Hopyard Honeys: The Columbus Women's Craft Beer Society

Today's guest post is written by none other than my beloved spouse. She has the word on some local ladies who sample and discuss something near and dear to many people: BEER.

Last February, my sister sent me a private message on Facebook.  “Are you busy Wednesday night? I have a Women's Craft Beer Society meeting at 7pm. I wanted to know if you want to come.”

A women’s craft beer society?  I was intrigued. As with most people, my first experiences with beer were in college where quantity was valued over quality.  After I turned 21 (*cough* in 1994 *cough*), my older brother started inviting me to a few of his parties where I started to learn that there were a lot more interesting beers out there than what the macrobreweries had to offer.  My interest in beer grew slowly but after a fortuitous stop in 2005 at a bar in the San Diego area introduced me to Arrogant Bastard by Stone Brewing, I became a confirmed craft beer aficionado. Of course I agreed to go with my sister.

The Columbus Women’s Craft Beer Society (aka Hopyard Honeys) was originally organized in January 2014 by Nichole Endicott and Sarah Cottrell, a couple of women with an interest in craft beer and some connections to the local craft beer scene. Nichole continues to do most of the leg-work for the meetings including lining up a location and purchasing the beers we will be sharing. Each month has had a different theme or style of beer that we explore, and each meeting is intended to be both fun and educational. Since my first meeting in February, I have attended most of them. One of my favorite meetings was in August, when the theme was beer brewed by companies owned by women or where the brewmaster was a woman. Being the hop-head that I am, I also really liked the IPA themed meeting back in the spring.

October's theme was pumpkin beers and ciders

The group is female-only and is a great way to meet new friends who share your interest.  The women who attend have a wide range of backgrounds, experience with craft beer, and style preferences. Information is shared freely and we aren't afraid to search the internet when a question is beyond the knowledge of anyone present. The most important thing to know for any woman interested in attending these meetings is that there is no stupid question: don’t be afraid to ask away!
Columbus has a great craft beer scene and we almost always include a local offering that is representative of the style or theme being explored. We usually sample 4-6 beers and, in some months, there are bonus offerings as well.

If you are interested in joining us, we usually meet on the last Wednesday of the month at 7 p.m. and we usually wrap up between 8:30 - 9:00.  However, because dates (especially November and December due to the holidays) and locations are subject to change, the best way to keep tabs on the upcoming meetings is to join the Facebook page (a link to which is located below).  Please note: to cover the costs of purchasing the beers, attendees are asked to contribute $10 per meeting and to RSVP to the monthly event page so there is an accurate count of how many people to expect.

The November meeting is a week earlier than usual due to Thanksgiving. We are going to meet at Brothers Drake Meadery this Wednesday, Nov 19 at 7 p.m.  Please arrive by about 6:45 since we will begin promptly at 7 p.m. We are going to sample four of their offerings and learn all about mead. Mead is technically a honey wine, not a beer, so this is a chance to step outside of our usual beer-exploration this month. Food will be available at Brothers Drake through the Tokyo Go Go food truck parked on site. While the educational part of the meeting will be a bit shorter than usual since Brothers Drake will have a band coming to play at 8 p.m., we expect that most of us will hang around to socialize and listen to some live local music.

Hopyard Honeys - Columbus Women's Craft Beer Society
Facebook Page
November's Meeting Event Page

Brothers Drake Meadery
26 E 5th Ave (Short North)
Columbus, OH  43201
(614) 388-8765
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