What does it take to create the perfect taproom? In my latest @chron piece I chat w brewery specialists @method_arch who have built over 70 Texas breweries about how to capture a brewery’s character through ego-free design-fascinating stuff!
https://www.chron.com/food/article/houston-beautiful-breweries-17856457.php
It takes a huge amount of inner strength to turn a viciously nasty experience into something positive, which is exactly what @Britbeerwriters award-winner @DavidJesudason has done. Huge thanks for including me in this important piece on being a brown beer writer @WritersofColor
https://davidjesudason.substack.com/p/dont-repeat-your-name-ill-never-remember
I had the absolute best time @cidercon ! Here are my top beer-nerd tips for cider-newbie I learned from the conference @hopculturemag – huge thanks @PickCider @beer_kulture & Yonder Cider!
Austin welcomed the Year of the Rabbit w the launch of Social Harmony:A Kaiju Brew collab by @AustinBeerworks @meanwhilebeer & @kaijucutandsew -a golden lager made w mugi-cha roasted barley tea, celebrating w dragon/lion dancing!
Amethyst content is back for 2023! Kicking off the new year w everything you need to know about Texas hop water, whether you’re doing #DryJanuary or #tryanuary this an exciting new sugar &gluten-free way to #drinklocal & support your local brewery!
Thrilled to bits to receive @PickCider @beer_kulture BIPOC media scholarship to @cidercon 2023! Can’t wait to improve my cider knowledge, meet top industry pros & get writing about cider-hope you’re ready for Amethyst cider content coming soon!
Super-chuffed to feature in the lovely folks @BoakandBailey ‘s EOY roundup – thanks for including me 6 times & for selecting my v personal @beer_everyone piece on Dual Identity, Death & Decolonisation
Could not be prouder to write about @beer_everyone founder & editor Lindsay Malu Kido’s huge achievements this year, esp launching #drinkinginanotherstate – read about all her fab work in @goodbeerhunting ‘s 2022 Signifiers
https://www.goodbeerhunting.com/signifiers-2022/2022/12/15/lindsay-malu-kido
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@SierraNevada ‘s@BuffaloTrace E.H. Taylor BA Bigfoot Barleywine collab puts the big in big beer season! Read more about this exciting brew hand-blended like a whiskey out of beer barrel-aged for up to 7yrs
For too long, the beer industry has glamourised IPA’s colonial past, overlooking the violence & damage of Empire.
I had a lot of fun reminiscing as I researched my latest @chron piece on international peri-peri phenomenon @NandosUSA ‘s Texan debut! Read about the history of the brand & the sauce, & how Brits love a cheeky Nando’s
https://www.chron.com/food/article/nandos-houston-opening-17553099.php
Super-excited to share w y’all my 1st piece in @washingtonpost on the rise of fruited sours!! Can’t quite believe I’ve made it to the broadsheets!
https://www.washingtonpost.com/food/2022/10/27/fruited-sours-beer-drekker-aslin/
This year the @TXBrewersFest was back in force w 5,000 guests, 85 breweries & 250 beers! So many fantastic brews & a strong vegetable-floral theme made for a fantastic day celebrating Texas beer
‘Where is the distinction between mourning the Queen and eating pork scratchings?’ Despite the glibness of this quote, I dug pretty deep into my sense of identity for this @beer_everyone piece on the impossibility of true internal decolonisation
https://beerisforeveryone.com/dual-identity-death-and-decolonization/
So excited to share my @chron piece on Houston beer diversity! Huge thanks @4JBrewingCo @fortheculturebc @MisfitOutpost @ProjectHaloBrew @TurkeyForrest_ @HOPTOPICWORLD htownbeerguys, KatCraftBeer @ThePintExchange & What’s Up In The Cup for participating!
https://www.chron.com/food/article/diverse-houston-brewery-scene-17505002.php
Writing the amazing story of @LiveOakBrewing has been a pleasure & a privilege. Getting to know the team & the stories behind some of my fave Austin beers was so much fun (& v thirsty work!)-read the history of this ATX institution
Transport yourself to the stunning sun-kisses desert-adjacent Texas Hill Country, where you’re kicking back on the historic Nice N Easy porch, sipping on a (literally) dreamy Yokefellow Sueño… feels good, yes?
