Road to Radical Visibility Show/Podcast
Road to Radical Visibility Show/Podcast
From Grains to Gain: A Celiac Brewer's Craft of Gluten-Free Beer and Radical Visibility
Ever faced a life-altering challenge and then turned it into a triumph? That's the story of Gloria from Groundbreaker Brewing, who after being diagnosed with celiac disease, transitioned from the vineyards of winemaking to the vats of gluten-free brewing. Join me, Rachel Freemon-Sowers, as I sit down with this crafty brewer to discuss the intricate dance of creating beers that bring joy to those who thought their pint-drinking days were over. We'll weave through Gloria's personal journey, discovering how family, resilience, and the pursuit of happiness play a pivotal role in concocting the perfect brew.
When life hands you barley, make beer—just not in the way you might think if you're at Groundbreaker Brewing. This episode peels back the curtain on the art of gluten-free craft brewing, a niche where innovation meets tradition, and dietary restrictions don't mean compromising on flavor. Gloria shares the wisdom of adapting skills, the value of community and mentorship, and the unshakeable support of mothers. It's a heartfelt reminder that asking for help isn't a sign of weakness; it's a cornerstone of growth, both in the brewhouse and beyond.
As we raise a glass to the concept of radical visibility, I reflect on the power of authenticity and kindness in every bubbly sip. Our conversation serves as a testament to embracing change, listening to our inner wisdom, and owning our stories with pride. So, whether you're a beer aficionado or simply someone seeking inspiration to live more truthfully, this episode is brewed just for you. Until next time, remember that every shared story is a step towards a world where being your genuine self is the ultimate toast to life.
You can learn more about Gloria and Ground Breaker Brewing here:
Follow Gloria on IG: @glozee_
Website: https://groundbreakerbrewing.com/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/groundbreakerbrewing
IG: https://www.instagram.com/groundbreakerbrewing?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==
Did you have an Ah-Ha moment from this episode? I would love to hear about it! No seriously, I want to hear from you! Send me a DM or email at rachel@rachelfreemonsowers.com.
Watch more self-empowering content on my YouTube Channel.
Want more inspiration and empowerment connect with me on social:
TikTok
Instagram
Facebook
LinkedIn
Website
#LGBTQ+ #LGBTQ+business #visibilitymatters #timetoshine #RoadtoRadicalVisibility #RachelFreemonSowers
When you think craft brewery, that's what my job is. I get in the tanks, I scrub the tanks, I climb around, I move hoses Every batch, even if they have the same recipe, they all have their own little things, their own little quirks. Every time you want to make a change or make a new decision, you need a little bit of something from your past to kind of help you move forward.
Speaker 2:Hello, my beautiful friends, and welcome to another episode of Road to Radical Visibility. My name is Rachel Freeman-Sowers, your host and the creator of this podcast, and if you've been hanging out here for very long, I just want to say you know the drill. This podcast is all about helping you become inspired and empowered to experience your life exactly the way you want to. No shame or guilt needed. And today I've been doing some batch recording and the guests all day have been freaking fab and I meet the coolest people doing this. So the guests I have for you today you're just going to hold on, because there's going to be lots of golden nuggets, there's going to be lots of like. You're going to're going to, you're going to relate to it and I can't wait for you to hear it. But before we jive jive, that's a possibility Before we dive into the episode, I want to introduce her to you.
Speaker 2:So we met at the she Brew Brewing Festival, where all of the brewers, both cider and beer there was a kombucha person, I think all female brewers was put on in support of HRC, which is the human rights campaign. It was the most fabulous event and you all know how I meet such cool people at these events. So let me introduce her and then we're going to dive in. So Gloria is a Midwestern, born and raised in South Bend, indiana. She attended St Mary's College, a women's college, for undergrad and attended UC Davis to learn winemaking. This eventually led her to Oregon where her love for brewing gluten-free beer shirt was born. A diagnosis of celiac disease is what propelled her forward as the head brewer at Groundbreaker Brewing. She is passionate about producing quality gluten-free beer that tastes great I can absolutely verify that and provides others with celiacs the ability to enjoy a good brew. Thank you for being here.
Speaker 1:Gloria, thank you for having me. Thank you for having me. Oh, it's already been a good day.
Speaker 2:Well, I went on a tour of Groundbreaker Brewing yesterday. I stirred some hops, I smashed it between my hands. It was like one of the best experiences I've had thus far, you know. And the first question I always ask every guest is what does radical visibility mean to you?
