US, Mexican women join forces in craft beer project

Tucson, Arizona, Aug 26 (EFE).- Women brewers from both sides of the United States-Mexico border have come together to create Las Hermanas (The Sisters), a pale IPA with hints of citrus.

The people behind the “All-Female Craft Beer Collaboration Across the Border” gathered Friday in Tucson to brew the first batch.

“The principal aim of this bi-national program is to support and foster participation of women in the production of craft beer, which is still largely dominated by men,” Mariana Dominguez, from Mexico City’s Cerveceria Macaria brewery, told Efe.

Borderlands Brewing Company in Tucson will produce 2,000 liters (528 gal.) of the new La Hermanas brew over the next two weeks, and Cerveceria Macaria is set to turn out another 1,500 liters next month.

Proceeds from sales of the beer will go toward training that will allow members of the group to be certified as brewers.

Launched in 2019, the project entered an extended pause due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but is back in high gear with ambitions to reach a broader market.

While the culture of craft beer goes back decades in the US, it has only begun to take off in Mexico in the last few years.

“Twelve years ago there were only five women interested in production of craft beer. Now there are 50 women who are part of our group on social media,” said Laura Peña, a brewer from Cerveceria Cielito Lindo in Guadalajara.

Ayla Kapahi, head brewer at Borderlands Brewing, told Efe it is important to support all of the women who are making history by breaking barriers.

“The craft beer industry is a very competitive market. You have to work very hard to stand out, so this kind of joint work helps to open doors to new generations of women who want to enter this market,” she said. EFE ml/dr