Being a woman in the beer industry is hard, but being a one-woman-show in the industry is a different kind of hard. 6 amazing women on running solo beer industry businesses
V excited to share my 1st @atlasobscura piece w y’all! Aerodrome Distilling’s Genepi is an ingenious recreation of the secret historic recipe for Chartreuse, made from scratch in Corpus Christi TX! Not only is it utterly delicious, it’s totally unique
We’re just over 1/2 way through @SAHM_UK#southasianheritagemonth which has a strong resonance for South Asians in #craftbeer .
Hear from @rupeebeer @windmills_usa @MisfitOutpost @AzadiBrewing & Roughhouse Brewing
In the wake of #RoeOverturned @beer_everyone has launched #drinkinginanotherstate collab so breweries, homebrewers &consumers can support those affected by the devastating human rights rollback
Austinites are lucky to have the gorgeous #texaskeepercider ranch & their exquisite beautifully crafted ciders & cider-wine hybrids on our doorstep. Their 2022 Grater Rosato w heirloom apples & Sangiovese grapes is superb-read more
V proud to share the story of Clutch Distilling, the 1st Black-owned distillery taproom in Texas in @TexasHighways
Self-taught rum distiller Eric Worrell has overcome great personal loss to create his own award-winning rum in a stunning space
Had fun getting nerdy swotting up on thiolized yeast-a new way for brewers to release tropical hop aromas! @BlueOwlBrewing & @hopcapitalbrew collaborated on See You Again, Friend IPA w @omegayeast thiolized Cosmic Punch yeast-read more @PorchDrinkSouth
In under a week, @banderabrewery pulled together a 2-day fundraiser bringing together 43 breweries, 55 businesses & over 7,500 guests to raise over $43,000 for the families of the #UvaldeschoolMassacre victims. Breweries matter. Read more @beer_everyone
https://beerisforeveryone.com/ulvade-benefit-beer-festival-by-bandera-brewing-a-wrap-up/
I am so excited to share my 1st @hopculturemag piece w y’all on a unique & inspiring brewery. Kirk Bangstad’s @MBCbrews has its own Super PAC to raise money to fight against right-wing corruption in rural Wisconsin & is suing 3 Republican politicians
Wanna read something awesome-positive?! Check out my @CuisineNoirMag profile of the brilliant April Dove, aka the Traveling Hoptista, Charleston’s 1st Black brewer, & her fab multi-brew initiative #ThaCommUNITY that’s diversifying South Carolina taprooms
Texas gunslingers, vintage brickwork & the spot where young LBJ slugged ‘medicinal’ booze during Prohibition! An utter joy writing about Johnson City’s top new-but-old bar Nice n Easy
A space where beer, feminism, inclusivity, environmentalism, art, wellness & creativity combine!
Welcome to @Covenbrewsters -multi-pronged beery brainchild of the hugely talented & passionate Pip Young! Privileged to write about Pip for @burumcollective
Central Texan Terroir tastes delicious-on a plate & in a glass! My 1st @TexasMonthly piece highlights 6 breweries successfully sourcing local
https://www.texasmonthly.com/food/hill-country-farm-to-glass-breweries/
Some cool Texas #topbrewstues reading for y’all-my latest for @chron on how Houston’s fruited sour scene is flourishing, inc @B52Brewing @localgroupbrew @urbansouth_htx & @IngeniousBeer
https://www.chron.com/food/article/fruited-sour-beer-trend-booming-Houston-17091394.php
The Brown Gradient Beer Wenches (@bg_craftbeer_wenches on IG) are such cool ladies celebrating their Brownness &creating space for Brown women in Utah’s homogeneous beer scene-so excited to share their story in @goodbeerhunting’s Next Germination series
V excited to share with y’all the story of India’s 1st all-female brewing collective #LadiesWhoLager & their inaugural #InternationalWomensMonth beer Geist Stratosphere @VinePair!
