Ninkasi's Nectar Brewing Competition
Invent a Beer Recipe and Win The Chance to Brew It With a Professional
Did you know that women were the original brewers of beer? For the majority of beer’s thousands years of history, women were the primary beer brewers because beer was food and women were in charge of food production. All the deities of beer are female, including the Sumerian goddess Ninkasi.
In England, women’s involvement in commercial brewing started to decline during the medieval era. During that period witch hunting was widespread and there is a fascinating connection between the tools of the trade of a female brewer and the popular image of a witch – broomstick, black cat, cauldron etc. Click here to read more.
Nowadays there is still a dearth of female brewers so Sara Barton - founder of and head brewer at Brewster’s Brewery, and Jane Peyton, Principal of School of Booze, are on a mission to inspire more women to brew and drink beer.
If you’re a woman and fancy having a go at brewing beer then why not enter our competition to invent your very own beer. If your entry wins you will have chance to brew it at Brewster’s Brewery alongside Sara Barton. And it may even go on sale through Brewster’s outlets.
And to make this competition even tastier, we are asking entrants to take inspiration from Britain’s leading producer of Fairtrade chocolate, Divine and devise a recipe inspired by one of their brands. You may also win a stash of Divine's delicious chocolate. If you have never tried beer and chocolate together then now's the time - it's amazing!
Unfortunately there are lots of myths about beer which often put women off drinking it – such as that beer will make you fat. Click here so we can dispel some of those fables. Not only is beer delicious, convivial and fun, but consumed moderately it has myriad health benefits too! Want to know more? Then click here.
Are you ready to become a 21st century goddess of beer and enter the competition to brew Ninkasi’s Nectar? You might even want to join Dea Latis, a campaign to get more women drinking beer. So spread the word on social media, and tell your friends and colleagues about the competition because we want to hear from all those nascent women brewers out there!
Competition Details
For a chance to brew your very own beer, we invite you to devise a recipe inspired by Divine chocolate. Take a look at our description of popular beer styles and Jane Peyton’s suggestions for matching beer with Divine’s brands. Click here and then open the file under the box headed Divine & Beer.
So for instance, if you like the sound of Divine’s Dark Chocolate with Raspberries then maybe your beer recipe will be for a Porter or Stout containing rose-hips or some other tangy fruit. Or if Divine's Dark Chocolate with Ginger and Orange is your choice, then ale containing citrus hops, and something spicy like lemongrass might be your suggestion for your unique creation.
When your beer-licious brainwave hits, think of a snappy name for the brew, and then send your recipe idea to us explaining why you want to brew beer. You don’t need to suggest hop varieties or specific malts, just the general beer style as inspired by Divine chocolate, and any extras such as fruit or spices. Please include contact details and send your entry to: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Sara Barton will choose a winner to brew the beer at Brewster’s Brewery in Grantham, Lincolnshire. Later on the winning beer will be bottled and the winner will receive two cases to impress their friends and family with. The winner and four runners up will also receive 5 bars of the Divine chocolate brand that inspired their beer recipe.
Good luck!
Terms & Conditions
• With your entry, please include mobile phone, postal address, and email address.
• The competition closes on January 31st 2012. No entries received after that date will be considered
• Short-listed entrants will be asked to submit a photograph.
• The winner will be invited to brew the beer at Brewster’s Brewery in Grantham, Lincolnshire, UK on a date to be decided by Brewster’s.
• Entries are welcome from anywhere in the world but travel costs to Brewster’s Brewery in Grantham are the responsibility of the winner.
• Sorry but we cannot accept entries from professional brewers.
• The cost of brewing ingredients will be covered by Brewster’s.
• Sara Barton will decide whether to include the beer in the Brewster’s range of ales for sale.
• The winner will permit her image (photograph and video) to be used in publicity material.
• The winner will receive two cases of bottles of the beer she brewed.
• The winner and four runners up will each receive five bars of the Divine chocolate that inspired her recipe.
