Craft Brewing Has a Sexism Problem

Perhaps I just have too thick of a skin, but if somebody came out with Ginger Cracker IPA, I'd still drink it (after of course every one of my friends finished fighting to get pictures of me holding one in my hand, similar as to when I am in the same room as a Miller Lite can). Pale Canadian Lager? Why not, I assume it's an IPL. Giant **** Ale? Any of these things that describe me, if they are good, I'd be happy to drink and not be concerned that my beer was microaggressing me.

I'll be sitting here patiently waiting for everybody who believes that lowest common denominator frat house humor doesn't belong on beer bottles damn the following beers:

-Arrogant Bastard (which according to sales data, 132% of all Arrogant Bastard bottles have been purchased to insult somebody else)
-All beers which are references of drug use (Pinner, 420, etc.)
-The entire Ridgeway Bad Elf series
-50 West Vehicular Hopicide
-The ever famous Polygamy Porter
-Left Hand - Stranger (urban dictionary it if you don't understand why)
-DuClaw Sweet Baby Jesus (for all of the angry christians in Cleveland)
-Cantillon - Rose de Gambrinus (featuring a nude woman giving a lap dance on the label?)
-Dark Horse - Whiskey Richard

I don't think we don't need to somehow put even more puritan standards on beer names/labels. If somebody is angry about Happy Ending or Panty Dropper ale, they're free not to buy them. However, brewers have learned that sex sells beer, especially among the 70%+ male beer market.

 

Anyone else not surprised this is coming from clickbait-Slate?
For every Bean Flicker, there's a Kilt Lifter.

 

My guess is that most of the women drinking craft beer are more into the actual beer and find the names to be comical and not offensive because they aren't feminazi's looking for the next arbitrary issue that they can be offended by.

If you don't like the name, don't drink the beer. Simple as that. This country is getting WAAAAY too politically correct for my taste. Let's focus on things that actually matter.

 

There are way more important things to be worried about that the pun names of craft beers...sometimes I really hate people, if you don't like it, don't drink, eat, watch or listen to it!!!!!!!!!!

 

I have encountered sexism and not just on beer labels. Honestly if you live your life fully then most things are just funny but some things will feel like sandpaper. Those are the sexist remarks or sexist labels. It would be so nice if no one knew if I were a boy or a girl and just my brains were showing. Oh wait . . . the internet. Double D does not offend me neither do those garters, nor does tramp stamp or raging bitch. "Dirty blonde goes down easy" sure did.

 

As a female, I completely agree with this post. If you are that offended, don't patronize.

 

quotes from @Vav FTW!

 

My personal favorite - "Bitch B Crazy" which is absolutely AWESOME. When I heard about that beer name I jokingly told my wife "look honey they made a beer after you! I'll have to get one!" She gave the 'the look' and a little chuckle, she knows she's a little crazy and we joke about it all the time (every guy likes a "little crazy" - don't lie!) I've never called my wife a bitch in anger and never would, she knows that. Point is, learn to take a fucking joke or live your life being constantly offended.

 

I'm offended by all this offense going on!

Seriously, is this really an issue of any consequence? Do the PC police really need to crash through brew house windows SWAT team style? Is there really anyone out there condemning craft beer for rampant sexism? Are young girl's psyches really being crushed by the (alleged) oppressive male domination in the industry? Am I really commenting on such ridiculous notions?

Life's too short, folks. Better to have a beer and let it go!

 

Not even going to click on the link to feed that clickbait website. But i'm going to go ahead and say no, stop being offended, just as others have said.

 

Didn't read the article, but read the posts. So if this has anything to do with the article then so much the better. Just stopped at Little Dog Brewing in Neptune, NJ and had some fine beers from owner/brewer Gretchen Schmidhausler, well worth the stop if you are in the area.

 

Very anecdotal evidence. Mentions around 10 beers (out of the thousands available) and says the beer industry has a problem. You've got to do better than that to convince me there is something systemic.

 

Oh yeah? Well I think people who complain about people who complain that everyone's being too sensitive need to stop being so sensitive.

 

Damn, there goes my Craft Brew Tinder idea......

 

Faux outrage is the new black...

 

Haven't read the article, but I think I get the gist of it...

I'd say there's more a "maturity" problem with beer and just alcohol marketing in general , and obviously sexism can fall into that category... although it's also a degree of being sensitive to others vs. live and let live...

 

A buddy of mine recently designed the labels for a beer that's about to be packaged, and has a great name: http://freshbreaddesign.com/images/amber-s hot friend mock up-crop-u7021.jpg

 

The article was very humorous to me but anyway for those 10 offensive beers out there, we have 10 women beer geek groups like this successful one. Link to the most popular one here in my area: http://www.girlspintout.org/chapter-directory/west/arizona/tucson/

 

Here's the thing: I suspect that the author's premise about craft beer having a problem with sexism is correct, but I tend to agree that you need to dive a little deeper into the issue than a few raunchy and misogynistic beer names/labels to really drive the point home.

I would love to read an in-depth article about the issue that dives into some of the more nuanced elements of it, like women working in the industry and how their experiences differ from men and why. I think the overwhelming male majority in craft beer can partially be explained by simple different tastes/interests, but I think there is also probably a bit of alienation going on as well.

One thing is for sure: it's an issue worth talking about, and I don't think the "stop being offended" and "we're too PC" comments provide any value at all. Those phrases tend to come from people who haven't walked in the shoes of the offended to understand why something might be offensive to them. That matters.

I think the most insightful part of the article was this:

And to the author's point, even though craft beer isn't alone in having such a problem, it seems like an industry that cares so much about community and civic duty/responsibility would want to be on the front of changing that "planet earth" problem, rather than trailing along with everyone else.