See that bru?! CederBrew sisters taking on the Big Boys of Beer!

Monday night saw the Mash Tun at Beerhouse host the lovely sisters Melanie and Tania of CederBrew for a beer and food pairing worthy of the gods (particularly the god of fish). They introduced their Catfish Ale, Sandfish Weiss, Chubby Head Stout, Cherry Blonde and Jan Pampoen Spicy Pumpkin Ale to a roomful of appreciative and enthusiastic beerlovers, who also found the mostly pescetarian food pairing by executive chef Roy MacAskill exactly as it was intended: mouth-wateringly delicious. As fantastic as the fare was however, there was a larger issue being addressed by the happy gathering.

Consider for a minute the drive and belief it takes for two ladies from the Cederberg to take on the might of the rough and ready, male-dominated and oftentimes misogynistic brewing industry (and to do it with a classy poise so often lacking in beer-filled interactions).

As atypical as it is today however – and as the Beer Whisperer pointed out in the night – it was primarily women who were responsible for alcohol production prior to men discovering metallurgy, building machines and inadvertently kicking off the industrial revolution. From then on, alcohol and every other product became a commodity, and the feminine influence in beer and society was further marginalised as men killed each other on a larger scale than ever before. You’ll forgive the grandiosity, but I’d like to think that from that perspective at least, the advent of CederBrew beer represents a step in the right direction.

Beerhouse takes its collective hat off to you, Melanie and Tania, and if the reception you received on Monday night is anything to go by, we’re confident that we’ll be serving CederBrew beer for many years to come.