Homebrewing Needs a Woman's Touch

[SharonaZamboni]

I thought I'd throw in my two cents.



If there was a way to make HBT more open and accepting of women, it would be to tone down the locker-room banter. Maybe realize that most women generally don't appreciate it when you say things like, "My server at the brew pub didn't know a damn thing about the beer she was serving, but it was OK because she was HOT!!!" Sure, some women want to be one of the guys and will go out of their way to let you know that kind of talk doesn't bother them (there have been a few in this thread). But if you really do want to give the OP's idea the attention it deserves, think about how the silent majority reacts to our behavior rather than the vocal few.

You sound like a very respectful person, which is great. However, I don't recall many (any?) posts where a woman complained about locker room humor here. Maybe our ideas of humor are similar, or maybe the jokes are just mild.
I spend an inordinate amount of time reading HBT every day, and usually find at least a couple of posts that make me laugh audibly. The amount and types of joking and sarcasm is perfect for me. It almost always comes across as "having fun with" rather than "making fun of".

Every day women whistle at me when I'm walking down the street... they yell things at me like "Hey hott stuff" or "Damn you fine" and such. And you know what? I appreciate that.

BRB. Off to check the MoHBT thread!

Bad touch! Bad touch! I need an adult! I need an adult!

Ha!

Poking the bear! Poking the bear!

WHAT? Fuq it, I'm out then.

From what I hear, you are a great brewer and last I checked, brewing did not require a penis or a vagina. I also checked BeerSmith and there is no ingredient listed so I can't even imagine what that will add to the ABV, IBU, and SRM of my recipe.

I am in full agreement with you and I have experienced much of the same in my time here.

Show me on the doll where she touched you.
Such a girl.

See? This post cracked me up!

 

[chocotaco]

I feel like you guys are putting words in my mouth a bit. "Gee, that hyper-sensitive homebrewdad... somebody made a dirty joke, now he's offended!"

But either way, it did kick off a discussion. Which is what I really hoped to see.

FWIW, I don't think you were wrong in noticing or pointing out that it's a male-dominated hobby. But I think your analysis of the reasons behind it are a little off-base. If you can't listen to a podcast, ANY podcast with your wife or kids without having earmuffs at the ready, then that podcaster is a jerk. Whether it's about brewing or something else. Vote with your ears and don't listen to a jerk's podcast.

Some quick feedback about your site - I would increase the line-height of the content area to at least 1.4. The readability suffers when the line-height is so small (it is set to 1 right now).

Add:
#content {
line-height: 1.4;
}

Also remove line-height: 100% from line 39 of style.css.

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

You know what I find MOST ironic about this thread?

It's that given how I do what I do when I do what I do and considering how often and how long I have been doing this , it is always the "fellas" that seem to get their panties in a twist.

 

[homebrewdad]

FWIW, I don't think you were wrong in noticing or pointing out that it's a male-dominated hobby. But I think your analysis of the reasons behind it are a little off-base. If you can't listen to a podcast, ANY podcast with your wife or kids without having earmuffs at the ready, then that podcaster is a jerk. Whether it's about brewing or something else. Vote with your ears and don't listen to a jerk's podcast.

Some quick feedback about your site - I would increase the line-height of the content area to at least 1.4. The readability suffers when the line-height is so small (it is set to 1 right now).

Add:
#content {
line-height: 1.4;
}

Also remove line-height: 100% from line 39 of style.css.

Thanks for the feedback and suggestions.

 

[Melana]

You know what I find MOST ironic about this thread?

It's that given how I do what I do when I do what I do and considering how often and how long I have been doing this , it is always the "fellas" that seem to get their panties in a twist.

Homebrewing fellas wear panties?
Pics or it didn't happen.

 

[LandoLincoln]

Homebrewing fellas wear panties?
Pics or it didn't happen.

There was that one time...

 

[chocotaco]

Homebrewing fellas wear panties?
Pics or it didn't happen.

It was ONE TIME! GOSH!

 

[stpug]

There was that one time...

It was ONE TIME! GOSH!

Eerie timing there, guys!

 

[clairecunn83]

Can you please quote where I said this? Because if I did, that was never my intention, and I will edit and post a retraction.

I did say that the culture seems to be very much of a boys' club.

I did say that we seem to take the "small group of buddies" mentality and apply it to the hobby as a whole, which is where I mentioned the "warm load of customer service" line, and observed that in most other industries, that would never fly.

I suggested that we should make conscious decisions to be more inclusive in our attitudes and language, and that our retailers should be held to the same standards that would apply in other industries.


NOWHERE do I say that "all male homebrewers are sexist", that no woman can walk into an LHBS or a homebrewing club and be taken seriously, etc. I mentioned that I would love to see more women blog about homebrewing, as I think the perspective would be interesting.

I offered to let female bloggers promote their content on my site, or to let a prospective female blogger host there - while making the point that ANYONE can host or promote their blog on my site.