https://vinepair.com/articles/ladies-who-lager-women-brewers-india/
I wrote a lil thing about ‘little grey’! Learn more about the mysterious history of Grisette @CAMRA_Official featuring @SierraNevada & @FyneAles ! Big thanks @feralfruits for commissioning this piece!
https://camra.org.uk/learn-discover/the-basics/introduction-to-grisette/
The awesome #craftwomenconnect ladies inc @AtlBeerBoutique & @excitedtofeast have brewed up a phenomenal #InternationalWomensMonth collab w@ReformationBrew ! I was totally hooked on their Ginger Pear BBA Tripel! Read more
Cancel culture has been misnamed, appropriated & unfairly maligned by a right-wing agenda bent on reversing any gains minority groups make by ‘woke-shaming’.This won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but here’s my take on reclaiming cancel culture
https://beerisforeveryone.com/craft-beer-cancel-culture-and-the-battle-for-accountability/
The first of today’s double-dose of Amethyst content! NOLA’s largest brewery @UrbanSouthBeer have 3 new super-cool limited edition Mardi Gras-inspired beers in gorgeous cans to quench your carnival thirst -more @PorchDrinkSouth
Austin Food Blogger Alliance City Guide 2022:
Austin Food Blogger Alliance City Guide 2022:
The Amethyst 12 Essential Distillery Taprooms in the Greater Austin Area
Austin Food Blogger Alliance City Guide 2022:
Austin Food Blogger Alliance City Guide 2022:
Hey friends, I’m v excited to share my 1st piece for @chron -10 Essential HTX Breweries, inc @TrueAnomalyBeer @SaintArnold @GreatHeights @EurekaHeights @B52Brewing @NoLabelBrewCo @IngeniousBeer @equalpartsbeer @SpindleTap & Astral -Happy drinking! #htxbeer
https://www.chron.com/food/article/houston-breweries-happy-hour-serve-food-16944188.php
I had such a lovely chat with @courtiseman about all things beer-writing, beer-diversity, beer-travel and more! Hope y’all can have a read or take a listen!
https://huggingthebar.substack.com/p/36-now-for-your-ears-too-hugging
It’s been just a month since my uncle-in-law passed away suddenly and we miss him terribly. Thank you so much. @goodbeerhunting & @ClaireMBullen for publishing this piece I wrote about food, love and loss
https://www.goodbeerhunting.com/b-roll-blog/2022/2/6/no-629
Omg I had no idea but today y’all get a double-whammy of Amethyst content! Huge thanks to the utterly awesome @delightedbite for a fab chat bout all things foraged clean yeast, Texas terroir, & my @goodbeerhunting piece on Community Cultures Yeast Lab
I’m so excited to see my @CAMRA_Official L&D piece on spent grain reuse live! Check out ways breweries & homebrewers can reduce environmental impact reusing grain!Huge thanks @bklynbrewshop @AlaskanBrewing @CIABrewery Coven Brewsters & @feralfruits!
https://camra.org.uk/learn-discover/learn-more/learn-more-about-beer/spent-grain/
Huge beernews! @AustinBeerworks & @kaijucutandsew have launched the 1st beer supporting @StopAAPIHate – Eastern Philosophy: A Kaiju Brew, a delicious Strong Lager w Japanese Pearl Tea served over ice!
A lil bit of cool #craftbeerhour reading for y’all-my 1st piece for @austinwoman on the fab Elle Thomas & how she’s diversifying the beer tour experience w her company AirBrewNB! Austin readers can also get this in print!
