NM Pink Boots Society chapter collaborates for annual Brew Day

When Jess Griego was getting into the beer business, she admittedly didn’t have a lot of women mentors to help guide her.

“It felt like a little bit like I was floundering. I didn’t have a lot of experience with beer at all and didn’t have a lot of places to go find that information,” Griego said. “Sometimes it can be intimidating being a woman in beer because it’s kind of seen as like a male-dominated thing.”

Fast-forward to the present day, and Griego is a staple in the industry as the chief operating officer for Bosque Brewing Company. She is also a leader of the New Mexico chapter of the Pink Boots Society, an organization that, according to its website, “aims to assist, inspire and encourage women and non-binary individuals in the fermented/alcoholic beverage industry to advance their careers through education.”

Griego initially learned about the group while attending an out-of-state conference. At the time, the New Mexico chapter had only a handful of members, but that has changed over the years.

“As our Pink Boots chapter has grown, it’s just created so much opportunity for networking, and just kind of having some camaraderie within the brewing community that is specifically designed to help support, educate and inspire women in the brewing industry,” Griego said.

“It’s just really to help to build a really inclusive, safe place for women either who are interested in joining the industry or who are at the (Central New Mexico Community College) program or any position — whether that’s brewing or HR or marketing.”

Perhaps nothing exemplifies that camaraderie more than Pink Boots Collaboration Brew Day, when registered teams brew a special release beer and donate a portion of the money from the sales to scholarships that help to further the organization’s mission. Proceeds from the New Mexico Chapter’s previous Brew Day will send one of its members to Germany to learn Bavarian brewing methods.

The latest Land of Enchantment version was held at Bosque North on March 7, where representatives from 14 breweries combined to brew a blonde ale — called Tenfold Gold — that was released Friday, March 28. The beer is part of a partnership with Yakima Chief Hops. Members and chapters are able to choose the blend at the Great American Beer Festival.

The most recent Brew Day marked the 10th anniversary of the New Mexico Pink Boots Society chapter’s participation.

“What I really like about how we’ve set up our Brew Days is that we’ve been intentional about highlighting women brewers, specifically, and having them run the day,” Griego said. “We usually try to do it as close as we can to International Women’s Day … I would say everybody in our membership blocks that day off. It’s an important day, and it’s just a fun time to get together and brew the beer. And just see each other for the first time in forever.”

Griego says the current collaboration is a 30 barrel batch, which can allow for approximately 60 kegs as well as packaged offerings. The Tenfold Gold will only be available on tap and in cans at the participating breweries until it’s sold out. The can design was created by Bosque marketing manager and Pink Boots New Mexico chapter co-leader Natasha Souther.

“What’s nice about everyone having it on tap at the same time is that people can go wherever is most convenient to get it, and it’s not gonna sell out at one specific place and not be available (elsewhere),” Griego said.