Publishing Craft Beeeeeerrrr :)
The first excerpt shared below is the first piece of writing I professionally published. I could finally call myself a writer and author. It was the best feeling ever. I went on to write a regular column in Virginia Craft Beer Magazine, and I published several articles with them. The second excerpt is from my most technical writing piece, and the last excerpt is part of my favorite opinion feature. I was born to write, but I pay the bills by brewing craft beer. I haven't shared that on Prose before today! Publishing articles about my day job gave me the confidence to start writing about everything, and Prose gave me the place to do it. Thanks for that :)
"An American Girl in Bavaria"
Being a woman in the professional brewing industry isn’t for every elegant lady, but for the past five years, I’ve dedicated my life to craft beer. From the beginning, I joined Pink Boots Society to link up with fun loving, beer making girls like myself. Pink Boots is an organization for women in the beer industry, and their main goal is to help women advance their careers through education. They offer a ton of amazing scholarships throughout the year. As I was perusing the Pink Boots website this summer, one of the scholarships jumped out at me. It was a trip to Germany for ten days to visit breweries and hop farms, and learn about German brewing traditions. I have a passion for traditional brewing, so I applied immediately. A couple of weeks later, I got the news that I was chosen for the scholarship along with six other professional beer ladies. It was off to Bavaria for us, and Germany did not disappoint.
https://virginiacraftbeer.com/an-american-girl-in-bavaria/
"Digging Into the IPA Hops"
The history of IPA is common knowledge nowadays. Centuries ago, British brewers realized that hops have a preservative quality, protecting beer from contaminates and bacteria. Romantic folklore claims that beer was safer to drink than water. On the long road to India, brewers packed beer with hops to endure the long journeys. IPA=India Pale Ale. It’s important to acknowledge this history lesson, but the story doesn’t end there. IPAs are constantly evolving. One thing remains constant though. IPAs have lots of hops.
https://virginiacraftbeer.com/digging-into-the-ipa-hops/
"So You Wanna Be a Brewer?"
Unfortunately for all brewers, regardless of their gender identity or zodiac sign, no one ever asks what we actually do at work all day. People think the job is cool, but they have no idea what a glorious shit-show it really is. Try asking me how I spend 8+ hours a day in a haunted warehouse full of stainless steel tanks and brewery hoses. How many spray nozzles and gaskets have I replaced in my life? How do I identify the faint sound of a faulty CO2 connection, and what do I do when every pallet is broken or a stupid size? Why doesn’t anyone manufacture a good squeegee? How often does the production schedule change, and how many colors of dry erase markers do you need to brew quality beer? What’s the best music for canning days, and how long does it take to fold 500-case trays? Do I love my forklift more than my best friend?