No denying this pushed me a lil out of my comfort zone, but I certainly learned a lot, & great to give shout-outs to fab friends @InfamousBrewing@LoreleiBrewing@MisfitOutpost in @TexasHighways Ultimate Guide to Travelling With Pets!
https://texashighways.com/travel/the-ultimate-guide-to-traveling-with-your-pet-in-texas/
Y’all know I’m a sucker for a proper old-school Russian Imperial Stout & #acoponbrewing ‘s Hans Trapp is absolutely bang on the money. My latest for @PorchDrinkSouth ,including the rather cool story behind this delish brew’s name:
My 1st piece for @Brewer_World showcasing the 1st all-South-Asian US beer conference panel @ChiBrewseum Beer Summit
Thanks ever so much @BeerPrimeUK for including me in your 2021 roundup! So many great new beers and breweries this year despite everything the industry has been through, and delighted to be in such fab company on the show!
Ahhh wowww! Honoured to bits to be included in @goodbeerhunting ‘s 2021 Signifiers! Huge thanks to the fab @helenannesmith_ for such a lovely write-up & thank you to everyone who’s contributed to and read my work!
GBH Signifiers 2021 – Ruvani de Silva
An absolute privilege to write about the utterly awesome Betsy Lay, owner of world-changing @LadyJusticeBrew , & their fantastic work for this year’s @goodbeerhunting Signifiers!
https://www.goodbeerhunting.com/signifiers-2021/2021/12/16/betsy-lay
Absolutely thrilled to see my @goodbeerhunting Signifier on the groundbreaking #communitycultures yeast lab go live! Their unique foraged clean yeasts create fantastic new possibilities for brewers in Texas & beyond-yeast really is the new black!
I had so much fun researching my 1st piece of spirits writing about Texas’ very own version of Chartreuse-Aerodrome Distilling’s Genepi. Read more @TexasHighways – such a fascinating story!
Soooo this happened!! Chuffed to bits to be highly commended by @Britbeerwriters in the Best Beer Writer, National Media category!
Huge congrats to all my fellow nominees and winners-such a fantastic night w so many lovely super-talented beer writers!
https://www.beerguild.co.uk/news/guild-of-beer-writers-top-award-won-by-pete-brown/
The Safe Bars P.A.C.T. is a new initiative by @NotYourHobbyMS@safebarshq@LadyJusticeBrew@CBPcraftbeer & Social Impact Project, incentivising businesses to commit to making hospitality a safe&respectful industry. Read more @beer_everyone
Very excited to share with y’all my 1st piece of #foodwriting ! I loved visiting the Knolle Dairy Farm in Sandia TX, learning about its 100yr history, petting the gorgeous pedigree Jerseys & tasting their delish milk products!
This year’s @TXBrewersFest was a joyful celebration of all things #texasbeer ! You can relive (or enjoy vicariously) the fab @TXCraftBrewers fundraiser in my @PorchDrinkSouth event recap here
Huge thanks to the ever-awesome @brewerytravels for featuring me & the fab @PamCraftBeerATX talking all things #austinbeer on his great new podcast! We had a blast!
Got very emotional writing this! @CraftPride has meant so much to me since moving here & while I’ll miss them hard on Rainey St I can’t wait for their new location! Huge thanks @BenBalmerMusic@CarolineAttack@indybrewing@ZilkerBeer & Hedgehog for your kind contributions!
Here in Central Texas @PanamaNC is a local hero, championing #blackisbeautiful beer &fundraising for charities supporting People of Colour inc @AAYHFoundation
He now has his own beer thanks to the fab folks at Hedgehog Brewing!Read more @CraftBeerATX
Some serious local love in my 1st @PorchDrinkSouth piece for a while-great to welcome #HawkinsFarmhouseAles to the neighbourhood, their spontaneous fermented Major Progression BA Belgian Quad totally rocks!
So excited to see my 1st @pelliclemag piece live! Loved writing about #AcoponBrewing -a true Texan original brewing English ales served on cask in the heart of the Hill Country! Huge thanks @Shinybiscuit @totalcurtis @JoMandoCruz for your fab work on this!
Being thankful isn’t always good. Toxic gratitude is a power tool that controls marginalised groups. My latest @beer_everyone deep-dives into how slavery, colonialism&patriarchy have been reinforced by toxic gratitude&how it affects the beer industry today
Y’all know I love a Doppelbock, but @WestSixth ‘s Illuminator totally knocked it out the park with a clever, sophisticated double-barrel-aging in @Angels_Envy & port barrels! Thank you @JeremeZimm for including me in your @PorchDrinkingCO showcase!
