Women of WoT
LILY WAITE
THE QUEER BREWING PROJECT
‘I wanted to do something that would have what I saw as tangible impact(…) The response was incredible, and the project really took off.’
Tell us a bit about yourself and your role in the drinks world?
I’m a beer writer and run The Queer Brewing Project, a queer- and trans-owned, LGBTQ+ focused brewery. I’m also a ceramicist, photographer, editor at Pellicle Magazine, and lapsed painter and printmaker. I’ve been working in beer for 6 or 7 years, writing for 4, and running Queer Brewing for 3.
How did you get into brewing and what inspired you to set up The Queer Brewing Project?
I never intended to get into brewing. In fact, I remember for some time, when asked by friends and family if I ever wanted to open my own brewery, my response was always a firm ‘no’. At the start, Queer Brewing was only ever intended to be a collaboration project—I had no aspirations to turn it into something bigger.
I started Queer Brewing in 2019 after growing frustrated at seeing the same faces (including mine) on diversity panels and discussions, having the same conversations and not seeing any actual change happening. I wanted to do something that would have what I saw as tangible impact: as well as providing visibility and representation that queer and trans people needed. The response was incredible, and the project really took off.
‘Glassware can make drinking beer feel a more well-rounded and considered experience, more of an experience in itself.’
In late 2020, I was the first of Cloudwater Brew Co’s Wayfinder programme recipients. Whilst working with Cloudwater, it became apparent that one way to grow Queer Brewing and have a greater impact would be to step it up from collab project to brewery in its own right. With their help—from brewing to branding and many other things—we relaunched in early 2021 as a brewery with its own output.
Your branding is unapologetically queer. How important do you think active, positive representation is of groups that maybe haven’t always felt welcomed in beer spaces?
It’s incredibly important. It’s important to remember, though, that representation isn’t the endgame and nor should it be the only approach. But we’ve found that even simply seeing the word ‘queer’ on a tap list or in a fridge can be really meaningful to LGBTQ+ people who’ve not seen themselves represented in beer before; one of the main responses to queer and trans folk finding our brand is that they feel seen and more welcome because it speaks directly to them, and makes them feel a little more at home.
Aside from brewing, you are also an incredible ceramicist, making really cool beer accessories such as coasters and tankards. How important do you think glassware is to making beer a more elevated experience and to maybe widening its appeal?
Thank you! I think glassware absolutely can help elevate beer: style- and brand-appropriate glassware can make drinking beer feel a more well-rounded and considered experience, and more of an experience in itself. I’m not sure, though, that it necessarily has a huge part to play in widening beer’s appeal. I think there’s certainly a middle-ground, between bog-standard glasses not cleaned properly and craft masters and tekus that might actively turn off some new drinkers, but I don’t know that glassware is the next frontier in craft beer evangelism.
Tell us about someone in the industry that inspires you, or just deserves a shout out?
Helen Smith of Burum Collective (https://www.burumcollective.com)! The work Helen is doing, along with Burum co-founder Rachel Hendry, is excellent, across numerous fronts. They’re fantastic and more people need to know about them.
What is your favourite beer you’ve made so far and what's your favourite beer to drink right now?
Our witbier, Flowers, is my baby. It’s my favourite beer of ours and probably just one of my favourite beers: I’m immensely proud of it and just absolutely adore it. My favourite beer to drink now or any other time is Allagash White, the beer Flowers is inspired by. I wonder if you can sense a theme in my tastes?
Check out Queer Brewing Project over on their website: https://www.thequeerbrewingproject.com
