Meet Rachel Benkowski | Beer industry professional and nonprofit co-founder

We had the good fortune of connecting with Rachel Benkowski and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Rachel, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
Simply, there was a vacancy. A need. The beer industry and its inclusivity to women is relatively new, if we’re not talking about ancient or medieval societies. There are wonderful international nonprofit organizations that help women peruse education in the beer industry, but there is nothing to support women once they are working in the industry, as a business owner, a brewer, or likes thereof.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I work in the beer industry in several capacities: at a brewery, as a beer educator and as a nonprofit founder.

I work at Bone Haus Brewing behind the bar, and I do a lot of their marketing as well. I also teach Beer School, for Bone Haus and also for private events. And lastly, I co-founded and I run the nonprofit the Beer Babes Family in the USA.

The Beer Babes Family™ is a charitable organization. We are an online community and a no tolerance for online bullying platform. We strive to support and positively engage all women in the beer community. This includes the casual beer drinkers to the highest level of brewers, Cicerones and Beer Judges. We work with breweries around the world to brew beer to raise money to assist women in the beer industry.

The Beer Babes Family™ is a charitable organization that works with breweries around the world to brew Babe Brew™. Funds raised from portions of the sales of Babe Brew will be collected and awarded in the form of grants. Grants will be awarded to women who currently own, or are in the process of opening, breweries or taprooms; or to women pursuing education through the Cicerone Program, Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP), brewing or fermentation school, or other similar opportunities in the beer industry.

Babe Brew™ is a series of beer dedicated to the women of our personal lives and of the world: who inspire us, push us, make us think deeper, mentor us and lead by example. To the women who break rules and norms, speak their truth with compassion, live each day with unapologetic confidence, and champion equality for all.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I’m a big arts and culture person, so a trip to the Phoenix Art Museum would be on the list, and then just down the way I’d recommend walking the Roosevelt Row Arts District to check out the local art scene. There’s plenty of good beer and food to be found there as well, such as Greenwood Brewing, Jobot and Carly’s.

I love Arizona because of it’s diverse environments. I’m a huge outdoors person, so hiking is absolutely on the docket, as well as some road trips. In the Phoenix area, a trip to Saguaro Lake and the Salt River is a must, not only is the drive on Highway 87 and the Bush Highway beautiful, but the mountain-scapes along the Salt River are unprecedented. Butcher Jones is a great hike in that area. Depending on the time of year, I’d say we’d have to go tubing down the Salt River.

Sedona would be next on the list, with a stop to hike Bell Rock and maybe a pit stop at Mooney’s Irish Pub or Sedona Beer Co. before passing through Oak Creek Canyon on the way to downtown Flagstaff. The historic part of Flagstaff is a perfect way to occupy a whole day walking the city, explore the local shops and explore breweries and restaurants such as Rendezvous at the Monte Vista, Macy’s, Dark Sky Brewing, Atria and Swadee Thai.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My employer, Bone Haus Brewing, deserves a loud shout out. They’ve been supportive of my initiatives since day one, in all capacities. Any idea or thought I had was met with support and encouragement, and they continue to assist my career goals both with my personal business and my nonprofit.

The co-founder of my nonprofit, Roxy, also deserves a massive shout out. She hit the ground running with me since we came up with the idea of the Beer Babes Family. There is no way that the Beer Babes Family could exist without her.

Website: brewswithbeerkowski.com

Instagram: brews.with.beerkowski

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeH_PMSaCmPtMf07sGbChbg/videos

Other: https://www.beerbabesfamily.com/

Image Credits
The photo of me talking to a customer under the tent at the beer festival was taken by Nettik Photography.