Whitney McLain, recently named head brewer at Iron Hill Brewery in Dunwoody, moved to Atlanta last year, after previously having worked three years for Iron Hill in New Jersey.
“I got into beer through serving at an Irish pub in Oklahoma City,” McLain said, sipping a glass of her new Rhinemaidens’ Pilsner at the taproom. “Later, I moved to New Jersey, where I went back to serving beer, and worked my way into the brewery from there.”
In March, McLain submitted Rhinemaidens’ to the World Beer Cup competition, where it will be judged with lagers from around the world. She described the recipe as “very simple,” with Pilsner and Munich malts, and German Hallertauer Mittelfrüher hops.
“At the beginning of my career, my main focus was just learning how to do everything right,” she said, “and having a perfect Pilsner is high up there on being able to prove you’ve done it right. I also care a lot about German beer, and significantly less about a lot of other styles.”
The name of her Pilsner comes from German folklore: the three water-nymphs in Richard Wagner’s opera cycle, “Der Ring des Nibelungen.”
As head brewer, McLain handles the day-to-day operations at the brewery, including making the full range of Iron Hill’s signature beers, developing new recipes of her own, and looking after quality control.
As a woman working in the beer business, McLain said she has had her share of struggles, though being a woman hasn’t been a problem in the brewhouse.
Accounts that she’s read in the past year of problems other women have had in the beer world “were very similar to my personal experiences,” she said. “There are definitely huge issues within the industry, as far as equality and equity, and just being taken seriously as a woman.
“But, most of my experiences have not been within the walls of a brewery. It has been interfacing with guests or random beer nerds. I haven’t been discriminated (against) in any way by brewers I’ve worked with. I’ve been lucky in that regard. I’ve been very much supported at Iron Hill, and definitely not treated like I’m a lady. I’m just another brewer.”
Asked if she is “all in” as a brewer now, McLain flashed a smile.
“I don’t think I could leave if I wanted to,” she said. “I took a little break, and moved back to Oklahoma. I got into retail liquor and I went crazy. You can’t stop brewing. I figured that out the hard way. I suddenly realized why all of us that are still standing are still standing. Brewing is very hard, and you’re never going to get paid very much, so you have to really love it to stay.”
In addition to Rhinemaidens’ Pilsner, you can look for a new beer from McLain for the annual Pink Boots Collaboration Brew Day, highlighting women in brewing.
“This year’s is a dry-hopped Pilsner, like a variation of a very American Pilsner, and it’s made with honey,” she said. “It’s called We All Bee Long. We’re releasing it April 7. It was brewed here and at the [Iron Hill] brewery in Pennsylvania, so we’ll have cans and draft here. I haven’t had one of my recipes in cans until this one, so that’s another milestone.”
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