Speaker 1:It's a good question. To me, radical visibility is about being as true to the life you want to live and constantly trying to reevaluate and find how to make yourself happier. And that can be in career, that can be personal, that can be in so many different directions. But the point of being radically visible for me is to make myself happy, to make my life. You only get to do it once.
Speaker 2:I love that answer because you know I'm all about creating and experiencing life the way that you want, and so many of us have been taught that that's not always available or it's not available to us at all. We just have to do the thing that we're supposed to do, and kind of I love how you are now the head brewer at Groundbreaker Brewing. I mean like that in and of itself is you're really creating this atmosphere to where you know gluten-free beer is available and it's not just like one type that's on tap, no, like you have a.
Speaker 1:There's a lot of different beers that you we keep nine on draft all the time, Um, and I would say that we make between 20 and 30 a year different types of beer. So, um, I'm always making different creative decisions and different, um, new, new ways to have the same experience right. Everybody loves a beer but, uh, as a celiac person, you can't just have every beer, so I want to make different styles, different flavors, different patterns to bring good, trending beer to gluten-free people.
Speaker 2:Well, and although I'm not celiac or any of those things I mean we talked a little bit yesterday about how I don't always, I won't enjoy a regular beer because I feel bloated, because it makes me all of those things Right.
Speaker 2:But in the in the intro we talked, you went from Indiana to UC Davis, which where a lot of people go for winemaking Right, absolutely. And then you're like, oh, la, la, la wine, wine, wine. And then all of a sudden you're like, no, tell me, like the part where it's just like we're home, we're going here. No, we're not doing this.
Speaker 1:I uh, I have had a celiac diagnosis for, uh, almost 15 years, so I really just considered beer out of the plan, um, and so my plan was always to work in wine production, um, and I really liked getting my hands dirty, the physicality of the work, um, and the creativity side of it.
Speaker 1:But I didn't know about gluten-free beer, um, I mean, it's also not been around as long as regular beer, and I was in the Little Emmett Valley working in some wineries and started looking for a new job and found Groundbreaker and didn't even know they existed at all. But I got really lucky to have a team willing to teach me, willing to take me and say we see that there's something that you could figure out that you don't know, but we know things and we'll help you become creative in that way, um, so shout out to my team for teaching and always helping me learn about beer. Uh, because until I started at groundbreaker, I'd never even made a batch of beer before, even though I fermented tons of things kombuchas and wines and meads just didn't do it gluten-free.
Speaker 2:I think that that's one theme that all of my guests, especially the women that I've had been recording today, every single one of you, has said. I may not have been, have done it before, but I can. I can find out how, and there it takes a lot of trust in yourself. I mean, how long have you been the head brewer? Um, just about a year, okay, so that's not long at all. And you go to this brewery and they're like hey, we're looking for this person. Did they say? We're looking for a gluten-free brewer?
Speaker 1:No, they were just looking for somebody to to help in the back of house production, but once we got to know each other it kind of just started to make sense. Um, actually, most of the employees at groundbreaker are not gluten-free, they're just in the business, um in beer, and so it's just um kind of a magical little special moment. But definitely I would agree with the I've I've not done a lot of things. I've not done a lot of things, but I have no doubt yeah, I have no doubt that I can figure it out. Um, and I think a lot of that comes from my mom and her believing in continuing to be a student and continuing to educate. I was really raised with a lot of ideas around being learning all the time, learning into adulthood.
Speaker 2:Well, and we talked yesterday, I think you said you learned to drive a tractor at the age of eight.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I grew up on a farm, yeah, also. So it does kind of give you a rough and tumble kind of education. You know, I had chores, I had things to do, so I'm not afraid of a hard day's work, but it's. It can be scary, but that doesn't mean you stop. You can keep pushing, even if it's hard because you're scared or because you've never done it before. Try and look beside you and see who can help you, who can teach you. Find the things. There are always someone else to help you through this situation. You're not alone and you can learn so many different things, really honestly, from so many good people.
Speaker 2:Well, you know, yesterday we talked a lot. Well, maybe not a lot, but there was a significant amount of time spent in you sharing on the way your mother has empowered you, inspired you, and at that moment I didn't share. But I had my first business when I was like in the seventh grade and I didn't have money for school clothes and my mom is like, and my mom was always the backbone of, she was the creator and some people would say the manifester, but it's because she just did what she needed to do, Right and um, but she's like okay, we need to start you this business. So no laughing, but some of you will know this if you're listening, but it was called clown around town, and so she made me this clown suit. We went to the humor shop, we bought the makeup and I would go to little kids' birthday parties and I sat there and I practiced making clown balloon animals and I would deliver stuff to the hospital.