Good morning beer-lovers! Excited to bring y’all my latest @CuisineNoirMag piece! Elle Thomas’s #AirBrewNB is changing both online & irl beer tours w her inclusive, holistic approach to beer & ‘Her-story’ beer history experience from right here in Austin!
I had so much fun hanging out w the rather legendary @brewerytravels on his Austin visit! Find out what he made of the #atxbeer scene, where he visited, & how his lovely dad Greg helped him on his beer-journey @CraftBeerATX !
“In order the hold the ear of white people as you criticize them, you must already have succeeded on their terms and in their world” My analysis of the strengths & limitations of Cathy Park Hong’s Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning @beer_everyone
https://beerisforeveryone.com/minor-feelings/
So much fun chatting all things #womeninbeer#texasbeer & #southasianbeerclub w @beerwithnat ! Huge thanks to Nat for having me on & hope y’all enjoy!
Happy #topbrewstues y’all! Here’s my 2nd @CraftBeerATX roundup of don’t-miss @TXCraftBrewers#LiquidBakeSale Central TX releases, featuring @AustinBeerworks@LiveOakBrewing@HoldOutBrewing#WildBunchBrewing & #CentralDistrict-get em before they’re gone!
Happy #topbrewstues y’all! Want to read a super-cool story on what might be the 1st ever beer brewed w India’s national sweet, the jalebi? Of course you do! Read about @otherdesibeerco ‘s delish Jalebae DIPA @PorchDrinkingCO !
In prep for #RSD2021 I bring you the coolest beer collab in Central Texas! #BastropTX ‘s #AstroRecords & #602Brewing have come together to create the Lippy, a totally badass11% Earl Grey Tea English Brown Ale! Read the full story
4 awesome diversity-forward #Atlanta orgs collaborated on the delish Pomona Paradise Fruited Sour- @PontoonBrewing@TheATLPodcast#BlkBrewBabes & #CraftWomenConnect (@AtlBeerBoutique )! Read about this fab project @PorchDrinkSouth
I wrote this to exorcise the constant, niggling distress of losing my hair, to try to find humour & perspective instead of rage & frustration. It sort of worked. Huge thanks @goodbeerhunting & @ClaireMBullen for publishing my words of self-reflection:
https://www.goodbeerhunting.com/b-roll-blog/2021/6/1/no-594
Beyond excited for my 1st @VinePair article celebrating #southasianbeerclub! Read about Five Asian-Indian Craft Beer Pioneers in North America here!
https://vinepair.com/articles/asian-indian-owned-breweries/
I had a slightly ridiculous amount of fun talking all things #onehitwonder w the awesome @popculturebrews chaps! We run the gamut of #80s#90s classics (plus a few on either side) w tonnes of silly chat for your listening pleasure! And beer of course-can you guess what?
My 1st piece for @CuisineNoirMag on #LagerandListen -a pro-active #DiversityandInclusion initiative from @BeersgivingInfo@MKEBlackInc@mobcraftbeer hosting discussions for change in a safe space & ‘homework’ for living an inclusive life
Just 2hrs til my #beerconference debut @AtlBeerBoutique#CraftedForAction#storytelling panel – very exciting! Register for free here to join the conversation!
https://www.craftedforaction.com/events/virtual-panel-discussions-events
Happy #ThirstyThursday ! It’s nearly the weekend so who’s up for #breakfastbeer ?! Here in Central Texas, @NBBrew have knocked it out the park w Death For Breakfast Imperial Weizenbock w coffee, cacao nibs, pecans & maple syrup! My latest @PorchDrinkSouth
Happy Wednesday y’all! It’s gonna be a hot one today here in Central Texas-perfect for some rather fabulous local Mexican Lager! @AustinBeerworks La Verdad is a stellar poolside refreshment-here’s my @PorchDrinkSouth write-up!
