The FemAle Brew Fest Returns to Fort Lauderdale to Celebrate Women of Craft Beer

The pioneering craft beer festival with a mission to celebrate women in brewing is returning this month to Fort Lauderdale, making its mark as one of the largest gatherings of women in brewing.

Since 2017, the festival — a collaborative event organized by Fem Collective and UniteUs Group — has made South Florida its annual gathering place for women in brewing. The festival serves to highlight and feature female beer experts and brewers who hold a variety of positions within the industry while offering attendees an opportunity to learn about, taste, and discuss their beers.

Over time, event founder Frances Antonio-Martineau tells New Times that the FemAle Brew Fest has also become a place for female beer experts to discuss their challenges and successes in the workplace while offering support and encouragement to others already in the industry or those interested in the field.

"Each year, I am thrilled to see how many women are getting into the industry. From the first festival to this year, I've seen a big increase in the number of women joining the industry," adds Antonio-Martineau, who says the event spawned the creation of the South Florida chapter of the international non-profit Pink Boots Society. "To date, we have over 100 members, grown from just 27 in 2017, making it one of the largest chapters in the world. To me, that's incredible and a testament to the power of events like the FemAle Brew Fest."

For its sixth year, the FemAle Brew Fest will highlight more than 30 breweries from Maryland, Portland, and New York to Pennsylvania and several parts of Florida.

Confirmed breweries and bottle shops include local breweries like Tarpon River Brewing, Yeasty Brews Artisanal Beers, King Fox Brewery, Orchestrated Minds Brewing, and 3 Sons Brewing. This year, more than 20 breweries are from Florida, including those based in Tampa, Palmetto, Orlando, St. Petersburg, Bradenton, Oviedo, Sanford, Wesley Chapel, DeLand, Key West, Boca Raton, Hialeah, and Doral.

Craft beer lovers will also be excited to learn more about popular out-of-state breweries like Allagash Brewing Company (Portland, Maine), Necromancer Brewing (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), and Ever Grain Brewing Co. (Camp Hill, Pennsylvania). A popular boozy tea from Manhattan-based Owl's Brew will also be making its return.

For the second year in a row, the event will take place at the pet-friendly Kimpton Goodland Fort Lauderdale Beach against a backdrop of secluded courtyards and a rooftop pool with Intracoastal views. Weekend packages are available at a discounted rate for the event.

During the event, attendees are able to choose their festival experience beginning with two workshops, followed by general admission at 2 p.m., when brewers will start to pour. General admission tickets are on sale now for $45 and can be purchased online at femalebrewfest.com.

Thanks to its pet-friendly locale, a portion of the FemAle Brew Fest event proceeds will be donated to the Abandoned Pet Rescue, one of South Florida's largest no-kill animal shelters.

This year, the festival will also highlight Lifting Lucy, a nationwide tax-exempt organization committed to supporting the most underrepresented communities within the brewing industry — Black, Indigenous, and other Women of Color (BIWOC).

"Our goal is to shine a light on BIWOC in the industry — or lack thereof," Antonio-Martineau tells New Times. "The hope is to provide the group with a platform to share their initiative to not only the attendees but to all of the participating breweries."

"For me, it's important to continue to produce this festival, now more than ever with the growing number of women in the industry," sums up Antonio-Martineau. "I'm proud this pioneering event continues to provide a platform for women in the brewing industry to showcase their craft and has become an inspiration for others to create similar events. And, most importantly, to inspire women and little girls to not be afraid of getting into male-dominated industries. If you can see someone who is like you in a role, it's a way that you can imagine yourself in that role."

FemAle Brew Fest. 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday, September 17, at the Kimpton Goodland Hotel, 2900 Riomar St., Fort Lauderdale; femalebrewfest.com. Tickets cost $45 to $65 via eventbrite.com.