I feel like you guys are putting words in my mouth a bit. "Gee, that hyper-sensitive homebrewdad... somebody made a dirty joke, now he's offended!"

But either way, it did kick off a discussion. Which is what I really hoped to see.

I'm backing Homebrewdad, here...and I didn't even agree with his blog post. Buuuuut, that's not the point! A few of you immediately twisted his words and opinions into some skewed personal attack which resulted in some very immature and unfair comments. It was an opinion piece, people! RELAX.

What could have been an interesting DISCUSSION unfortunately turned into to middle school playground fight. Grow up.

 

[homebrewdad]

Eerie timing there, guys!

Same one time?

 

[LandoLincoln]

what could have been an interesting discussion unfortunately turned into to middle school playground fight. Grow up.

make me!

 

[DrunkleJon]

Show me on the doll where she touched you.

She touched me in the beer place. It felt funny.

 

[Melana]

grow up.

never.

 

[RmikeVT]

Is this guy serious?

I had to give up quilting because all the women ran me out of the hobby.

 

[motobrewer]

i hear it helps

 

[DNKDUKE]

It's not always obvious, and you'd have to bother going to everyone's profiles to figure it out. That's not something I do, at least.

(note to self... h-bar is NOT a stalker)
Ok, that's one...

 

[stpug]

Same one time?

I'm thinking so :fro:

 

[drainbamage]

Is this guy serious?

I had to give up quilting because all the women ran me out of the hobby.

Yesterday when this first came up, I found myself wondering if a cross-stitching forum somewhere out there was having the same discussion about "how can we give cross-stitch a man's touch?"

 

[Melana]

Yesterday when this first came up, I found myself wondering if a cross-stitching forum somewhere out there was having the same discussion about "how can we give cross-stitch a man's touch?"

Hey, I do a lot of cross-stitch work... can you link me to that forum please?

 

[Tin4]

So, lots of stuff to respond to. I'm not going to do that and instead pretend I've read none of your comments.

Is homebrewing a boys club? Lets talk to the ladies themselves as it's a point of disusion in their Brew & A's.

From Hello

Austin: How are women received in the brewing community? Do you feel it's a boys club, or do you see that changing? I'll be frank, conflicted in this line of questioning. There's a part of me that thinks calling out the fact you're a lady is making an issue of it rather than just not mentioning it. Thoughts?

Jessica: I don't know whether to laugh or be offended that you called me a lady!

But really, let's face it, home brewing is a boy's club right now, but the number of women brewers is increasing. I was not surprised to see that men dominated the hobby and to be honest, when I see another woman brewer I am probably oddly star struck. It is like spotting Bigfoot, only prettier and I probably don't have to fear for my life. I would love to see more women brewing, but it may never take off like it has for men. I don't think I could come up with a valuable reason, but I encourage women to brew or get with their significant others and brew together. It is a nice hobby to have because there is usually something to enjoy in the end and it is done at home where you can be present with loved ones or a needy dog; what isn't there to love!?

As far as the question goes, I think it is a fine question to ask. I almost want to believe that women home brewers are independent and very strong. That we value our families, but we have a hobby that is definitely going against the grain of what some people still may believe is inappropriate for women. I think there has been a stigma associated with drinking beer and that it was a man's drink. I think a woman drinking beer from a can, bottle, or even pint glass may be viewed as anything but sexy. A woman holding a nice glass of wine or a nice martini glass was probably more of the picture people had when they thought about women drinking. I still question whether or not this is still the case based on what I see just hanging out in breweries and such. Granted, there are still women around and some who are drinking beer and those who don't look like they're annoyed or bored being at a brewery, but obviously the ratio is definitely skewed in the favor of men. As a lady, I don't mind sitting in a place riddled with men. Men are glorious!

From Melana:

Austin: In my interview with Jessica "Hello" B, we discussed the nature of brewing and whether is was a boy's club. What are your thoughts?

Melana: Oh yes. It's a delightful boys club that (thanks to the pioneering efforts of the site Admin) respects women. Now that's a place for me! I've been to beer functions where I'm the only woman brewer (beer mistress perhaps?!) and the guys are totally cool with having a woman in their midst. My other hobby antique autos is a male dominated hobby and I have no problems fitting in there. I speculate that it's a boys club because most women don't like beer. Pfft... oh well. Girl/boy/whatever... I like hanging with people that brew. On HBT we are all gender neutral. I have in recent years started to define myself as female by my avatar which I do change frequently... I'm completely comfortable being 'just one of the guys'.

Is beer a boys club? Yup. Why is that? Marketing. It's easy to sell things to men. Big ****s? I'll buy it. It's prying on my sexuality which is visual based. Do I think less of someone who has breast? Nope, but man, I love em so much it's stupid. Does that mean I'm objectifying? Of course, but I have depth. Layers and some such.

Is homebrewing a boys club? Yup. Why is that? More men brew right now, but that's changing. As per Google, 47% of visitors to HBT are women.

