Erica Campbell felt a bit isolated back in 2013, while working her first full-time job in the beer industry. “I was working with all men, which isn’t uncommon in the brewing industry,” she says. So, she approached four beer-loving women she knew in Jaime Dobbs, Renee Navarro, Jen Reinhardt, and Magenta Suzanne and pitched them the idea of hosting a sort of small, intimate event for women to network and meet new people over great beer.
And so, in 2014, the women officially founded the Society of Beer Drinking Ladies, intended to make women feel more included and comfortable while enjoying a cool, refreshing ale on a restaurant patio or at a diner among friends. Their first event, the inaugural one that aligned with the founding, was a secret one, which they called a “Bevy0001” They expected about 15 women to show up, but were pleasantly surprised when about 90 women folk purchased tickets. “There were a lot of women coming out of the woodwork coming to our events who felt like they couldn’t order beer at bars, or talk about it with their partners,” Campbell says.
Since then, they have grown to host about 50 pop-up events in Toronto, all celebrating what Campbell calls “drinking for a cause.” It’s the largest women and beer organization in North America, throwing Lady Beer Fests, bevies, beer dinners and beer launch parties, and brewing small-batch beers alongside seasonal collaborations. And, a portion of the proceeds from all of these efforts benefit the Society of Beer Drinking Ladies’ partnership with the Canadian Women Foundation. To date, they have raised over $60,000, funding Canada-wide programming to support and elevate women. They also support local initiatives, with the Society of Beer Drinking Ladies’ mystery boxes supporting Black Women in Motion. They also support local initiatives, from Sistering to Twelve to the Personal Care Box.
Now, the Society of Beer Drinking Ladies is expanding again, building a clubhouse that Campbell says will help further their core beliefs even more. “It’s more broadly taking the values of what we’ve built at the Society of Beer Drinking Ladies and creating a space for community programming,” she says. It will host their regularly scheduled events, but also offer new programs like parent toddler nights, comedy nights, wedding rentals and more. And, there will be an area for local, female-identifying artisans to put their work on display. “We’ve got 10 women signed up to sell their wares, kind of like an art market space,” Campbell say.
On the menu, local, artisanal snacks (rather than a full kitchen) will be available to compliment the four rotating taps, each of which will consistently pour a woman-brewed beer. There’s also a bottle shop and a Cafe TO patio in the works, which will spotlight local brands and all be fully physically accessible, welcoming absolutely everyone into the community. “That’s something we were striving for,” Campbell says. “Something that’s inclusive to all walks of life, and is also physically accessible.”
Campbell and Dobbs (now the two current co-owners of The Society of Beer Drinking Ladies) themselves are spearheading the project, working full days and then some, while Campbell is still working part time at Blood Brothers Brewing and Dobbs is full time at Steam Whistle. Oh, and Erica Campbell is doing all of this while pregnant.
While the space isn’t officially open to the public yet, the Society of Beer Drinking Ladies hosted a bevy last month, on February 25, welcoming all women folk to the new space at 967 College Street for a sample of what’s to come. There will be more pop-up events in March and leading up to their anticipated official opening in early May.
“With the world opening up, we’ve been in this real isolating world of doom and despair for 2 years,” Campbell says. “Now, there’s this sense of hope across Toronto and people are excited to get out of their house and come enjoy again. I love Toronto and I’m really hoping I can be a part of rejuvenating it and bringing that life back.”