Speaker 2:So it's like I think we when we really I know that some people haven't had that, but I also had a third grade teacher who would take me under her wing and show me how she made and sold pies with Dream Whip and chocolate, and then I was like oh, that's when I first saw what a side hustle was and being around these people that influence us. And the other thing that you just mentioned too, that I think is really important, is part of the radical visibility is being willing to ask. And just because you don't know something, it doesn't mean anything about you, it just means you don't know it. And that's a mindset shift, that's an emotional shift that a lot of people struggle with.
Speaker 1:I think, even when you're on the other side and you think I can do it, it still comes up, it's still present. Just because I might not tell you that I'm afraid of this leap or this opportunity doesn't mean I'm not. It just means that I trust my team, myself, my partner, my family, to get through, to do what you want to do for your life, because that's your opportunity, right.
Speaker 2:Right, and you know, theoretically we have this one life. People believe whatever they believe in. Maybe we do and maybe we don't. I don't, I don't know, but I'm going to go on that because it's the thing that propels me forward, and the other thing I know is now being 51 years old and being able to look back. It's like I'm not. I am not wasting any more time, and I think I love interviewing younger entrepreneurs, younger women such as yourself, because it does help encourage me too. Oh good.
Speaker 2:Like, you know what I'm saying Because it's like we weren't born in the same time. You were. Yeah, it was a very different picture back then and a lot of people in a lot of women in midlife are caught between, like this baby boomer way of their mother thinking, and the these younger generations, and they're like I want, I want this. And so that's another reason why, you know, I was like this woman needs to be on my show, because this, this was very similar. You were the second brewer, the only the second brewer I talked to, and you know I had gone to the SheBrew and I was like, okay, I'm going to meet some really cool people and up until that point, I I met one other person that I was like they're a fit, Our energy is good, so we're standing in line. No, we are standing discussing your beer. Like, what beer did you have at Shebrew?
Speaker 1:I had the West Coast Pilsner. Oh yes, it's a play on a really trendy style of like a hoppy lager and it's mostly a rice beer. Uh, the, the version I made is a gluten-free rice beer. Um, and I remember meeting you. Uh, I got in line to fill my glass with my beer Cause I was I was supposed to one of my last glasses of the day and I just wanted to have my beer and like, enjoy it for a minute.
Speaker 1:And you and your wife were in front of me and you got it and you were like, oh yeah, I like this beer so much. And then one of your friends didn't have a ticket and I had an extra ticket, so I gave her my ticket and I was like, oh, here, go get it. And then you all came back and you were standing kind of near me talking about it and I was like I'm going to tell them that's my beer. It was so much fun because it felt like you are all interested in my beer dynamically. You just you tried it and there was just so much positive energy about talking about it and the way you all received it. But we had like a whole five minute interaction before I told you.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and then I was out of tickets Don't judge, like. And my wife had like four tickets. I'm like, what have you been doing? Like, have you not been? You need to? I was like, and then I think you gave me another one and I was like, yes, I'll, you know, I'll totally go. But it's like in those totally go. But it's like in those synchronistic moments of meeting someone, yeah, that you allow yourself to be open, because, um, part, part of us progressing and experiencing life the way we want is being open yeah, absolutely it was scary, scary.
Speaker 1:Not it wasn scary, but it was quote. It's scary to reach out to someone, that I see them drinking my beer and it still feels like, oh, what if I walk up and they say they actually don't like it or they're not interested in what I have to say about it? There's still that little bit of fear, but it's also kind of fun, kind of pushing my boundaries to like talk to people about my beer and like meet people at this event that I was trying to meet people at also. So it's like you have to continue that I'll reach out and talk to someone, even when that's the scary thing.
Speaker 2:Well, and I'm so glad you chimed in, because we were sitting there and we were all like what is the profile? We were honestly, because sometimes the profile of a beer is so strong it like smacks you right, but this was light and then so we were kind of talking about that, really trying to discern our palates, and then you like chime in. And it's such a testament to trusting yourself to chime in because we wanted to know more, we wanted to learn more Exactly.
Speaker 1:And so if you can engage when someone is wanting to learn and somebody is wanting to teach, then there's so much power in that interaction. I think in um, in how you think about education and learning about beer profiles on a Sunday afternoon at a festival, like it's. It is learning right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, for sure. So what I mean? How is it being a female head brewer?
