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aristarchus [soylentnews.org] writes:

Some misconceptions in this article, but it does explain "alewives", so there is that. From The Conversation. [theconversation.com]

What do witches have to do with your favorite beer?

When I pose this question to students in my American literature and culture classes, I receive stunned silence or nervous laughs. The Sanderson sisters didn’t chug down bottles of Sam Adams in “Hocus Pocus.” But the history of beer points to a not-so-magical legacy of transatlantic slander and gender roles.

Up until the 1500s, brewing was primarily women’s work – that is, until a smear campaign accused women brewers of being witches. Much of the iconography we associate with witches today, from the pointy hat to the broom, emerged from their connection to female brewers.

A routine household task

Humans have been drinking beer for almost 7,000 years, and the original brewers were women [womenshistory.org]. From the Vikings to the Egyptians, women brewed beer both for religious ceremonies and to make a practical, calorie-rich beverage for the home.

True, dat.

Exiling women from the industry

So if you traveled back in time to the Middle Ages or the Renaissance and went to a market in England, you’d probably see an oddly familiar sight: women wearing tall, pointy hats. In many instances, they’d be standing in front of big cauldrons.

But these women were no witches; they were brewers [researchgate.net].

They wore the tall, pointy hats so that their customers could see them in the crowded marketplace. They transported their brew in cauldrons. And those who sold their beer out of stores had cats not as demon familiars [jstor.org], but to keep mice away from the grain.

Just as women were establishing their foothold in the beer markets of England, Ireland and the rest of Europe, the Inquisition began [history.com]. The fundamentalist religious movement, which originated in the early 16th century, preached stricter gender norms and condemned witchcraft.

The conspiracy by males to push women out of brewing seems something of a stretch, but a lot of the coincidences are interesting. However, the maleness of beer is a fact?

This gender bias seems to persist in smaller craft breweries as well. A study at Stanford University [craftbrewingbusiness.com] found that while 17% of craft beer breweries have one female CEO, only 4% of these businesses employ a female brewmaster – the expert supervisor who oversees the brewing process.

It doesn’t have to be this way. For much of history, it wasn’t.

Fine article lacks any discussion of malting, mashing, sparging, or floccation, but those are probably all occult secrets now.

Original Submission