Women's brew crew crafts specially-made beer, donates proceeds to charity

AHWATUKEE, Ariz. (FOX 10) - Coming together from all over the state, this female brew crew is made up of nearly 100 ladies who craft specially-made beer, then donate the proceeds back to women's charities in the community.

This year, the women's brew crew raised $10,500 and will present a check to four local women's shelters.

"We ended up making 40 barrels and this is the largest amount of money we've raised so far in our fourth year, so we're pretty happy about that," said Heather Sterling of the SanTan Brewing Co.

Forty barrels of "Persistence Pale Ale," the name the ladies gave to this year's charity craft beer.

"Persistence is just a good strong word," said Mikel Anne Arnce of The Shop Beer Co. "It's an oaked pale ale. It's a smoked pale ale, so when we brewed it, we actually took oak chips and they fired them so you get a nice smokey flavor."

The ladies say it's a privilege to not only create something in a male-dominated industry but to be women helping other women.

"True, it is a male industry, but it's also a female industry too," Arnce said. "We have a great community and we get along really well and we have a lot of support and it's great that we can make money and give it back."

Support the female brew crew gets from other area organizations and breweries who also step in to support the female brew crew and their charity efforts.

"High-tide floats all boats and that's what we do here in the Arizona community," said Steene Routh of Women's Collaboration Pale Ale. "Not just the guild in general, but to be able to do something special as the women of the guild is really a unique opportunity and something that we really raised to the challenge and it's pretty drinkable!"

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