Speaker 1:The production space is a weird world because it is definitely masculine heavy. Still it's definitely male dominant. I am always excited to meet other female brewers and women in production, but it does have a little bit of a loneliness sometimes. Uh, we actually she brew brings that together like makes it feel like there's none of that. Uh, we actually have a group called pink boots. That's all female brewers group. Um, that helps with things like the challenges of. Actually, one of the things pink boots is great for is education. They do great, uh, forward education. But it also helps with the um no other feminine energy throughout the day because when all your co-workers are male and every time every sales guy is a man, there's a little loneliness to it.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:But I also don't ever, really I don't ever think about it either, cause I'm just trying to get my job done. I'm just trying to do the best I can with what I have. And because I went to, I think this is actually kind of the opposite. I went to a women's college and at some point, when you're in a women's college, you kind of forget that there are no men around. You just kind of forget that there are no men around, forget that there are no men around. So I kind of have the similar feeling of you kind of have to space out that there are no women around, and I don't like that. I don't like that. I wish there were more women in in the beer industry, for sure. Um, and it's definitely becoming, it's definitely growing, it's's definitely changing. But it's weird when somebody comes to work on something and they want to talk to my assistant huh yeah, it's.
Speaker 1:It's that kind of thing that is just um been handed down from people before generation to generation, kind of that we need to kind of break, and my team does an exceptionally good job of being like no, she's the boss, go talk to her. No, I'm not talking to you. You got to talk to boss lady, cause she's going to, she's going to put it through, where I feel supported, I feel engaged. It has its challenges, though, right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, I think if it didn't have its challenges, we probably wouldn't do it. I mean like to be completely honest. I mean, if you're growing up on a farm or if you're in like in poverty or whatever, like the challenge is part of the excitement of having that done, right into moving forward with that. Um, you know, yesterday I was kind of well, I wasn't kind of that's dumb, I was amazed because I got to look in the pots, like what do you call the pots?
Speaker 1:like I don't know, that's what you call. No, you, it's the kettle pot. Oh, okay, I would call it the kettle. Yeah, okay, a pot makes sense, but it's about 200 to 300 gallons of of hot boiling liquid.
Speaker 2:Okay. So when I looked in to that second or that first pot, like what was in that first pot, In the mash tun that's what that's called there was a bunch of different grains rice, millet, quinoa, buckwheat.
Speaker 1:Um, sometimes we use lentils, sometimes we've used other things to add protein as well. Uh, but totally gluten-free grains.
Speaker 2:Okay, so that was amazing to me, cause then you're like stirring it right, and then we moved over to the other one, okay, and that one was full of what.
Speaker 1:The liquid that comes out of the mash is, uh, sugary water. It's what becomes the beer. It's all the sugars and proteins come out of the grain, into the wort, is what it's called w-o-r-t. It becomes wort and um. The boiling is when you add the hops for aromas and different bitterness flavors. It also takes the water concentration down, so the sugar concentration up, um, and makes it a little bit more alcoholic.
Speaker 2:So the the fascinating part about that kettle was you had hops outside and we smashed them between our hands and we smelled them yeah, smell totally different. And then I poured it in and then I got this whiff and then I was like that's, that's the familiar smell. But to observe and watch you and Tyler cause Tyler was there too doing his thing to watch you and Tyler go through this process was such a fascinating thing, because I, you know, I've done some kombucha at home and stuff, but how, how the things go and how they come out to be something totally different, I think is such a likeness to each journey of life. You know, and you not knowing necessarily, yes, you can have a recipe, you can have all of those things but you decided to go to Groundbreaker just being like, okay'm going.
Speaker 1:yeah, I was just gonna figure it out, yeah yeah.
Speaker 2:So it's like watching this process and then learning about that process and how it's done on such a hands-on, small scale, because I was like, oh, where do you bottle?
Speaker 1:and she's like mobile bodily our canning line comes right in here. Uh, yeah, you did say it yesterday. You said we're a craft brewery, and when you think craft brewery, that's what my job is. Um, I get in the tanks, I scrub the tanks, I climb around, I move hoses, um, and every like you said, every, even if they have the same recipe, they all have their own little things, their own little quirks, um, and I kind of liked it, so I call all of the yeast that we use to make the beer my yeast babies, um, and then I try and think of every batch kind of as like a sibling.
