planning a beer challenge for next year – what challenges would you like to see included? Let us know! Get in Touch: Email: awomansbrewpodcast@gmail.com Website: http://ww...

It’s that festive time of year again and this year we bring you a selection box of mince pie barleywines from our friends at Elusive Brewing. While we sip on those, we chat about Advent calendars, Christmas traditions and the history of mince pies. Tori even shares some silly Christmas cracker jokes! What are you drinking for Christmas this year? And what’s your favourite Christmas cracker joke? L...

If you had your own taproom, what would it be like? What are your perfect taproom and pub aesthetics? What events and fun things would you have happening? Join us as we play build your dream taproom! We preface this with the note that we understand that there are real life space and financial implications, but we are going full fantasy mode here! There are no restrictions to what our imaginations...