Browsing the site, I had a moment of what I think is realisation: mass market advertising of beer neglects more than the female half of the population – it also fails to cater to the beer geek guys, with its focus on sex (scantily-clad females) or “clean aftertaste” (read: flavourless) and the like, the appeal is obviously to the lowest common beernominator. Mass marketing of beer is to the frat boys, and their older brethren, and not to the growing craft beer culture at all.

Moving forward with this thought, it seems to me that a lot of the marketing that could be done around the craft beer movement, with focus on product quality, flavour, food pairing, and such like, can be equally applicable to enthusiasts (or potential enthusiasts, if they can be reached) of either gender.

I have male friends who are wine connoisseurs, and seldom or never drink beer. Yet these same guys, if persuaded to try something a little different (my boyfriend’s home-brewed Belgian strong ale was an example) are astounded by what they experienced, and will repeat many times how surprised they had been, and that they had never known there were beers like this.

So it’s not just about gender. It really is about outreach to a different sector of the market, and one which is comprised of both men and women.