DRINK WITH THE WENCH PRESENTS:

The Beer Blogger Interview Series

Curious what goes on in the minds of your favorite beer bloggers? Well, The Beer Wench is and she has embarked upon a mission to interview as many beer bloggers that she can — from all over the world. Are you a beer blogger? Do you want to

share your story? Send me an email!

INTRODUCING: TIILA ABBIT

AUTHOR OF: femALEist

Beer Blogger Interview

Full name: Tiila Abbitt
Twitter handle: femALEist
Beer advocate: femALEist
Name of blog: femALEist.com, www.meetup.com/Women-who-like-beer/
Current location: Noe Valley, San Francisco

Background “Snapshot”

1. Where did you grow up?

Northern New Jersey, right outside NYC

2. What sports if any did you play growing up, through college and beyond?

No sports; against ALL sports.

3. How old were you when you had your first beer?

I think I was maybe 12 or 13.

4. If you can recall, what is the story of your first beer? Where did you have it? What style and brand was it?

It was a Coors Silver Bullet. My parents had a bbq and that was the only time there was ever beer around (my parents did not really drink) and my 3 of my friends and I took one and split it 3 ways. We thought we were drunk.

5. Where, if applicable, did you go to college? What did you study? What additional activities, organizations, sports did you partake in during college?

Undergrad: State University of New York at New Paltz. I got a BFA in Sculpture and a minor in Art History. I got my Master’s at The Academy of Art University: MFA double major in Fashion Design and knitwear design.

Craft Beer Epiphany

Every craft beer enthusiast has at least one pinnacle craft beer experience that completely changes ones perspective on beer. I refer to this mind-blowing moment as a “craft beer epiphany.”

1. What was your first craft beer epiphany? Recall as many details about it as you can:

I think it was either Samuel Smith’s Oatmeal Stout or Saranac. Pretty sure it was Samuel Smith though. I was a big hippie back then- went on Phish tour in 1997 and drank a lot of beer. A lot of Guinness and Boddington’s too.

2. Have you have additional craft beer epiphanies since the first? Detail as many of them as you wish:

Framboise by Lindemans was my first flavor explosion beer. I thought it was amazing and super expensive (I was in undergrad) and I thought it was rather classy. Although it was expensive and I drank a lot, I never understood why I never got drunk on them. (it is only 2.5% abv according to Beer advocate!)

Beer Blog Background

1. How long have you been writing your beer blog?

Since Oct 2009

2. What inspired you to start writing your blog?

I went to a meetup event. I had never heard of it before and my friend took me to a Iron Chef version of Cupcakes, called iron Cupcake. They pick 1 flavor each month and there’s a cupcake off where anyone who wants to bake some with that ingredient can and then everyone goes and eats them and judges them. My friend knew I liked craft beer and so she took me to an Iron Cupcake meetup event where the ingredient was beer. Then I decided this whole meetup thing was fantastic and I decided to start one on my own- Women who like Beer. The blog came with it.

3. Why did you chose the name of your blog?

It’s from a book called Fermenting Revolution by Christopher Mark O’Brien.

4. What are you personal goals for your blog? What do you hope to achieve with it?

I hope to get more women into the world of craft beer. So many women that I meet don’t know that much about beer or claim they don’t like it. I once had someone say to me, they don’t like beer, they had a Budwesier like 10 years ago and didn’t like it (I don’t blame them) and I said to them, that would be the same if I said I didn’t like wine because I tried 2 Buck Chuck and didn’t like it. Many women just don’t know the flavors and options out there when it comes to craft beer.

5. What is one of the coolest things that happened to you as a result of being a beer blogger?

I was asked to be interviewed on the radio in New Zealand.

6. What are you top 3 favorite beer blogs/beer websites?

Beer Advocate, Rate Beer, BeerNews

Beer Talk

1. What are your top 3 favorite beer styles?

SOURS, Double IPA’s, Barleywines

2. What are your top 3 favorite breweries?

Russian River, Avery, The Bruery but their experimental stuff like 2 Turtle Doves.

3. If you could work with or for any one brewery, which one would it be and why?

Avery because everyone’s so nice and their beers are a great balance of experimental and solid representation of many different styles.

4. Are you a homebrewer? If yes, what is the most unique and interesting beer recipes you’ve brewed as a homebrewer?

No, not yet.

5. Do you have any beer certifications (BJCP, Cicerone, Siebel, American Brewers Guild)?? If so, what are they?

No, not yet. I want to take the Cicerone test but I need someone to back me since I don’t officially work in the field!

6. What is your favorite beer and food pairing?

HHMMMMMM that’s hard. I would have to say, it would have been one that I came up with (I try a lot of experimental pairings on my own) Dogfish Head’s Theobroma and Chuao’s Firecracker Dark Chocolate, made with pop rocks, chipotle and salt- 60% cacao. The poprocks and chipotle totally balance out the lightness of the Theobroma.

The Personal Side

1. If you could change your career at this very moment, without any restrictions on what you could do, what would you want to do and why?

I would open up my own beer tasting bar if someone wanted to front me the cash

2. Are you married? Children?

I am married, 3 years to my husband, David Buckingham

3. Outside of beer and writing, what are some of your other hobbies?

Cooking, fashion, vintage collector, mid century furniture collector, dog lover.

Off The Beaten Path

1. If you were a style of beer, what style would be an why?

Barleywine because even though it’s sweet it can pack a powerful heat.

2. You were caught smuggling beer illegally, which has now been made punishable by death. Right before you are sent to the executioner, you are offered one last beer. What beer would you chose and why?

2000 Old Stock so I could enjoy one last thing with my husband. Anyone got any out there? We are missing it from our vertical!

3. What are your thoughts on bacon?

I am a vegetarian but my husband makes that up for me himself.

SPECIAL THANKS TO TIILA FOR AN AWESOME INTERVIEW!

CHEERS!