You can now watch me chatting all things #southasianbeerclub w the awesome @cheprish on @witguk on IGTV! Should you feel so inclined
V proud of my 1st Enthusiast-level @CAMRA_Official L&D piece-a whip through the world of kettle-souring! Huge thanks @feralfruits for embracing this topic,& @BlueOwlBrewing@UrbanSouthBeer@DBBrewery for sharing your kettle souring stories! Join CAMRA to read here:
https://camra.org.uk/learn-discover/learn-more/learn-more-about-beer/kettle-souring/
See the slide show below:
Happy Sunday y’all!! Here in Texas, the awesome @TXCraftBrewers have a super-cool new fundraising initiative-the #LiquidBakeSale ! Excited to have covered this fantastic project for @PorchDrinkSouth -read more here!
The very 1st Texan cave-aged beer is released tomorrow by #RoughhouseBrewing ! In collab w @jesterkingbeer & using their mobile coolship, this unique brew has aged for 14months in an underground limestone cave! Here’s my @TexasHighways preview:
Good morning beerlovers!! I was lucky enough to have an awesome #NationalBeerDay chat w @BeerInFront talking cask beer, Austin beer, beer-travels & beer-writing! Thanks so much for having me on your podcast Dave!
https://beerinfront.com/2021/04/08/episode-55-guinness-amethyst-heels/
While it’s essential that we do everything we can to #StopAsianHate we also need to move beyond the homogenisation & identity erasure that comes w this blanket term. Huge thanks @beer_everyone for giving me space to explore this topic
Super-exciting news y’all!! My 1st in-print article is out in @TexasHighways ! Loved writing about brilliant Jarle Lillemoen & Wild Bunch Brewing-one of my fave spots in all of Texas! Read about his gorgeous scenic taproom & delish fire-brewed beers!
Really loved writing about the amazing positive energy, exuberance & beer-love of Atlanta-based women’s beer collective #craftwomenconnect for @beer_everyone !Their online forum is a fab place for beery women-hoorah!
My @goodbeerhunting Read:Look:Drink picks! A brilliant incisive analysis of the Cis White Male ‘creative genius’ problem in @BitchMedia , Rosamund Pike as the chilling face of modern capitalism in #ICareALot & @BlueOwlBrewing ‘s delightful Dapper Devil!
https://www.goodbeerhunting.com/blog/2021/3/4/245-read-look-drink?rq=Ruvani
V excited to have my 1st @CAMRA_Official L&D article live today! As an aspiring homebrewer I’m v fascinated by fire-brewing- & as I’m sure y’all know, women were the earliest brewers! Lady-beer cheers!
So excited to be featured on @kindseybernhard ‘s awesome beer-lady-forward #BoysAreFromMarzen podcast! We had a fab chat about diversity, identity, culture, beer-writing & having unusual 1st names!
https://anchor.fm/kindsey-bernhard/episodes/Episode-28-Ruvani-de-Silva-er2h8d/a-a4of215
The thaw has begun! Texas Spring is so Fruited Sour season & @UrbanSouthBeer are leading the charge! My review of their superb Spilled Schmoojee Imprint collab is live @PorchDrinkSouth -did someone say white chocolate, raspberry & watermelon?!
So excited to feature in the latest @goodbeerhunting podcast! I had a brilliant chat w the fab @delightedbite about inclusion, representation & the challenges & joys of being a South Asian woman in the beer world #beerdiversity#southasianbeerclub
https://www.goodbeerhunting.com/gbh-podcast/2021/2/1/cl-067-ruvani-de-silva-shares-her-joy
My @goodbeerhunting feature on South Asian women in beer is live! A deep-dive into culture, representation, breaking the mould, being ourselves & carving our space in the beer world that meant so much to me to write!
“People of color are unlikely to enter a space in which they are not represented, & in which they do not feel safe & welcome” @BrisUniPress ‘s #BeerandRacism is essential reading on understanding & dismantling industry bias. My @PorchDrinkSouth review:
Craft Beer Amethyst 