The Case for Cause Brewing

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When brewers hear the call, they’re ready to show up and mash in. 

WORDS John Holl

Last summer, Vermont was repeatedly hit with punishing  storms and rain that fell at the rate of several  inches per hour, quickly overwhelming streams and rivers. Roads were washed out, homes were flooded, mudslides caused damage  and hampered relief efforts. Two people  died. 

“Damage from the Great Vermont Flood of July 2023 rivaled—and in some areas exceeded—Tropical Storm Irene in 2011,” notes the National Weather Service. “Only the Great Flood of 3–4 November 1927, an event that preceded modern flood control in the state, exceeded the impact  of the 2011 and 2023 events in the past century.” 

Sean Lawson knew he had to do something to help his neighbors and beloved state. The cofounder and brewer of Lawson’s Finest Liquids in Waitsfield decided to do what he does best—brew a beer. 

There is a societal script that happens during and after catastrophic  events. Images of disasters dominate the news, showing flooding, fires, tornadoes, ice storms and more. The powerful images stir compassion for those outside of the danger zone. Pledges of support are made and delivered,  and the nation soon moves on to the next big terrible thing. For locals, there are months or years in cleanup and recovery ahead. This is typically where breweries have stepped up. 

In recent years, there has been a trend to create a beer for a dedicated cause, one often tied to a specific event with proceeds going directly to those affected. For Lawson’s Finest, it meant creating and releasing Vermont Strong, a 6.1 percent alcohol-by-volume (abv) pale ale, to support the Vermont Community Foundation. 

“It took a little effort, but we launched the beer overnight, at least the concept and details,” says Lawson. “Then we got a graphic design that other brewers could use and edit and add their logo.” 

Vermont Strong Pale Ale on the canning line / Courtesy Lawson’s Finest Liquids

Beer isn’t finished in a day, so while the recipes were being made and fermented—Lawson says more than a dozen breweries quickly signed on to the project—members of the brewery staff delivered tanks of fresh water to those without a potable supply and took time away from their jobs to help muck out basements and remove damaged furniture.

“The beer activates good will in individual consumers, and maybe even the brewery on a different level,” says Lawson. “But most of all, when something bad happens, everyone wants to do something, to take action. Beer is one step towards that.”

BANDING AND BREWING TOGETHER

There have been beers made for specific  causes and events in the past, but the one that set the tone for the modern crop of relief efforts is Resilience IPA, which was created by California’s Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. following the deadly and devastating Camp Fire of 2018. 

The brewery quickly mobilized and created an IPA recipe that it made available to breweries nationwide. Following Sierra Nevada’s lead, more than 1,400 breweries signed on to brew the beer and pledged that all proceeds would go to help the relief fund. Non-brewing companies also signed on to help. Admiral Malting in San Francisco, for example, donated 5,500 pounds of malt to local breweries who were brewing the beer. 

As additional “cause beers” were launched, other malting companies, hop suppliers and yeast laboratories signed on to donate ingredients or offer discounts. Packaging and label companies did the same. After last year’s destructive wildfires in Hawaii, Maui Brewing Co. specifically called out Sierra Nevada as the inspiration for creating its Kōkua Project. To date, that specific program has raised more than $1.5 million for the Maui Fire Fund. 

“From New Zealand to Japan and every U.S. state in between, the brewing community has come together in a powerful and humbling way to support the people of Maui,” says Garrett Marrero, the brewery’s founder and CEO. “As one beer, brewed by many, Kōkua supports our Maui ‘Ohana who have been affected by the tragic wildfires. We are grateful to every brewery who has participated.”

Resilience IPA artwork from California’s Sierra Nevada Brewing Company / Courtesy Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

BEYOND NATURAL DISASTERS

When George Floyd was murdered in 2020, the national conversation around race and equality burst into full view. In San Antonio, Texas, brewer Marcus Baskerville was looking for a way to respond.  A conversation with a fellow brewer led him to start the Black is Beautiful initiative. 

“It was completely 100 percent organic,  driven based off of emotion,” says Baskerville, the cofounder and director of brewing at Weathered Souls Brewing. “We were in peak 2020. I just looked at myself, like ‘you’re a disappointment because you have all of these protests going on, we’re basically in like civil rights 2.0,  and your ass is sitting at home, basically doing nothing.’”

He created a recipe for an imperial stout that he originally planned to make as a brewery-exclusive one-off and donate proceeds to a local social-justice charity. 

Seeing the national impact, he quickly expanded the program, had artwork created and built a website to offer both to brewers who were interested in brewing the beer and donating to specific charities. Roughly 1,400 breweries participated, donating around $4 million , he says.

Black Is Beautiful Hazy IPA / Kimberly C. Machado—courtesy Weathered Souls

Four years later, many breweries continue to make the beer. A second  edition of Black is Beautiful was released  this year, a hazy IPA recipe, where participating breweries are asked to donate to the National Black Brewers Association. 

Sadly, there is also a dark side to these beers. Many organizers, including Sierra Nevada and  Weathered Souls, would later report that some breweries that had brewed and sold the beer and pledged monetary support never delivered the promised funds. But despite the challenges, the overall positive impact of these initiatives should not be undermined or undervalued. 

In 2021, the #MeToo movement came to the American brewing industry. Brave Noise, a collaborative pale ale, was launched by brewer Brienne Allan in response to address abuse in the industry and to support victims and advocacy initiatives. To date, 297 breweries from around the world have participated in the project. There have been collaboration beers brewed for more personal  causes,  including suicide prevention, laid off hospitality workers,  pushing for legislation, cancer research and more. 

“All the breweries have to donate  to a local cancer organization of their choice,” says Jess Klembara, a brewer and current marketing director at Confluence Brewing Company who created the Scars are Beautiful beer campaign. “It doesn’t matter  how much, it just matters that they donate something.” 

The American brewing industry has nearly 10,000 breweries and while it is in flux, facing an array of economic issues and category competition, when the world is in trouble, it has proven itself ready to stand up and brew to do some good.