Photo by Matt Sayles
Research & Development Brewer at Breakside Brewery, Portland, OR
Growth and Vision Beyond Beer
Like so many others in the beer industry, Natalie Baldwin started her career washing kegs. She quickly rose through the ranks first as a production brewer and then to the post of Research and Development brewer at Breakside, one of Oregon’s more celebrated breweries. From her perch, she works on traditional European beers, with a predominant focus on German lagers, French-style saisons and specialty beers using seasonal flowers, tea, spices and fruit. Her beers have won numerous awards and outside of the brewhouse she leads by sitting on multiple diversity and equity committees in Oregon.
“Stepping into the beer scene I imagined I would be constantly nerding out on obscure beer styles and specialty ingredients; over the years I have learned that being invested in the community is more complicated,” she says. “While we have lots of work to do, people in the industry are demanding change. Breweries should continue to strive to hire the most capable person for the job, never mind gender, sexual orientation or race.
Instagram: @nrbeeer, @breaksidebrews