Any exclusion, and sense of division is existent outside of homebrewing and worms it's way due to the personalities that support it.

HBT has tried very hard to make ladies feel welcome, not because they are ladies, but because they are people and any sort of negative treatment won't be tolerated.

Report Report Report. See something inappropriate? Report it. We'll set them straight.

 

[drainbamage]

Hey, I do a lot of cross-stitch work... can you link me to that forum please?

Are you kidding?! I don't go near that stuff, it's a chick hobby.

Now if you'll excuse me, I've gotta run before my cookies burn and these flower arrangements I'm working on start wilting.

 

[smitty8202]

Read the first two page of posts in this thread. I'm gonna be quite frank and honest. Who give a flying f**k if there a women homebrewers or brewmasters. Being in the Marines which is a highly male pro dominate community I treat females like one of the males no matter what. I don't care who you are or where you come from. You joins the Corps to be a part of something great don't think for one minute I'm gonna give you the special treatment. As for women in the hobby I think it's sexy as hell when a women actually knows what she's talking about when it comes to beer. My wife has been a bud light drinker for years before I started brewing. She tried my first brew an apa and was hooked hell the next day she brought home a six pack of Avery white rascal and drank one and said make this. Now she wants to join on my brew days. But once again if your a women and you want to homebrew by all mean do your thing girl. And that's all I have to say about that.

 

[soccerdad]

Two things
1) I cast my AHA ballot today. 3 women on the ballot. I voted for all 3. Now I am wondering if homebrewdad was sending subliminal messages to me and is really a character made up by Lorena, Sandy and Debbie. Yes - I'm paranoid, but not schizophrenic.
2) Look what happened when men taught women to knit ! A simple exercise in making and mending the nets leads to sweaters, turtlenecks, scarves, toboggans (that's a took for you Canuks) ... what if they take over ??? Or am I paranoid?

 

[Melana]

Are you kidding?! I don't go near that stuff, it's a chick hobby.

Now if you'll excuse me, I've gotta run before my cookies burn and these flower arrangements I'm working on start wilting.

Thank you! This made me spray my diet coke all over my monitor. I SO needed a good laugh today.

 

[sudbuddy]

Thank you! This made me spray my diet coke all over my monitor. I SO needed a good laugh today.

What's with you and @hello spitting out non-alcoholic beverages?! A man would NEVER do that :cross:

 

[Hello]

I'm backing Homebrewdad, here...and I didn't even agree with his blog post. Buuuuut, that's not the point! A few of you immediately twisted his words and opinions into some skewed personal attack which resulted in some very immature and unfair comments. It was an opinion piece, people! RELAX.

What could have been an interesting DISCUSSION unfortunately turned into to middle school playground fight. Grow up.

Who is fighting? Serious question.
I don't think anyone is attacking the guy. I do think that the worst part of the blog post is that he portrays ALL male home brewers as basic cavemen and this is simply not the case. So you need to relax. Yes, it was an opinion piece that he spammed on various sites looking for discussion but also hits. I don't fault him for that at all, I fault him for lumping these fine ass men into one group while single-handedly saying that every single woman has not been welcome into the community. Opinions are awesome, but let's keep it at that and when you write an opinion piece, state it as such. That was not entirely the case here.

I think I took more offense to how men were portrayed than I did the women. I'd venture to guess I'm not alone. You can stand on whatever side you want, but you need to take your own advice. Just a side note, his words weren't twisted. He thinks this community needs to be more welcoming of women and I for one have never felt that way.

 

[Melana]

Who is fighting? Serious question.
I don't think anyone is attacking the guy. I do think that the worst part of the blog post is that he portrays ALL male home brewers as basic cavemen and this is simply not the case. So you need to relax. Yes, it was an opinion piece that he spammed on various sites looking for discussion but also hits. I don't fault him for that at all, I fault him for lumping these fine ass men into one group while single-handedly saying that every single woman has not been welcome into the community. Opinions are awesome, but let's keep it at that and when you write an opinion piece, state it as such. That was not entirely the case here.

I think I took more offense to how men were portrayed than I did the women. I'd venture to guess I'm not alone. You can stand on whatever side you want, but you need to take your own advice. Just a side note, his words weren't twisted. He thinks this community needs to be more welcoming of women and I for one have never felt that way.

Agreed 100%. Except for the 'fine ass men' - are they all? I haven't seen enough to make any opinion either way.

 

[finsfan]

I'll be a pioneer and be the first to jump in the fine ass men category.

 

[MrNatural]

Two things
1) I cast my AHA ballot today. 3 women on the ballot. I voted for all 3.

Normally don't like to repeat myself, but "Might as well"..........
[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9fF8yptn8E[/ame]

 

[johngaltsmotor]

Agreed 100%. Except for the 'fine ass men' - are they all? I haven't seen enough to make any opinion either way.

I'm fine with being an ass man. Or a **** man. Heck, if she can put up with me I'll be a "wow you've sure got nice earlobes" man.