Speaker 1:They're not exactly the same, they might have the same makeup, but they're all a little bit gonna have their own personality, their own patterns, um, because it's because it's small batch, because it's craft beer, um, most of my batches are about 500 gallons, and that's what I do every twice a week, three times a week, um, very regularly. And it's kind of always fun because, even though it's the same routines, it's always smells different. I love how the brewery is, like a warm embrace it's, it smells good when you walk in. Yeah, I like my little space.
Speaker 2:I love the analogy of sisters or siblings, the you know, and I also love stick with me here. Audience don't go anywhere. But I also love the fact that I saw you take some of the wort from one and put it in a barrel to help nurture the yeast that's going to go in another. Exactly, and how, that passing down and how we are a part of each other.
Speaker 1:It all. You can't make a whole batch of beer with nothing. You have to keep the yeast alive, you have to keep the sugars going, and that's like how my mom instilled in myself and my sisters a value of education, um, and that kind. If you can find that thing that can keep you moving to the next one, how it can help you keep doing the next one and the next one. It doesn't always have to be the same thing, but every time you want to make a change or make a new decision, you need a little bit of something from your past to kind of help you move forward.
Speaker 2:You need a little bit of something from your past to kind of help you move forward. Okay, that's the golden nugget of this whole entire episode. So, for those of you that struggle with your past and you see it as something that has been hurtful, I'm not discounting that maybe your past has been hurtful, but you also have an opportunity to say I endured that hurt and it's not like what I'm taking away from that. But what do I want instead? And this is what I'm going to cultivate in my life, right, it's kind of that you're. You need those, that information a lot of times um to to keep moving forward.
Speaker 2:I think the other thing too in business a lot of business people will um associate with is the pivot. Oh yeah, like it's about not being afraid to pivot. So I'm going to ask you this question as we end in the near the end of the podcast. Like if someone is afraid to pivot and I'm careful it's quitting their nine to five, whether it's going from one different industry to another, whether it's pivoting entrepreneurially, like what would you tell them? What advice would you give them?
Speaker 1:I would say that you can't predict your pivot. Could have never, at 18 or 21 or 24, could never have told you where I was going to be today, but I made decisions at all of those points that have put me here. I can't predict how a pivot is going to change my whole spectrum, so don't be afraid of it, because it's still going to happen. So if you don't take a pivot, you stay in a stuck place. A change will still come, just not one you're embracing or embodying. Change will still come, just not when you're embracing or embodying.
Speaker 2:Well, I love that because oftentimes, when we predict what will happen with the pivot, we put our own shit in it and that's when it doesn't work out the best. And if you can stay open and you can trust and have that faith in yourself. Yeah, I'm not this this might get me some heat, but I'm not talking about having a faith in God. That's way out here. I'm not talking all that Like have a faith in yourself, Like no, no, I'm, I'm. This is what my conviction is. This is where I'm going and I'm willing to test it out and I'm willing to see. Oftentimes, when you remain open, it's just like our meeting at SheBrew.
Speaker 2:You just meet up and it's a, it's a connection, right, and then you let that go. So true, so true. Well, man, I've I've really enjoyed this episode. I've really loved talking about your brewing process. I have absolutely loved meeting you. I know that there is um tell. Well, let me ask you this tell people where they can find you and or um ground breaker brewing.
Speaker 1:I would say that, uh, I'm on Instagram as glows Z and Groundbreaker is Groundbreaker Brewing on Instagram. That's the handle as well, but I'm in Southeast Portland.
Speaker 2:Come hang out Well and you got to there's, there's like there's such a cute pub. I know Our pub. Yeah, yeah and yeah brunch on Sundays.
Speaker 1:Every other Sunday we have brunch with Salvi PDX, a Latina owned business that runs our kitchen space and she makes chilaquiles, she makes chicken and waffles. We also have we also have our pub open Wednesday through Sunday, two to eight, just normal hours.
Speaker 2:Well, I just want to thank everyone for listening. Thank you again for being here. I'm going to wrap up this episode Like I wrap up every single road to radical visibility. Please make sure to stay true to yourself, be kind to others and always, always, always, honor the wise one that is within you. I will see you all on the next road to radical visibility. Until then, I'll talk to you later. 100% of the time, no shame or guilt needed, even just a little bit more. Please rate and leave a review. I'm here, and I know you are too, to leave a positive impact in the world. So please share this episode with your friends, family or that random stranger, because you never know who you'll inspire by just being you. I'll see you on the next road to radical visibility. Bye.