Co-founder of Eagle Rock Brewery Ting Su has helped get the LA Beer Scene off the ground, and as leader of the Woman’s Beer Forum and her position on the LA Beer Week board she has helped craft the scene into the lively and thriving community that it is today. Learn more about Ting through an interview, a documentary, and her own words.

In 2009 Ting, her husband, and her father-in-law took the plunge and launched Eagle Rock Brewery; the first production brewery to open in the city of Los Angeles in over 50 years. Overcoming the bureaucratic roadblocks to get a brewery permitted in opened in LA was a challenge, and after production began and Eagle Rock’s popularity increased Ting continued to struggle with finding acceptance as a woman in the boy’s club of the industry.

She has combated what is often subtle and ingrained sexism towards woman craft beer enthusiasts by creating the monthly Woman’s Beer Forum at the brewery. The forum invites woman to gather for a night of serious beer discussion over curated flights of craft beer. (Check out our report on the pre-LA Beer Week edition of the forum)

In Her Own Words

In an article for craft beer website Bierkast Ting writes about what drove her to start the forum, and why bringing women into the fold of craft beer is such an important part of developing the a thriving beer community in LA:

I had decided at that point that I’d really like to create some sort of environment where ladies didn’t have to get pigeon-holed into certain types of beers, and to empower them to explore different styles in order to identify what they liked and didn’t like about beers.

• Bierkast: Eagle Rock’s Ting Su

The Documentary

Ting, the “Director of Tyrannical Studies” at the brewery, was also the subject of a recent short documentary by WIGS that tells the story of the brewery’s launch and the importance of the forum and the taproom in building the LA scene:

The Interview

After the documentary was released Ting was interviewed on Food GPS where she shares more details of the struggles of getting Eagle Rock Brewing off the ground, and her previous career and history in the restaurant industry:

 At 12, I remember standing behind the cash register. My parents would put me for a couple hours at a time. I was basically at the mall food booth to take orders and make change for people. I basically started there and worked my way up to busing tables, waiting tables, and eventually got to the point where I would have to manage the restaurant when my parents were out of town, occasionally.

• Food GPS -Interview: Eagle Rock Brewery co-owner Ting Su

Next time you stop by the Eagle Rock Brewery taproom for a pint or a growler fill be sure to say “hi” to Ting and thank her for all the hard work she’s put into the brewery and the LA craft beer community!